Max Kepler
31-Year-Old
2023 Stats
AVG
.260
HR
24
RBI
66
R
72
SB
1
2024 Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
Kepler had the second-best season of his career even though it looked like his time in Minnesota was coming to an end at the start of 2023. Coming off a subpar season, Kepler was rumored to be on the trade block all offseason. He then hit .232 with three home runs and a .771 OPS in April. Something changed in May, as he hit .263 with 21 home runs and a .823 OPS the rest of the season. He returned to hitting more fly balls (44.3% from 34.4% in 2022) but luck may have played a factor with a career-best .288 BABIP and second-highest 16.1% HR/RB rate. Still, Kepler has always had chronically low BABIP rates, so he could sustain a slight uptick. Kepler's success came despite a dip in his usual strong command at the plate. He had just a 9.2% walk rate and a career-low 21.6% strike out rate, which were likely offset by continued above-average power as his Max Exit Velocity was in the 89th percentile (per Baseball Savant). His .751 OPS against lefties continued a recent improvement against southpaws, which could keep his bat in the lineup more. While his defensive metrics took an uncharacteristic decline (-0.8 fWAR), he's still viewed by the team as a plus defender. He should reprise as the starting right fielder and could find an early age-30s power surge. Read Past Outlooks
Hits first spring homer
Kepler went 1-for-3 with his first home run of the spring in Sunday's Grapefruit League tie with Tampa Bay.
ANALYSIS
Kepler has gotten off to a somewhat slow start, as even with the homer he's still just 2-for-12 this spring, but the veteran doesn't need to worry about his job security. After another offseason of trade rumors, Kepler enters the spring as the Twins' starting right fielder. He could see fewer at-bats against left-handed pitching with the Twins signing right-handed-hitting Manuel Margot, but Kepler's .751 OPS against lefties last season continued a recent improvement against southpaws.
Kepler has gotten off to a somewhat slow start, as even with the homer he's still just 2-for-12 this spring, but the veteran doesn't need to worry about his job security. After another offseason of trade rumors, Kepler enters the spring as the Twins' starting right fielder. He could see fewer at-bats against left-handed pitching with the Twins signing right-handed-hitting Manuel Margot, but Kepler's .751 OPS against lefties last season continued a recent improvement against southpaws.
Batting 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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Batting Order Slot Breakdown
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
#6
#7
#8
#9
17
3
13
36
12
7
10
1
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
#6
#7
#8
#9
3
4
2
2
2
Left/Right Batting Splits
Since 2021
+21%
OPS vs RHP
2023
+11%
OPS vs RHP
OPS | PA | HR | RBI | AVG | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021vs Left | .636 | 345 | 7 | 27 | .212 | ||||
Since 2021vs Right | .769 | 1082 | 45 | 136 | .240 | ||||
2023vs Left | .751 | 97 | 4 | 9 | .250 | ||||
2023vs Right | .832 | 394 | 20 | 57 | .263 | ||||
2022vs Left | .677 | 119 | 1 | 10 | .243 | ||||
2022vs Right | .662 | 327 | 8 | 33 | .221 | ||||
2021vs Left | .509 | 129 | 2 | 8 | .157 | ||||
2021vs Right | .796 | 361 | 17 | 46 | .232 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Home/Away Batting Splits
Since 2021
+6%
OPS at Home
2023
+20%
OPS at Home
OPS | PA | HR | RBI | AVG | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021Home | .757 | 727 | 29 | 83 | .235 | ||||
Since 2021Away | .715 | 700 | 23 | 80 | .231 | ||||
2023Home | .895 | 230 | 12 | 34 | .291 | ||||
2023Away | .746 | 261 | 12 | 32 | .233 | ||||
2022Home | .668 | 250 | 6 | 22 | .213 | ||||
2022Away | .664 | 196 | 3 | 21 | .244 | ||||
2021Home | .715 | 247 | 11 | 27 | .204 | ||||
2021Away | .723 | 243 | 8 | 27 | .219 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Stat Review
How does Max Kepler 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.
* 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
0.42BB Rate
9.2%K Rate
21.6%BABIP
.288ISO
.224AVG
.260OBP
.332SLG
.484OPS
.816wOBA
.355Exit Velocity
91.9 mphHard Hit Rate
37.3%Barrels/PA
8.4%Expected BA
.271Expected SLG
.503Sprint Speed
23.4 ft/secGround Ball %
37.8%Line Drive %
17.9%Fly Ball %
44.3%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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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
Kepler hit just nine home runs last year and saw a sharp decrease in power even though his other stats were mostly in line with his career. He did struggle with injuries as he played just 115 games missing time due to a sore knee, broken toe and quad injury, though none seem like long-term worries. Kepler again showed outstanding command at the plate with a 11% walk rate and a career-best 14.8% strike out rate. However, he had a career-low 34.4% FB%. He's still capable of above-average power as his Max Exit Velocity was in the 98th percentile (per Baseball Savant), but that only translated to a career-low .348 SLG. He profiles as a candidate to benefit from the ban on shifts since he's a pull hitter who hits too many ground balls. His 2019 season featured a Pull% of 50.8% compared to just 41.7% last season. His defense remains a plus as he was a Gold Glove finalist in right field. He also had a better OPS last season against lefties, which could mitigate concerns he may be platooned since he's had sharp platoon splits over his career. Still, four years later, it's looking like Kepler's 36-home run 2019 season was an outlier and he'll be hard pressed to keep an everyday job if he can't translate his plate discipline into better production.
More Fantasy News
Club option picked up
The Twins exercised Kepler's $10 million club option for 2024 on Thursday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
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Sitting out Thursday
Kepler is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game against the Athletics.
ANALYSIS
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Perfect at plate Wednesday
Kepler went 4-for-4 and scored a run in Wednesday's 6-4 victory versus Oakland.
ANALYSIS
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Swats home run Sunday
Kepler went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer in Sunday's win over the Angels.
ANALYSIS
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Sitting Saturday
Kepler will be on the bench Saturday against the Angels, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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