Diamondbacks Engineer Massive Ninth Inning in Merrill Kelly's Return

The Arizona Diamondbacks entered the ninth inning of a game against the Kansas City Royals in Surprise with a thin, one-run lead of 6-5. They left the field with an 11-5 final score after a five-run insurance frame.

Three walks, two hits, a wild pitch and a hit-by-pitch — all coming with one or more out — led to one of the more lopsided offensive innings in Arizona's recent stretch of Cactus League Play.

But, perhaps of more note than the explosive offensive output from the minor league contingent, Friday night's game saw the return of right-hander Merrill Kelly. Kelly's 2026 Cactus League debut was a relatively ugly affair.

Arizona Diamondbacks' Merrill Kelly Makes Uneven Return

Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Merrill Kelly during spring training workouts at Salt River Fields on Feb. 13, 2026, Scottsdale. | Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Kelly's first inning was a solid scoreless frame. He was hit hard in the second, however, giving up a double and triple in back-to-back at-bats. Kelly gave up five hits in total, leading to two earned runs, though it was hardly an outing that warranted concern given the circumstances.

"Overall [my stuff felt] okay, a couple things that definitely need some sharpening, but for the first game of spring, that's to be expected no matter what time it is, especially being pushed back this late," Kelly told MLB.com's Steve Gilbert after exiting.

"Not alarming by any means. Just feel like the more I get my feet on the mound the better it'll get."

The Diamondbacks got scoreless innings out of several key arms. RHPs Paul Sewald, Jonathan Loaisiga and Andrew Hoffmann each hung a zero on the scoreboard.

Lefty Philip Abner, who has been solid in Cactus League play overall, gave up two more runs in the fourth inning, surrendering a massive two-run blast. Kade Strowd gave up another run in 1.1 innings.

But the D-backs' offense was able to easily overcome the five runs plated by Kansas City.

Arizona Diamondbacks' Offense Explosive vs Royals

Arizona recorded 14 base hits and worked an impressive seven walks. Five of their 11 runs came in the ninth inning.

Infield prospect Jansel Luis went 2-for-4 on the night, with a 421-foot solo homer to center field off MLB righty Michael Wacha. Luis has steadily climbed up Arizona's prospect rankings, currently coming in at No. 13 on MLB Pipeline's D-backs top 30.

Outfielder A.J. Vukovich delivered a solo shot of his own in the top of the fifth inning to take a 5-4 lead. Ben McLaughlin, Jorge Barrosa and Manuel Pena each recorded doubles.

After what has been a rough stretch for both Arizona's pitching and hitting, it was encouraging to see some fireworks from the lineup, even if it was missing most of the D-backs' major leaguers in this contest.