Roberto Kelly

Professional career

New York Yankees (1987–1992)

Kelly made his MLB debut with the New York Yankees in 1987. He broke up Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Dave Stieb's perfect game at SkyDome in 1989 with a two-out double in the ninth inning. He was named to the 1992 American League All-Star team.

Cincinnati Reds (1993–1994)

After the 1992 season, the Yankees traded Kelly to the Cincinnati Reds for Paul O'Neill. With the Reds, Kelly made the 1993 National League All-Star team.

Atlanta Braves (1994)

On May 29, 1994, the Reds traded Kelly to the Atlanta Braves for Deion Sanders.

Montreal Expos (1995)

The Braves traded Kelly along with Tony Tarasco and Esteban Yan to the Montreal Expos for Marquis Grissom on April 6, 1995.

Los Angeles Dodgers (1995)

The following month, the Expos traded Kelly and Joey Eischen to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Henry Rodríguez and Jeff Treadway.

Minnesota Twins (1996–1997)

A free agent after the season, Kelly signed with the Minnesota Twins for the 1996 season.

In 14 seasons, he played in 1,337 games and had 4,797 at bats, 687 runs, 1,390 hits, 241 doubles, 30 triples, 124 home runs, 585 RBI, 235 stolen bases, 317 walks, a .290 batting average, a .337 on-base percentage and a .430 slugging percentage. Defensively, he recorded a .985 fielding percentage as an outfielder.

Kelly was a member of four playoff teams in his career, having helped the Dodgers win the 1995 NL West Division, the Mariners win the 1997 AL West, and the Rangers win the 1998 and 1999 AL Western Division. (Kelly played ten games for the 2000 American League East-winning New York Yankees, but played his final game on April 18, long before the playoffs.)

Coaching career

On November 16, 2007, Kelly was hired as the San Francisco Giants' new first base coach and hitting instructor. As a manager of the Augusta GreenJackets, he gained a reputation for his aggressive approach to baserunning. In February 2008, he told Giants pitchers that he didn't want them to use the fact that they were pitchers as an excuse for poor baserunning.

On January 17, 2018, Kelly was announced as the new manager for the Sultanes de Monterrey of the Mexican League for the next three seasons.

On October 1, 2025, Kelly joined the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League as the team's manager.

Personal life

Kelly is married to Blanca Gonzalez Kelly, sister of Juan González, and has seven sons, named Roberto Jr., Roberto Bryan, Xavier, Ryan, Johaun, Jacques and Jadrien. He also has three daughters named Charlene, Rhianna and Bianca.

Notes

References

References

1. (12 April 2003). "Dejan oficialmente sin medalla al equipo nacional de beisbol".
2. "Giants' motto: Without HRs, it's run, run, run". Sfgate.com.
3. Hafner, Dan. (August 5, 1989). "Third Time Is No Charm for Stieb". [[Los Angeles Times]].
4. (November 4, 1992). "BASEBALL; Yankees Trade Roberto Kelly to Reds for O'Neill". The New York Times.
5. (May 30, 1994). "BASEBALL; Sanders's Trade for Kelly Is More Than Lefty-Righty". The New York Times.
6. [https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1995/apr/07/expos-continue-housecleaning-trade-grissom/ "Expos Continue Housecleaning, Trade Grissom," ''The Associated Press'' (AP), Friday, April 7, 1995.] Retrieved February 2, 2023.
7. Nightengale, Bob. (May 24, 1995). "Dodgers Pull Off a Big One: Rodriguez for Expos' Kelly : Baseball: L.A. also gets reliever Eischen and gives up Treadway in deal that has Butler asking questions.".
8. "Roberto Kelly Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com.
9. "The 2000 NY A Regular Season Batting Log for Roberto Kelly". [[Retrosheet]].
10. (January 17, 2018). "Presentan a Roberto Kelly, nuevo mánager de Sultanes".
11. Campa, Emmanuel. (October 1, 2025). "LMB: Los Toros de Tijuana saludan la llegada de Roberto Kelly".