Kevin Pillar

34-Year-Old OutfielderOF

Atlanta Braves NRI

2022 Stats

AVG

.083

RBI

2023 Projections

AVG

RBI

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2023 Fantasy Outlook

When Pillar failed to crack the Dodgers' Opening Day roster last season, the consequence was his first non-rehab stint in the minors since 2014. To his credit, the veteran outfielder didn't shy away from the assignment, slashing .315/.412/.622 with nine homers and 34 RBI over 35 games with Triple-A Oklahoma City. The impressive performance helped Pillar earn his way back up to the majors, but the opportunity to show what he still has left in the tank came to an abrupt stop after less than a week due to a shoulder injury that required surgery and essentially ended his season. Pillar managed to recover in time to squeeze in a few more Triple-A appearances near the end of the campaign, so the shoulder injury should no longer be a concern, but it's uncertain where he may fit on a big-league roster during his age-34 season. He's no longer a plus defender and has never been more than an average MLB hitter, so a best-case scenario may have Pillar in a platoon role on a squad lacking outfield depth. Read Past Outlooks

RANKS

#601

ADP

Overall

League NRI

Bats R

Throws R

40 Man No

Height 6'0"

Weight 200

DOB 1/4/1989

Born West Hills, CA

College Cal State Dominguez Hills

Drafted 32nd Rd 2011 TOR

Might be in lead for bench spot

OFAtlanta Braves NRI

March 7, 2023

Pillar could be the favorite to win the fourth outfielder spot on Atlanta's bench, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

ANALYSIS
The 34-year-old barely saw any action in the majors last season while in the Dodgers organization, but Pillar signed a minor-league deal with Atlanta this winter in the hopes of securing a more consistent spot, and he appears to have chosen wisely. His main competition for the job, Sam Hilliard, is a left-handed hitter as are projected starters Michael Harris and Eddie Rosario, so Pillar would provide a platoon option against tough southpaws in addition to his experience and ability to play all three outfield spots.

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Batting Stats

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2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

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2021 MLB Game Log

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Batting Order Slot Breakdown

vs Right-Handed Pitchers

vs RHP

vs Left-Handed Pitchers

vs LHP

Left/Right Batting Splits

Since 2020

+17%

OPS vs LHP

2022

-100%

OPS vs LHP

2021

+3%

OPS vs RHP

2020

+39%

OPS vs LHP

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020vs Left	.798	211	27	10	26	2	.280	.313	.485
Since 2020vs Right	.682	372	48	11	47	7	.232	.288	.394
2022vs Left	1.167	4	1	0	0	0	.333	.500	.667
2022vs Right	.000	9	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000
2021vs Left	.677	125	12	6	11	0	.240	.256	.421
2021vs Right	.700	222	28	9	36	4	.225	.288	.412
2020vs Left	.969	82	14	4	15	2	.342	.390	.579
2020vs Right	.699	141	20	2	11	3	.258	.305	.394
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Home/Away Batting Splits

Since 2020

+2%

OPS at Home

2022

-100%

OPS at Home

2021

+26%

OPS on Road

2020

+45%

OPS at Home

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020Home	.730	264	34	8	30	3	.259	.292	.438
Since 2020Away	.719	319	41	13	43	6	.241	.301	.418
2022Home	.422	10	1	0	0	0	.111	.200	.222
2022Away	.000	3	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000
2021Home	.609	161	17	6	17	1	.203	.236	.373
2021Away	.765	186	23	9	30	3	.256	.312	.453
2020Home	.971	93	16	2	13	2	.371	.398	.573
2020Away	.670	130	18	4	13	3	.227	.292	.378
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Stat Review

How does Kevin Pillar compare to other hitters?

This section compares his stats with all batting seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 400 plate appearances)*. 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 and Barrels/PA % are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 400 PA) and Hard Hit Rate is benchmarked against last season's data (min 400 PA). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.

BB/K
Walk to strikeout ratio
BB Rate
The percentage of plate appearances resulting in a walk.
K Rate
The percentage of plate appearances resulting in a strikeout.
BABIP
Batting average on balls in play. Measures how many of a batter’s balls in play go for hits.
ISO
Isolated Power. Slugging percentage minus batting average. A computation used to measure a batter's raw power.
AVG
Batting average. Hits divided by at bats.
OBP
On Base Percentage. A measure of how often a batters reaches base. Roughly equal to number of times on base divided by plate appearances.
SLG
Slugging Percentage. A measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats.
OPS
On base plus slugging. THe sum of a batter's on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
wOBA
Weighted on-base average. Measures a player's overall offensive contributions per plate appearance. wOBA combines all the different aspects of hitting into one metric, weighting each of them in proportion to their actual run value.
Exit Velocity
The speed of the baseball as it comes off the bat, immediately after a batter makes contact.
Hard Hit Rate
A measure of contact quality from Sports Info Solutions. This stat explains what percentage of batted balls were hit hard vs. medium or soft.
Barrels/PA
The percentage of plate appearances where a batter had a batted ball classified as 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.
Expected BA
Expected Batting Average.
Expected SLG
Expected Slugging Percentage.
Sprint Speed
The speed of a runner from home to first, in feet per second.
Ground Ball %
The percentage of balls put in play that are on the ground.
Line Drive %
The percentage of balls put in play that are line drives.
Fly Ball %
The percentage of balls put in play that are fly balls.

BB/K

0.25

BB Rate

7.7%

K Rate

30.8%

BABIP

.125

ISO

.083

AVG

.083

OBP

.154

SLG

.167

OPS

.321

wOBA

.151

Exit Velocity

88.2 mph

Hard Hit Rate

62.5%

Barrels/PA

7.7%

Expected BA

.192

Expected SLG

.364

Sprint Speed

25.1 ft/sec

Ground Ball %

50.0%

Line Drive %

12.5%

Fly Ball %

37.5%

Advanced Batting Stats

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Additional Stats

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Defensive Stats

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Batted Ball Stats

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Stats Vs Upcoming Pitchers

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Past Fantasy Outlooks

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

Pillar probably wants to forget about last season and just move on. His .231 average was the worst since his rookie season. After playing almost every day over the prior six seasons, Pillar only accumulated 347 plate appearances in 2021 as a result of an IL stint and the Mets having too many outfielders. He ended up on the short side of a platoon (career .771 OPS vs. LHP, .679 OPS vs. RHP). The main reason for his decline last season was his 23.3 K%, a seven-year high. Since he never walks (career 4.0 BB%), he only had a .277 OBP. Pillar tried to hit more home runs by pulling the ball and going for more loft. A career-best 13.3 HR/FB% came with the rest of his profile tanking. His fantasy value comes down to the team with which he signs and how much that team is willing to start him.

Pillar continued his run on a carousel of teams in 2020, as he was traded from Boston to the Rockies at the trade deadline. In his age-31 season, he posted a career-best .795 OPS with Boston over the first half of 2020, and he maintained his production with the Rockies to finish with a .798 OPS on the year. Pillar took fewer walks over the past several years, but his walk rate more than doubled to 5.8% in 2020. His hitting statistics didn't suffer, and he posted a career-best .335 BABIP, along with a 36.5% hard-hit rate. He had some difficulty putting his bat to the ball at times with a 12.5% swinging-strike rate and decreased 86.4 Z-Contact%, but he was still a solid producer as he seeks a new contract during free agency. The 32-year-old helped his case with a strong finish to the season and could land another starting job in 2021, but his boosted results may not be sustainable over 162 games.

Pillar's career path has taken some interesting turns of late. He has made a deliberate decision not to accept walks and be more aggressive at the plate. The approach led to a career-high in homers, his best contact rate in four seasons and 171 runs-plus-RBI. Yet, he has become very pull happy, with 2019 seeing him pull nearly 50% of his balls in play and also seeing him hit below .260 for a third consecutive season. Pillar can still go get baseballs in the outfield, and has been a consistent mid-teens steals guy the past few seasons despite a poor on-base percentage over that span. He was non-tendered by the Giants this offseason and may have to settle for a fourth-outfielder role in free agency. Pillar has always been better in real life than fantasy and he needs regular playing time to compile enough counting stats to be relevant in most formats.

You may not draft Pillar, but at some point, you'll have him, or a player of his ilk. Pillar is the model, "doesn't hurt you, helps you a little everywhere" guy whose defense keeps him in the lineup when healthy. That last part is key as despite averaging a reasonable 147 games the past three seasons, Pillar is usually docked for health concerns. Rostered for cheap speed without sacrificing much power, Pillar has posted consecutive seasons with homers and steals in the teens. His stolen-base ceiling is higher, but the Blue Jays don't run much, managing the third-fewest steals since 2016. Of slight concern: Pillar's fielding metrics have dropped each of the past two seasons, but they're still positive. His plate skills declined last year, as he walked a paltry 3.3% of the time while fanning at an 18.1% clip, his highest mark since becoming a full-time player in 2012. Pillar should be mixed-roster worthy for at least one more season, at a minimal cost.

Pillar now has three full major-league seasons in the books, and at this point, it seems safe to say that he is what he is. His walk rate has ranged from 4.1 percent to 5.2 percent over the past three years, while his strikeout rate has ranged from 13.5 to 15.4. There is only modest thump in his bat to go with the lackluster on-base skills (27.3 percent hard-hit rate last season), but Pillar compensates on the defensive end. Speed is his most appealing attribute in fantasy, but Pillar only attempted five steals in the second half last season and was caught two of those times. While Pillar did improve greatly against lefties last season, he gave all of that back with another decline in performance against right-handers (.230/.274/.354). Expecting a step forward in his age-29 season seems misguided, but Pillar will play every day and figures to produce something close to his three-year averages.

With leadoff man Devon Travis on the mend to open 2016, Pillar was afforded the top spot in one of the most potent batting orders in baseball. Unfortunately, he was unable to lock down the role, hitting just .198/.231/.291 in 86 at-bats as Toronto's table setter. Despite the disappointment, Pillar found a home at the bottom of the lineup and hit .277 when penciled in at the bottom third of the order, including .324/.369/.419 in 148 at-bats as the eighth hitter. Pillar is a solid contact hitter (82.2 percent rate in 2016) but has minimal power for an outfielder (.109 ISO) and doesn't get on base enough (.303 career OBP) to make him more than a below-average offensive threat (80 wRC+ last season). After swiping 25 bags in 2015, the 27-year-old disappointed by stealing just 14 bases on 20 tries. The center fielder's elite defense will continue to make him a mainstay in the Jays lineup, but fantasy leagues don't award points for web gems. A spot near the bottom of the lineup also caps his fantasy upside.

Pillar earned the starting center field job for the Jays and rode it out the entire season. He was mostly in there for his amazing outfield defense, but Pillar held his own at the plate, as he hit .278/.314/.399, tied his professional season high with 12 home runs and added 25 stolen bases in an efficient 29 attempts (86 percent success rate). After striking out nearly one out of every four plate appearances in his first season, Pillar nearly slashed his strikeout rate in half, as he struck out just 85 times in 628 plate appearances (13.5 percent). Combine that contact rate with his speed and Pillar should be able to maintain a solid batting average going forward. Pillar will also be in one of the best lineups in the league again next season with the Blue Jays, so a high run total like last year’s 76 is certainly possible again.

Pillar posted the best numbers of his professional career at Triple-A Buffalo last season, swatting 10 homers and stealing 27 bases in 33 attempts while carrying an .868 OPS. He appeared in 53 games for the Jays, where his strikeout rate spiked upon promotion to the big leagues for the second straight year (24.6 career K% in MLB). The departure of Anthony Gose will help to clear Pillar's path to a place on the Opening Day roster, but that route could be obstructed if the Jays acquire veteran outfield help through free agency or trade. At 26, he doesn't have much left to prove at Triple-A, and Pillar could exceed expectations if he finds a way to cut back on the strikeouts against top-level pitching. More likely, he'll end up on the small side of a platoon in the long run, after pounding lefties at Buffalo (.387/.400/.645) and posting a mediocre line against righties (.259/.316/.424).

Pillar reached the majors for the first time in 2013, producing an unsightly .206/.250/.333 line over 110 plate appearances. He fared much better at Triple-A Buffalo, where he turned in a .299/.341/.493 line after earning a midseason promotion from Double-A New Hampshire. Pillar's lack of power has allowed him to fly under the radar as a prospect, even though he possesses good speed and above average contact skills. He'll probably be more of a fourth or fifth outfielder than a starter, and he could compete for a reserve role in spring training.

More Fantasy News

Signs on with Atlanta

OFAtlanta Braves NRI

January 18, 2023

Pillar (shoulder) agreed Wednesday with the Braves on a minor-league deal that includes an invitation to spring training, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

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Available for postseason

OFLos Angeles Dodgers NRI

Shoulder

October 6, 2022

Pillar (shoulder) took live batting practice Wednesday and is available if needed for the postseason, MLB.com reports.

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Begins rehab stint

OFLos Angeles Dodgers NRI

Shoulder

September 24, 2022

Pillar (shoulder) began a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Wednesday, per MLB.com.

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Beginning rehab stint soon

OFLos Angeles Dodgers NRI

Shoulder

September 12, 2022

Pillar (shoulder) is set to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City in a few days, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

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Could return this season

OFLos Angeles Dodgers NRI

Shoulder

August 7, 2022

Pillar (shoulder) has been cleared to begin taking part in baseball activities and hopes to be playing in minor-league games by earlier September, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

ANALYSIS
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