Michael Kopech Stats
- Height / Weight
- 6' 3" / 210 lbs.
- Date of Birth (Age)
- 4/30/1996 (27)
- Experience
- 1
- College
- None
Michael Kopech Season Stats
Last 10 Games
Michael Kopech News
Chicago White Sox right-hander Michael Kopech (knee) was placed on the 15-day injured list on Friday with right-knee inflammation after undergoing successful surgery on Friday morning to remove a cyst from his right knee. The full recovery time is expected to take between six to eight weeks. In a corresponding move, Chicago recalled right-hander Yohan Ramirez from Triple-A Charlotte. The 27-year-old Kopech has had a tough 2023 season, going 5-12 on the year with a 5.43 ERA, 134 strikeouts and 91 walks over 129 1/3 innings in 30 appearances (27 starts). He also led the American League with his 91 free passes. Based on his struggles and now his injury to close out the year, the White Sox may decide to make Kopech a full-time reliever entering the 2024 campaign.
Chicago White Sox pitcher Michael Kopech has been moved from the starting rotation to the team's bullpen, according to manager Pedro Grifol on Friday. Kopech holds a 5.16 ERA, 1.56 WHIP, and a 129/89 K/BB ratio over 26 starts this season. It gets worse as Kopech has been crushed to the tune of a 9.50 ERA and 2.33 WHIP over his last five starts. The team plans on using Kopech as a multi inning reliever going forward. It's worth noting that the White Sox still view Kopech as a starter next season. However, they've decided to shift him to the bullpen for now in the hope that he'll get back on track. The organization announced that right-hander Jose Urena will take over the vacant spot in the starting rotation. He'll take the ball versus the Detroit Tigers on Saturday.
Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Michael Kopech gets the ball for Sunday's start versus the Detroit Tigers. The 27-year-old has labored through a difficult season, throwing for an unattractive 5.08 ERA and 1.53 WHIP with 127 strikeouts across 124 innings. Kopech will have a chance to iron out those numbers a bit against Detroit, who he has registered a strong 2.13 ERA with 33 punchouts in 25 1/3 frames against since 2021. The right-hander's 15.1% walk rate this year leaves him prone to getting barraged, but Kopech's upside in a plum draw makes him worth streaming in a favorable matchup on Sunday.
Batting Order
| 1 | Elvis Andrus |
| 2 | Zach Remillard |
| 3 | Andrew Vaughn |
| 4 | Gavin Sheets |
| 5 | Yasmani Grandal |
| 6 | Lenyn Sosa |
| 7 | Tyler Naquin |
| 8 | Trayce Thompson |
| 9 | Carlos Pérez |
Michael Kopech Stats
Last 10 Games
Batting Order
| 1 | Elvis Andrus |
| 2 | Zach Remillard |
| 3 | Andrew Vaughn |
| 4 | Gavin Sheets |
| 5 | Yasmani Grandal |
| 6 | Lenyn Sosa |
| 7 | Tyler Naquin |
| 8 | Trayce Thompson |
| 9 | Carlos Pérez |
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.
