Antoine Kelly’s first shot with the Cubs was brief, but it may not be the last. The hard-throwing lefty, acquired in an under-the-radar trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers in early June, elected free agency after the season, leaving Chicago with a decision to make on whether to bring him back on another minor-league deal.
Kelly barely got a chance to show what he could do at the big-league level. He was called up at the end of July and appeared once, facing the New York Yankees.
In that outing, he struck out one batter, walked one, and didn’t allow a hit or a run. A week later, he was optioned back to Triple-A and never returned.
That short major-league look came after a stretch in which the Cubs had hoped Kelly might provide some bullpen help. Chicago was dealing with a need for healthy arms, but Kelly’s command issues followed him to the organization. After the trade, he walked 22 batters in 29.2 innings, while also hitting two batters and throwing six wild pitches.
Even with those control problems, there’s still something the Cubs can work with. Kelly can reach the high 90s, and his stuff has played in the minors. At Iowa, he posted a 25.7% strikeout rate and a 4.25 ERA, and he finished his time with the Cubs’ Triple-A club with better overall numbers than the early wildness might suggest.
In Iowa, Kelly logged 19.1 innings and put together a 2.79 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP, a 26.5% strikeout rate, an 8.4% walk rate, and a .227 batting average against. From June 11 through July 18, he was especially sharp, turning in a 1.10 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 16.1 innings. He did allow four runs across his last two appearances, though his work in the Cubs’ system still represented a clear step forward.
Kelly’s path to this point has been a long one. He began his pro career with the Milwaukee Brewers after being selected in the second round in 2019, and he was later part of the trade that sent him to the Texas Rangers at the 2022 deadline for Matt Bush.
He also was selected to the 2022 Futures Game. In 2023, he looked like a pitcher on the rise, winning Reliever of the Year in the Rangers’ minor league system after striking out 79 batters in 57.1 innings with a 2.04 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A.
Things changed quickly after that. The Rangers added Kelly to their 40-man roster entering 2024, but he opened the year at Triple-A, struggled badly, and was designated for assignment.
The Colorado Rockies claimed him off waivers, but his 2024 season ended with a 9.35 ERA in 26 total innings in Triple-A. He stayed on the fringe of the majors in 2025 as well, and after another uninspiring year, he and the Rockies parted ways before he landed on a minor-league deal with the Dodgers.
Now the question is whether Chicago keeps the relationship going. Kelly’s velocity makes him an intriguing arm for a club that can use bullpen depth, and the Cubs may well want another look at him in spring training.
He is also a local product, having played at Maine East in Park Ridge, and his road to the majors started when the San Diego Padres drafted him out of high school in 2018 in the 13th round. He chose not to sign then, went to Wabash Valley College, and was later taken 65th overall in 2019.
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