How Rare Was Merrill Kelly's Complete Game, Really?

On Friday night, Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Merrill Kelly did something he'd never done before, and something that rarely happens in major league baseball in this era: finish a full, nine-inning complete game.

In a dominant and much-needed 9-1 win over the Colorado Rockies, at Coors Field, no less, Kelly worked through an efficient nine innings, with his only damage suffered coming in the form of a solo home run in the very first inning.

Kelly needed just 100 pitches to finish the game, helped along by what was a four-pitch eighth inning. In today's game, it's a combination of pitch counts and "up-downs" between innings that give managers reason to not let their pitchers go the distance.

"It doesn't happen a lot in baseball anymore, but he did a great job [Friday]," D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said to D-backs.TV's Jody Jackson postgame. "It was a great moment for him. He had a lot of things going in his favor."

Lovullo is correct; it does not happen in baseball much, anymore. So, just how rare was Kelly's complete game?

How rare Merrill Kelly's complete game really was

May 3, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Merrill Kelly (29) pitches against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images | Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

Kelly's complete game was the first official one by a Diamondbacks starter since the 2023 season, when Zac Gallen did so at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Brandon Pfaadt threw a nine innings in a game in 2025, but extra innings prevented him from receiving an official CG.

The Diamondbacks, as an organization, have only thrown five (counting Kelly's) complete games from 2019-2026.

Complete games are, obviously, not nearly as rare as a no-hitter or perfect game, but they've dwindled significantly in the past four-plus seasons. In 2025, there were 29 complete games thrown, one up from 28 in 2024.

The drop-off has been steep ever since the 2021 season, in fact. The covid-shortened 2020 season saw 29 complete games with the abridged year, that would have been a very high pace considering it was a season of only 60 games. In 2021, pitchers threw 50 official complete games, but that plummeted to 36 and 35 in 2022 and 2023.

Kelly even being credited for a complete game is something that is quite rare. He is only the fourth pitcher to earn one thus far in 2026 through the first 43 games of the season in what could be a historically-low number of CGs.

But the rarity of the achievement is amplified when considering the factors, as well. First, Kelly's age.

The veteran right-hander is 37 years old, pitching in his eighth major league season. Kelly is the oldest pitcher to throw a CG since Adam Wainwright did so for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2022 at age 40. He's the oldest Diamondbacks pitcher to do so since Randy Johnson in the 2008 season.

At 37 years and 213 days, Merrill Kelly is the oldest pitcher with a complete game since Adam Wainwright in 2022

The only Diamondbacks pitcher with a complete game at an older age: Randy Johnson (15 9-IP CG that old) https://t.co/0jncvO8YGz
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) May 16, 2026

And for that to be Kelly's first career CG? He is the second-oldest pitcher in the past 80 years to manage his first career complete game (stats provided by Sarah Langs on X/Twitter).

For the old-school baseball fan, it was a trip down memory lane to see another complete game in this era. For Kelly, it's a career achievement, in a win the Diamondbacks sorely needed.

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