Ray Kerr doesn’t take the big leagues for granted. After everything he’s lived through, how could he?
Two weeks ago, the Braves reliever was back on a major-league mound for the first time since June 15, 2024. That outing led to Tommy John surgery, and the return journey stretched on for nearly two years. Before he was pitching in Atlanta again, Kerr spent most of that time at the club’s spring training complex, grinding through rehab on back fields in Florida heat and wondering whether he’d ever wear a big-league uniform again.
Even the simplest baseball moments have felt different to him. On a late August afternoon at Truist Park, Kerr stood by the dugout rail while teammates played catch and Dodgers stars loosened up across the field. Hours later, he watched Chris Sale finish off a sweep-clinching shutout of the reigning back-to-back World Series champions, and he loved every second of it.
“I’d rather watch that 100 percent of the time than pitch in the game,” Kerr said. “That’s something that doesn’t happen every day.”
That perspective comes from a life that never offered him much of a straight line. Kerr grew up in foster care after his mother was absent and his father was in and out of prison.
He and his brother Richard were moved around several times. In Reno, Nev., the two spent their time fishing, riding bikes in the dirt and catching reptiles - including a rattlesnake they once tried to convince their father to keep.
Baseball was the one place Kerr could separate himself. At Hug High School, he was the clear standout, once striking out 17 in a game his team barely won.
But the path got messy fast. He played one year at Mendocino College, then became academically ineligible and had to redshirt.
When the coach wouldn’t let redshirts practice, Kerr went back to Reno and started working regular jobs, stocking shelves at 7-Eleven and sweeping popcorn at a movie theater.
He thought that might be his future until Eric Perry, who Kerr considers a mentor, pushed him toward Lassen Community College. Kerr got the 3.6 GPA he needed, then still found himself without an offer after the season.
His next stop was the Alaska Baseball League, where he pitched for the Peninsula Oilers in Kenai, a town of 7,000. That trip became his final lifeline.
Against Division I draft prospects, Kerr put up a 1.13 ERA with 43 strikeouts and 10 walks in 48 innings. Cumberland University offered him a spot, and then the Mariners and Marlins came calling to watch him throw. Seattle ended up signing him to a minor league deal with a $2,000 bonus.
“I was like, okay, go do baseball only,” Kerr said. “No essays, no research papers? Yeah, I’ll do that for sure.”
His rise kept going from there. He reached Triple A with Seattle, then got traded to the Padres in November 2021. The following season, he made his major-league debut against the Dodgers and struck out Max Muncy, one of the same players he watched warming up at Truist Park last week.
“It’s really surprising to just see him go from 7-Eleven and us working together at IMAX theater,” Richard Kerr said. “Him furthering his career was such an eye-opener for a lot of people.”
The Braves acquired Kerr in December 2023 because they liked his velocity. He pitched for Atlanta in 2024 before the Tommy John surgery stopped him again.
The setback hit hard, but he kept moving, and the organization kept backing him. That support mattered.
If he was going to get back, he wanted to make it count.
So when he returned to the majors this month, every inning felt earned. Kerr has made four appearances since joining Atlanta’s 40-man roster on Aug. 16, allowing two runs in 6 2/3 innings. On Monday night, he worked 3 1/3 innings in a 7-3 Braves loss to the Giants, striking out four and giving up one run on a solo homer.
Walt Weiss sees exactly why Kerr’s story resonates.
“I have a certain level of respect for guys that have been through it, whether it be injury or performance, and gotten kicked down, and then they find a way to get back,” Weiss said. “And Ray is certainly one of those guys.”
Kerr feels the same way about the road behind him. The chance to keep playing, keep fishing, keep showing up in a major-league ballpark - none of it is small to him.
“Man, keep going,” Kerr said. “Look where I’m at now just because I wanted to keep going. I knew I had a passion for baseball, and I had people there supporting me, and there’s nothing wrong with a little help.
“Follow whatever dream that you like because we’re just getting older and older.”
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