Perrotto: Don Kelly Has Long Been High on Genesis Cabrera

PITTSBURGH – Don Kelly has had his eye on Genesis Cabrera for eight years.

Finally, the two were united when Cabrera, a left-handed relief pitcher, joined the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night, a day after being signed as a free agent.

Kelly, the Pirates’ manager, wasted no time using Cabrera during a 9-1 victory over the New York Mets at PNC Park that started a three-game series. Cabrera retired all four batters he faced on a night that Mitch Keller (2-10) snapped a 15-start winless streak that dated to March 29.

Cabrera, 28, made his first appearance since the previous Friday for the Chicago Cubs, who then designated him for assignment the next day. After Cabrera cleared waivers, the Pirates signed him.

“He looked good, especially for not pitching for a while,” Kelly said. “He’s been down in that limbo for a while. Sometimes that can get tough, especially the first outing with a new team and not pitching for a while. We liked what we saw out there.”

There was every reason to like what Cabrera showed. However, Kelly has long been impressed by Cabrera, going back to when he was a starting pitcher in Class A for the Tampa Bay Rays’ Charlotte farm club in 2017.

That was Kelly’s first season as a scout, working for the Detroit Tigers. His playing career ended the previous season.

“Just an electric arm,” Kelly said of his first impression of Cabrera. “He was skinnier, and now he’s stronger, more developed. Just really stuck out at that time, the way he could throw the ball.”

Cabrera reached the major leagues in 2019 with the Cardinals, was converted to a reliever after just two starts, and spent five seasons with St. Louis. He was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2023.

Cabrera became a free agent and signed with the Mets in the offseason, but they released him despite having a solid 3.52 ERA in seven games to begin this season. The Cubs then signed him, but he had an 8.68 ERA in nine games.

Coming into this season, Cabrera had a 3.89 career ERA in 272 games and six seasons.

“It’s the first time that I’ve gone through this, but it doesn’t change anything,” Cabrera said of his vagabond season. “I’m just going to continue to work, keep my mind in a good place and just come here and do my best. I just want to command the strike zone, attack hitters and just do all that, like I’ve always done before.”

Kelly spent two seasons as a scout before getting into coaching. He was on the Houston Astros’ staff in 2019, then was the Pirates’ bench coach from 2020 until being elevated to replace fired manager Derek Shelton on May 8.

Kelly believes his time as a scout has proved beneficial to being a manager.

“Just trying to be able to evaluate and see things,” Kelly said. “There’s always going to be subjective stuff. How do you blend the subjective and objective, and trust your eyes and what you’re seeing. Whether it’s a pitcher throwing, what their command is, what their stuff is, or from a hitter’s standpoint, and getting to know the players on your team. I learned a lot through scouting and just trying to use it all to blend it together and help make decisions.”

The decision to sign Cabrera looks good through at least one game.