2023 Stats
W-L
0-3
ERA
5.14
WHIP
1.43
K
17
SV
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2023 Fantasy Outlook
Stephenson was excellent down the stretch last season after being claimed off waivers by the Pirates, holding a 3.38 ERA and 18:1 K:BB over 13.1 innings. The team had the reliever go slider-heavy, which makes sense because he's always gotten terrific results with the pitch, unlike with his fastball. The former first-round pick has the potential to finally break out if he continues to stick with his best pitch and throws enough strikes. He could even be next-in-line for saves if David Bednar gets hurt or traded, although Stephenson would be a trade candidate himself as an impending free agent. The 30-year-old has dealt with some arm soreness in spring training, although indications are that it could be minor. Read Past Outlooks
RANKSFrom Preseason
#601
ADP

Traded to Rays
The Rays acquired Stephenson from the Pirates on Friday in exchange for minor-league infielder Alika Williams, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
Stephenson has a 5.14 ERA for the Pirates this season and a 5.38 ERA over 76 relief appearances since the beginning of 2022. However, the 2011 first-round pick still has pretty good stuff and can miss bats, particularly with his slider. It's the kind of profile the Rays usually get the most out of, but Stephenson can be expected to work in low-leverage situations initially.
Stephenson has a 5.14 ERA for the Pirates this season and a 5.38 ERA over 76 relief appearances since the beginning of 2022. However, the 2011 first-round pick still has pretty good stuff and can miss bats, particularly with his slider. It's the kind of profile the Rays usually get the most out of, but Stephenson can be expected to work in low-leverage situations initially.
Pitching Stats
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2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2023 MLB Game Log
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Minor League Game Log

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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
13
Last 10 Games
15
Last 5 Games
12
How many pitches does Robert Stephenson 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+
What part of the game does Robert Stephenson generally pitch?
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 2021
-4%
BAA vs LHP
2023
-12%
BAA vs RHP
BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021vs Left | .251 | 59 | 16 | 52 | 8 | |||
Since 2021vs Right | .262 | 65 | 24 | 65 | 10 | |||
2023vs Left | .250 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 1 | |||
2023vs Right | .219 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 2 | |||
2022vs Left | .260 | 25 | 7 | 27 | 4 | |||
2022vs Right | .288 | 30 | 7 | 36 | 6 | |||
2021vs Left | .241 | 28 | 6 | 20 | 3 | |||
2021vs Right | .242 | 24 | 12 | 22 | 2 | |||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2021
-34%
ERA on Road
2023
-50%
ERA on Road
ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021Home | 5.32 | 1.37 | 64.1 | 10.4 | 2.7 | ||||
Since 2021Away | 3.52 | 1.29 | 53.2 | 8.4 | 3.5 | ||||
2023Home | 7.11 | 1.89 | 6.1 | 8.5 | 5.7 | ||||
2023Away | 3.52 | 1.04 | 7.2 | 12.9 | 4.7 | ||||
2022Home | 5.82 | 1.32 | 34.0 | 9.0 | 1.6 | ||||
2022Away | 4.88 | 1.33 | 24.0 | 7.9 | 3.0 | ||||
2021Home | 4.13 | 1.29 | 24.0 | 12.8 | 3.4 | ||||
2021Away | 2.05 | 1.32 | 22.0 | 7.4 | 3.7 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Stat Review
How does Robert Stephenson compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 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 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
2.13K/9
10.9BB/9
5.1HR/9
1.9Fastball
96.9 mphERA
5.14WHIP
1.43BABIP
.286GB/FB
1.00Left On Base
69.6%Exit Velocity
81.5 mphBarrels/BBE
9.1%Spin Rate
2737 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
25.8%Swinging Strike
14.5%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 Robert Stephenson See More

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Jason Collette analyzes what he got right and what he got wrong with his preseason pitching predictions, including an outstanding season from Dylan Cease.

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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
While the dream of Stephenson blossoming from top prospect into ace starter died long ago, the right-hander seemed to be finding his niche in relief in 2019. In fact, he ranked third among all qualified relievers in swinging-strike rate that year (18.9%), behind only Josh Hader and Nick Anderson. This past year saw Stephenson battle a wrist injury in summer camp, allow five homers in his first five appearances and earn just a single hold. Homers aside, Stephenson was good, posting a 23.3 K-BB% and ranking among the elite in terms of expected outcomes. Regardless the Reds sent their 2011 first-round pick packing to Colorado in November. Coors Field is a terrible place to pitch, but there is opportunity for advancement in the Rockies' bullpen and saves are not out of the question in 2021.
More Fantasy News

Activated from injured list
Stephenson (elbow) was activated Friday from the 15-day injured list.
ANALYSIS
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Beginning rehab assignment
Stephenson (elbow) is set to begin a minor-league rehab assignment Friday with Triple-A Indianapolis, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Placed on 15-day IL
Stephenson (elbow) was placed on the 15-day injured list Thursday, retroactive to March 27.
ANALYSIS
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Likely headed for IL stint
Pirates manager Derek Shelton said Tuesday that Stephenson (elbow) is likely to open the season on the injured list, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Available to pitch Tuesday
Stephenson (elbow) is listed as available out of the Pirates' bullpen for Tuesday's Grapefruit League game versus the Phillies, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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