‘An elite human being and teammate’: What to know about new Pirates manager Don Kelly

Noah Hiles / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Just 38 games into the season, the Pirates made a significant change within the franchise Thursday, firing Derek Shelton and replacing him with bench coach Don Kelly.

Born in Butler, Kelly’s name is familiar to many throughout the area. He has played baseball in Pittsburgh as a high school prospect, college standout and as a nine-year big-leaguer. After retiring as a player in 2016, Kelly returned to his hometown in 2020 to join Shelton’s staff. Now, for at least the remainder of this season, he is the man in charge.

Kelly enters a situation that won’t be easy to fix. He inherits a club that has lost seven straight and has an overall record of 12-26, good for last place in the NL Central. But with many elements of the organization’s future uncertain, Friday marks the beginning of a major opportunity for the 45-year-old Mt. Lebanon native. 

So who exactly is Don Kelly? 

The ballplayer

Kelly’s baseball journey started in Western Pennsylvania. He was a standout at Mt. Lebanon High School, leading the Blue Devils to a PIAA Class 3A title his senior year.

Under-recruited out of high school, Kelly chose to stay in his hometown for college and attend Point Park University. He was a three-year starter for the Bison, earning NAIA All-American honors as a junior in 2001 along with being named the Mountain East Conference Player of the Year.

The Detroit Tigers selected Kelly in the eighth round of the 2001 MLB draft. Kelly left Point Park with a career .413 batting average. He struck out just 20 times in more than 500 collegiate plate appearances.

After playing six years in the minor leagues, Kelly made his big-league debut with the Pirates on April 2, 2007. He played in just 25 major league games that season and wouldn’t see big-league action again until 2009, when he returned to the Tigers.

Kelly found a regular baseball home in Detroit, where he would end up playing six of his nine major league seasons. While his numbers were, at times, not reflective of a successful major league player, he remained a regular part of the Tigers roster due to his willingness to fill any role needed.

“He was one of those guys, he always gave everything he had,” Hall of Fame manager Jim Leyland said of Kelly to the Post-Gazette in 2019. “He was a great guy on the ballclub, a great guy in the clubhouse. He was actually a better player than he got credit for, too.”

Kelly played at least one game at every position on the field throughout his career. His best year as a big-leaguer came in 2010, when he was worth 2.1 bWAR. He appeared in 24 playoff games, two of those coming in the 2012 World Series. His playing career ended in 2016 with the Miami Marlins. But it did not take long for him to begin the next chapter of his baseball journey.

The coach

Kelly’s baseball acumen landed him a job the season after his playing career ended. He was hired as a scout for the Tigers in 2017, a position he held until 2019, when he was named the first base coach for the Houston Astros.

In his first year as a coach at any level, Kelly was a part of a staff that won the American League pennant and played in the seventh game of the World Series. While he was still new to the world of coaching, he was learning fast while finding ways to impact those around him.

“He’s so nice it’s contagious,” former Astros pitcher Justin Verlander said of Kelly in 2019. “I think it’s kind of like Jose [Altuve of the Astros]. He didn’t put up Jose’s stats, but you can tell he’s having fun. People just loved him. He played every single role, did whatever was asked of him and it was all for the betterment of the team. Can’t put a finger on it, but he’s just one of those guys people fall in love with.”

In December 2019, it was the Pirates who once again fell in love with Kelly. After hiring Shelton to be the club’s 46th manager, Kelly was added to his staff as the bench coach. Since rejoining the organization where he made his big-league debut, Kelly has continued to earn respect throughout the baseball community.

“He’s smart. He asks good questions. He’s organized,” Shelton said of Kelly in 2020. “I think this is just the beginning of his career and what he’s going to do, and I’m really excited that he’s the person that I’m asking daily questions to. And I know at times I mess with him, especially with you guys, but to state how much he means to me on a daily basis in terms of the conversations on everything we’re doing and being able to bounce things off, it’s extremely helpful because he is very thoughtful.”

Despite receiving coaching opportunities from other organizations, Kelly remained in Pittsburgh. While a handful of Shelton’s assistants were replaced throughout the years, he never seemed to be in jeopardy of losing his job, and perhaps for good reason.

The Pirates believed in Kelly. And now, he is the man running the team.

The man

Only time will tell how long Kelly will be the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. While the team refrained from putting the “interim” label on his position, general manager Ben Cherington said Thursday that Kelly’s title was “permanent for 2025.”

Although it is rare to see in-season coaching replacements come outside an organization, the Pirates likely had other options to consider. But Kelly, as expected by many when Shelton’s firing seemed imminent, was the clear choice for the job. Why was this the case? For Cherington, Kelly was the right fit because of not only his baseball acumen, but his overall character.

“There's a lot of reasons,” Cherington said. “Start with who he is as a person. This is someone who cares way more about the Pirates, the city, cares way more about the people in that clubhouse than he does himself. He's just an elite human being and teammate. He comes to the ballpark every day focused on only one thing — how to help this team get better.”

There are plenty of areas where the Pirates need to “get better.” The club enters Friday with the third-worst winning percentage in baseball (.316), trailing only the White Sox (.263) and Rockies (.162). The Pirates rank 21st in MLB in ERA (4.31), 24th in fielding percentage (.981) and 27th in batting average (.219).

Kelly alone can’t fix all of these issues. Cherington himself acknowledged as much Thursday, saying everyone within the organization needs to be better moving forward. And although it is perhaps hard to envision this year’s Pirates turning their disastrous season around, the team at the very least has a new voice — and it’s a voice with some local flavor.

“He's a Pittsburgh guy,” Leyland said of Kelly in 2019. “To be able to coach for your hometown team, it's pretty good. Donny is a great fit anywhere.”