Zach McKinstry

29-Year-Old ShortstopSS

Detroit Tigers

2024 Stats

AVG

.215

RBI

2025 Projections

AVG

RBI

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2025 Fantasy Outlook

Across five MLB seasons, McKinstry has pretty much settled in as a light-hitting utility player known primarily for his defensive abilities. The 29-year-old batted .286 across a small sample of four games as a rookie with the Dodgers back in 2020, but he's batted .231 or worse in each of his seasons since then. He's also never reached double figures in home runs, as he topped out at nine long balls two years ago with Detroit, when he had a career-best 464 at-bats. McKinstry's value from a real-life perspective comes from his versatility. He appeared at every infield position except for first base last season and also saw time in the corner outfield spots. That makes McKinstry a useful MLB bench player, but it doesn't translate to fantasy impact. Heading into 2025, McKinstry should once again be a utility option who has some flashes of offensive ability but no real consistent value in most fantasy leagues. Read Past Outlooks

League Majors

Bats L

Throws R

40 Man Yes

Height 6'0"

Weight 180

DOB 4/29/1995

Born Toledo, OH

College Central Michigan

Drafted 33rd Rd 2016 LAD

Agrees to deal with Detroit

SSDetroit Tigers

November 22, 2024

The Tigers and McKinstry avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $1.65 million contract Friday, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

ANALYSIS
McKinstry had been eligible for salary arbitration for the first time. The 29-year-old slashed just .215/.277/.337 with four home runs and 16 stolen bases over 118 games for the Tigers in 2024. He's slated to fill a utility role again next season.

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Batting Stats

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2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2024 MLB Game Log

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2023 MLB Game Log

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2022 MLB Game Log

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2021 MLB Game Log

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2020 MLB Game Log

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Minor League 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 2022

+25%

OPS vs RHP

2024

+69%

OPS vs RHP

2023

Even Split

2022

+40%

OPS vs RHP

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2022vs Left	.521	99	12	0	8	3	.193	.292	.229
Since 2022vs Right	.649	929	101	18	65	36	.223	.289	.360
2024vs Left	.379	33	3	0	4	0	.133	.212	.167
2024vs Right	.640	292	29	4	19	16	.225	.284	.356
2023vs Left	.653	46	6	0	3	2	.243	.356	.297
2023vs Right	.653	472	54	9	32	14	.230	.297	.356
2022vs Left	.465	20	3	0	1	1	.188	.278	.188
2022vs Right	.653	165	18	5	14	6	.200	.273	.380
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Home/Away Batting Splits

Since 2022

+21%

OPS at Home

2024

+11%

OPS at Home

2023

+23%

OPS at Home

2022

+30%

OPS at Home

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2022Home	.700	494	60	10	39	17	.240	.309	.391
Since 2022Away	.580	534	53	8	33	22	.201	.271	.309
2024Home	.647	156	16	1	9	8	.234	.288	.359
2024Away	.582	169	16	3	14	8	.197	.266	.316
2023Home	.722	263	34	6	24	8	.247	.328	.394
2023Away	.585	255	26	3	11	8	.215	.276	.309
2022Home	.733	75	10	3	6	1	.232	.284	.449
2022Away	.565	110	11	2	8	6	.175	.266	.299
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Stat Review

How does Zach McKinstry 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

0.35

BB Rate

7.4%

K Rate

21.2%

BABIP

.265

ISO

.121

AVG

.215

OBP

.277

SLG

.337

OPS

.614

wOBA

.273

Exit Velocity

88.0 mph

Hard Hit Rate

28.7%

Barrels/PA

3.1%

Expected BA

.238

Expected SLG

.364

Sprint Speed

24.2 ft/sec

Ground Ball %

32.8%

Line Drive %

24.9%

Fly Ball %

42.4%

Prospect Rankings History

View Complete Zach McKinstry Prospect Ranking History

Advanced Batting Stats

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Additional Stats

Games By Position

Defensive Stats

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Batted Ball Stats

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Stats Vs Upcoming Pitchers

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Tigers Depth Chart

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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Zach McKinstry See More

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105 days ago

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Past Fantasy Outlooks

2024

2023

2021

2020

McKinstry saw his most consistent MLB playing time yet in 2023, though he remained a limited offensive player. The 28-year-old batted just .231 with a .653 OPS across 148 games. He didn't provide much in the way of counting stats either with only nine home runs, 35 RBI and 60 runs scored, though at least he managed 16 stolen bases in 22 attempts. McKinstry's best attribute remained his versatility, as he appeared at every defensive position except for catcher and first base in his first season with the Tigers. At this point in his career, McKinstry profiles as a prototypical utility player who can provide solid defense across the diamond but doesn't offer much at the plate. That makes him a more valuable real-life player than fantasy asset, so managers don't need to have McKinstry on the radar outside of deeper formats. He can at least be a bargain bin dart throw for DFS players.

After beginning his career with two seasons and change in a Dodgers uniform, McKinstry finished 2022 with the Cubs after a midseason trade from Los Angeles. He showed good defensive versatility by appearing at five different positions, though he continued to do very little at the plate. He slashed .199/.273/.361 and contributed five home runs across 57 games. While those numbers don't jump off the page, McKinstry was at least able to record a career-high seven stolen bases on seven attempts. Heading into his age-28 season, McKinstry looks like a backup to Nick Madrigal and Nico Hoerner up the middle, and he could see some time in the outfield as well. His uncertain playing time and probable low batting average limits his appeal, though McKinstry could have a little value in deeper leagues if he somehow sees an expanded role and also continues to steal bases at a regular clip.

McKinstry came out of nowhere to appear on the Dodgers' radar by logging a 177 wRC+ in his first Triple-A stint in 2019. The 25-year-old followed with a strong spring training last season, logging a 1.314 OPS and drilling three homers over 31 plate appearances. Simply receiving a big-league call-up was an against-the-odds achievement in itself -- McKinstry was a slap-hitting 33rd-round pick in the 2016 first-year playoff draft -- and he ran with the opportunity, collecting a pair of hits in seven at-bats. McKinstry's minor-league track record reveals favorable walk and strikeout rates, which often translates to similar characteristics in the majors. The big question is whether the power that began to emerge in 2019 will continue to blossom as McKinstry further evolves as a hitter. If so, his ability to play all over the field could help McKinstry fill the type of super-utility role the Dodgers tend to covet.

He doesn't have much pedigree (33rd-round pick in 2016), but McKinstry earned a spot on the Dodgers' 40-man roster with a breakout 2019 at Double-A and Triple-A. He had excelled at some previous stops but was old for those levels, so his production didn't really register. However, he was 26% better than the average Texas League hitter and used the juiced ball and hitter-friendly environment of the Pacific Coast League to log a 177 wRC+ after his promotion. His strikeout rate was below 20% at both stops, and he utilized an all-fields line drive and flyball-oriented approach. McKinstry played double-digit games at second base, shortstop, third base and the outfield, which is critical, as he will probably have to break in as a super-utility option. He hits left-handed but had reverse splits last year (.873 OPS vs. RHP, .924 OPS vs. LHP). McKinstry has a chance to hit for a high average with 20-homer pop.

More Fantasy News

Tallies three hits in loss

SSDetroit Tigers

August 29, 2024

McKinstry went 3-for-4 with a double in Thursday's 3-0 loss to the Angels.