Chad Kuhl

Chad Kuhl

30-Year-Old PitcherSP
Washington Nationals
2023 Fantasy Outlook
There was no outlook written for Chad Kuhl in 2023. Check out the latest news below for more on his current fantasy value.
RANKS
$Signed a one-year, minor-league contract with the Nationals in February of 2023.
Appears set for starting role
PWashington Nationals  NRI
March 20, 2023
Kuhl gave up one run on four hits and a walk over five innings during Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers. He struck out five.
ANALYSIS
The veteran right-hander put together his best spring performance yet, and he appears to be on track to open the season as the Nationals' fifth starter with Stephen Strasburg (ribs/shoulder) seemingly no closer to returning. Kuhl's overall spring numbers haven't been great though, including a 9:5 K:BB through 12.1 innings, and if he struggles early, the Nats could turn to the likes of Wily Peralta or Rule 5 pick Thad Ward.
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Pitching Stats
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2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2022 MLB Game Log
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2021 MLB Game Log
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2020 MLB Game Log
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2019 MLB Game Log
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2018 MLB Game Log
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2017 MLB Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
88
Last 10 Games
86
Last 5 Games
86
How many pitches does Chad Kuhl generally throw?
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
What part of the game does Chad Kuhl generally pitch?
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2020
 
 
-9%
BAA vs LHP
2022
 
 
-14%
BAA vs LHP
2021
 
 
-4%
BAA vs RHP
2020
 
 
-16%
BAA vs LHP
BAA Batters K BB H 2B 3B HR
Since 2020vs Left .250 613 127 79 129 30 3 26
Since 2020vs Right .276 550 102 49 134 24 3 20
2022vs Left .264 338 65 41 76 18 3 14
2022vs Right .306 279 45 17 79 13 3 11
2021vs Left .257 165 36 21 35 7 0 8
2021vs Right .247 184 39 21 38 10 0 5
2020vs Left .196 110 26 17 18 5 0 4
2020vs Right .233 87 18 11 17 1 0 4
More Splits View More Split Stats
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2020
 
 
-48%
ERA at Home
2022
 
 
-20%
ERA at Home
2021
 
 
-67%
ERA at Home
2020
 
 
-74%
ERA at Home
ERA WHIP IP W L SV K/9 BB/9 HR/9
Since 2020Home 3.61 1.27 137.0 9 7 0 7.2 3.5 1.1
Since 2020Away 6.89 1.71 126.2 4 14 0 8.5 5.3 2.1
2022Home 5.04 1.40 64.1 3 4 0 6.4 2.8 1.4
2022Away 6.32 1.69 72.2 3 7 0 7.9 4.7 1.9
2021Home 2.41 1.15 41.0 4 2 0 7.0 4.0 0.7
2021Away 7.32 1.73 39.1 1 5 0 9.8 5.5 2.3
2020Home 2.27 1.17 31.2 2 1 0 8.8 4.5 1.1
2020Away 8.59 1.77 14.2 0 2 0 8.0 7.4 2.5
More Splits View More Split Stats
Stat Review
How does Chad Kuhl compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.

* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
  • K/BB
    Strikeout to walk ratio.
  • K/9
    Average strikeouts per nine innings.
  • BB/9
    Average walks per nine innings.
  • HR/9
    Average home runs allowed per nine innings.
  • Fastball
    Average fastball velocity.
  • ERA
    Earned run average. The average earned runs allowed per nine innings.
  • WHIP
    Walks plus hits per inning pitched.
  • BABIP
    Batting average on balls in play. Measures how many balls in play against a pitcher go for hits.
  • GB/FB
    Groundball to flyball ratio. The higher the number, the more likely a pitcher is to induce groundballs.
  • Left On Base
    The percentage of base runners that a pitcher strands on base over the course of a season.
  • Exit Velocity
    The speed of the baseball as it comes off the bat, immediately after a batter makes contact.
  • Barrels/BBE
    The percentage of batted ball events resulting in a Barrel. A Barrel is a batted ball with similar exit velocity and launch angle to past ones that led to a minimum .500 batting average and 1.500 slugging percentage.
  • Spin Rate
    Spin Rate is the rate of spin on a baseball after it is released. It is measured in revolutions per minute (rpm).
  • Balls Hit 95+ MPH
    The percentage of batted balls hit that met or exceeded the 95 MPH threshold.
  • Swinging Strike
    The percentage of pitches that result in a swing and a miss.
K/BB
1.90
 
K/9
7.2
 
BB/9
3.8
 
HR/9
1.6
 
Fastball
92.8 mph
 
ERA
5.72
 
WHIP
1.55
 
BABIP
.320
 
GB/FB
1.11
 
Left On Base
68.5%
 
Exit Velocity
83.1 mph
 
Barrels/BBE
5.9%
 
Spin Rate
2333 rpm
 
Balls Hit 95+ MPH
28.2%
 
Swinging Strike
10.3%
 
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Chad Kuhl See More
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
Kuhl was let go by the Pirates in November and joined the Rockies on a one-year, $3 million deal during spring training. The 29-year-old started in 14 of 28 appearances in 2021 and had a 4.82 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 75:42 K:BB over 80.1 innings. The right-hander was unable to solidify a rotation spot with Pittsburgh over the past five seasons, and it seems unlikely he'll unlikely he'll be able to do so with Colorado. Kuhl has a career 20.5 percent strikeout rate and 10.3 percent walk rate, so his upside is limited even if he's able to manage the change to Coors Field.
Kuhl returned from Tommy John surgery in 2020 and made 11 appearances (nine starts) for the Pirates during the shortened season. While his average fastball velocity hovered around 95 mph in each of his two seasons prior to surgery, it dipped to 93.9 mph in 2020. His 22.3 K% remained passable, but he also had a career-worst 14.2 BB% that would have been the worst by far among qualified pitchers. While he issued more free passes, potentially due to his increased slider usage, he only allowed a .235 BABIP last year. Unfortunately, a good portion of the balls that were put into play caused damage, as he posted a 19.0% HR/FB rate. The right-hander isn't guaranteed a spot in the rotation heading into 2021, but he could better learn how to perform well using his post-surgery skill set. Kuhl will need to work on his command to offer serviceable production, but he'll likely maintain below-average fantasy marks.
Kuhl didn't throw a pitch in 2019 as he spent the year recovering from Tommy John surgery. He underwent the procedure back in September of 2018, so a typical recovery timeline should have him ready to go by around the start of the regular season. Prior to his injury, Kuhl had made 61 big-league starts, posting a mediocre 4.37 ERA, good for a below-average 106 ERA-. His supporting stats also depict a pitcher who belongs at the major-league level but only as a backend starter. His career 20.4% strikeout rate, 9.2% walk rate and 41.0% groundball rate are all passable, but all are worse than average. The only thing that really makes him stand out from a large crop of generally forgettable pitchers is his fastball velocity, which sat at 95.4 mph in 2018, a number which would have ranked 10th among qualified starters last season. So far, however, he's yet to translate that into a good strikeout rate.
Kuhl underwent Tommy John surgery in September, wiping out his value in single-season leagues. The uncertainty that comes with recovering from such a serious surgery is enough to eliminate most of his appeal in dynasty formats as well, as he wasn't having much success prior to the injury. The 26-year-old was at least a moderately interesting pitcher when healthy, as his fastball sat north of 95 mph, suggesting upside if he could ever translate that velocity into a strikeout rate better than his unimpressive 20.4% career mark.
While Kuhl was able to tap into a significant amount of extra velocity in 2017, with his fastball clocking in at over 95 mph on average, the results were less than stellar. The velo boost did help Kuhl lift his strikeout rate by more than three percentage points (to 20.9 percent), but he gave all of that back with an even greater uptick in walks (from 6.6 percent to 10.6 percent). The right-hander allowed line drives (23.3 percent) and hard contact (36.1 percent) at a greater clip and lefties pummeled him for a .511 SLG and .376 wOBA. Kuhl finished strong with a sub-3.70 ERA in each of the final three months and he should have a rotation spot out of camp, but there's just not enough here to see Kuhl as more than a staff filler in mixed leagues. Expect only marginal improvement with the WHIP.
Kuhl started 2016 in the shadows of fellow Triple-A arms Jameson Taillon and Tyler Glasnow but carved out his own niche by season's end. Primarily relying upon a sinking fastball (93.2 mph average) with heavy drop, Kuhl exceeded expectations and gave Pittsburgh one of its few reliable second-half starting options. He compiled a 4.20 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 50:32 K:BB in 14 starts (70.2 innings) after registering a 2.37 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 83.2 Triple-A innings. Kuhl doesn't blow hitters off the map, but few pitchers carry his feisty attitude. The innings-eater appears poised to begin 2017 in the big league rotation, and profiles long term as a No. 4 or No. 5 starter.
More Fantasy News
Path to rotation opens
PWashington Nationals  NRI
March 15, 2023
The Nationals are preparing to have Kuhl be a member of their Opening Day rotation after Cade Cavalli suffered an elbow injury in his Grapefruit League start Tuesday, MASNSports.com reports. "Chad Kuhl, right now, is going to get an opportunity to probably start if Cade can't do it," manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday.
ANALYSIS
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Healthy for camp
PWashington Nationals  NRI
March 7, 2023
Kuhl (triceps) has made two relief appearances thus far during the Nationals' Grapefruit League slate, covering two innings and giving up five runs on four hits and one walk while striking out two.
ANALYSIS
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Invited to camp by Nationals
PWashington Nationals  NRI
Triceps
February 4, 2023
Kuhl (triceps) signed with the Nationals as a non-roster invitee Saturday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Out with triceps strain
PColorado Rockies  NRI
Triceps
October 4, 2022
Kuhl was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with a right triceps strain.
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Unravels in fourth inning
PColorado Rockies  NRI
September 30, 2022
Kuhl (6-11) took the loss Friday versus the Dodgers, allowing six runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out two over 3.1 innings.
ANALYSIS
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