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The D-backs will be without the services of starter Merrill Kelly for at least the next couple of weeks after a blood clot was discovered in his lower right leg.

The good news is the D-backs seem to think that it shouldn’t keep Kelly out of action for much longer than his 15-day stint on the injured list, but time will tell.

Either way, it’s a big loss for the D-backs, who relied on the combination of Zac Gallen and Kelly at the top of the rotation to offset the struggles of Zach Davies and two young pitchers who have had their ups and downs this year in Tommy Henry and Ryne Nelson.

“It stinks for sure,” D-backs first baseman Christian Walker said about losing Kelly.

Kelly’s spot in the rotation is set to come up in Thursday’s series finale against the Rays, and the D-backs could turn to right-hander Brandon Pfaadt, who has been pitching well in Triple-A Reno.

“I'm not ready to say at this point,” Lovullo said. “We have a couple of options we're mulling over but we’ve yet to finalize it.”

Lovullo said the injury to Kelly is similar to what former D-backs right-hander Ian Kennedy had last year while pitching out of Arizona's bullpen. Kennedy took some blood-thinning medication and missed two and half weeks.

Every case is different, but if Kelly is back in a somewhat similar timeframe, it will be the best-case scenario for Arizona.