Michael Kopech Stats
- Height / Weight
- 6' 3" / 220 lbs.
- Date of Birth (Age)
- 4/30/1996 (27)
- Experience
- 4
- College
- None
Michael Kopech Season Stats
Last 10 Games
Michael Kopech News
Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Michael Kopech picked up his second save of the season in Tuesday's 7-5 win over the Guardians. Kopech came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth inning up by two and struck out the side. He stayed in to pitch the bottom of the ninth and delivered another 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout to end the game. The 27-year-old has pitched well overall since moving to the bullpen, converting both of his save opportunities with a 2.45 ERA, 12 strikeouts, and five walks in 7 1/3 innings pitched. Walks are still an issue and the White Sox may not offer many save opportunities, but Kopech seems like the bullpen arm to roster in fantasy leagues at this time given his performance.
Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Michael Kopech earned his first save of the season in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Braves. Kopech came in to pitch the top of the eighth inning up by one with one out and runners on first and second. He got a groundball double play to end the half-inning and stayed on to pitch the ninth, now up by two. He got the first out on a fly-out, allowed a solo home run, got the second out on a strikeout, allowed a walk and a single, and got the final out on a pop-out. It wasn't pretty, but it was the team's first save of the season. Kopech has looked about as expected in his new bullpen role, compiling a 2.08 ERA with five strikeouts and three walks in 4 1/3 IP. Walks could cripple him as they have in the past, but he looks to be a potential closer for the White Sox in the early going.
Chicago White Sox right-hander Michael Kopech is being moved to the bullpen, according to general manager Chris Getz. It doesn't come as a huge surprise after Kopech finished last year pitching in relief for the Pale Hose. However, it's a bit more surprising after Chicago just traded ace Dylan Cease to the San Diego Padres on Wednesday evening. The 27-year-old Kopech, a former first-round pick by the Boston Red Sox in 2014, had a career-worst 5.43 ERA (6.46 FIP) and 1.59 WHIP with a league-high 91 walks and a career-high 134 strikeouts in 129 1/3 innings over 30 outings (27 starts) in 2023. Given the lack of closing options in Chicago's current bullpen, Kopech might be the favorite for saves now, which would make him much more valuable in fantasy than if he remained in a starting role.
Batting Order
1 | Dominic Fletcher |
2 | Eloy Jiménez |
3 | Gavin Sheets |
4 | Andrew Vaughn |
5 | Andrew Benintendi |
6 | Paul DeJong |
7 | Braden Shewmake |
8 | Nicky Lopez |
9 | Martín Maldonado |
Michael Kopech Stats
Last 10 Games
Batting Order
1 | Dominic Fletcher |
2 | Eloy Jiménez |
3 | Gavin Sheets |
4 | Andrew Vaughn |
5 | Andrew Benintendi |
6 | Paul DeJong |
7 | Braden Shewmake |
8 | Nicky Lopez |
9 | Martín Maldonado |
Chicago White Sox starter Michael Kopech had a baffling 2022 season. He posted a solid 3.54 ERA and 1.19 WHIP but posted a head-scratching 21.3% strikeout rate and could only muster five wins in 25 starts. Kopech's typically nasty slider had 2.5 inches below average of horizontal movement, and its whiff rate went from 36% in 2021 to 21.3% this season. The 26-year-old's flamethrower fastball lost 2.4 MPH (97.3 MPH to 94.9 MPH) and 6.1 percentage points in whiff rate from last season. Kopech could always find the strikeout stuff that made him a top prospect, but there are definitely concerns. His run prevention helped mitigate the low punch-out numbers, but don't count on that again in 2023. Kopech ran a .223 BABIP and 9.4% HR/FB, so there will be a jump in that department, especially considering his 15th-percentile average exit velocity and 24th-percentile barrel rate from 2022. And considering the righty's career 9.8% walk rate, he'll hardly be a help in WHIP. Kopech will be another year older and another year removed from his 2018 Tommy John surgery, but he's never thrown more than 134.1 innings as a professional. He averaged just 4.77 innings per start this year, so fantasy managers should be weary of his volume output in 2023 and, subsequently, his victory total. Kopech still has a high ceiling, but Steamer projects him for a 4.57 ERA and 23.1% strikeout rate. Those numbers make his cost (309 ADP) a bit too high for the former first-rounder's potential.