Joseph William Kelly Jr. is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox. He played college baseball for the UC Riverside Highlanders.
He has served as both a starter and a reliever. The Cardinals drafted Kelly in the third round of the 2009 MLB draft. Listed at 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) and 190 pounds (86 kg), Kelly throws and bats right-handed.
Kelly has gained publicity for his comical repertoire, such as dancing in the outfield during practice, disguising himself while interviewing the unwitting rapper Nelly, engaging in a lengthy staredown with Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Scott Van Slyke before a 2013 National League Championship Series game, and wearing a charro jacket to the White House. In 2020, Kelly’s mocking of Carlos Correa complaining about a near hit by pitch became popular online.
