Taijuan Walker
31-Year-Old
2023 Stats
W-L
15-6
ERA
4.38
WHIP
1.31
K
138
SV
0
2024 Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
Walker signed a four-year, $72 million deal with the Phillies prior to last season, and while his passable 4.38 ERA across 31 starts may have helped the team eat enough innings to get into the playoffs, the fact that he wasn't trusted to throw a single postseason inning is telling. Walker was seemingly lucky to finish with his respectable ERA, as both his xFIP (4.83) and SIERA (4.97) indicated things could have been much worse. Pitchers who are worse than league average in both strikeout rate (18.8%) and walk rate (9.7%) don't tend to be very imposing unless they're elite at keeping the ball on the ground, and while Walker has been above-average in that area for most of his career, he's far from an outlier. Walker should get the ball every fifth day for a contender again in 2024, which has fantasy value in deeper leagues, but given that his numbers trended in the wrong direction as 2023 progressed, another step back seems more likely than another step forward. Read Past Outlooks
Velocity down in spring debut
Walker averaged just 89.4 mph with his four-seam fastball during Saturday's Grapefruit League debut versus the Blue Jays, Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
ANALYSIS
The right-hander allowed one run on two hits and one walk while notching three strikeouts over two innings. Both Walker and Phillies manager Rob Thomson were unconcerned about the righty's low velocity, noting that Walker hasn't thrown much this spring due to a sore knee and also being away for personal reasons. Walker's velocity was down in 2023 after he lost about 20 pounds last offseason, but he put that weight back on this winter in hopes of regaining the zip on his fastball. His velocity will be worth tracking in the next couple weeks.
The right-hander allowed one run on two hits and one walk while notching three strikeouts over two innings. Both Walker and Phillies manager Rob Thomson were unconcerned about the righty's low velocity, noting that Walker hasn't thrown much this spring due to a sore knee and also being away for personal reasons. Walker's velocity was down in 2023 after he lost about 20 pounds last offseason, but he put that weight back on this winter in hopes of regaining the zip on his fastball. His velocity will be worth tracking in the next couple weeks.
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
92
Last 10 Games
100
Last 5 Games
105
How many pitches does Taijuan Walker 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 Taijuan Walker 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
-11%
BAA vs LHP
2023
-10%
BAA vs LHP
BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021vs Left | .220 | 195 | 95 | 179 | 29 | |||
Since 2021vs Right | .247 | 221 | 76 | 252 | 32 | |||
2023vs Left | .226 | 75 | 40 | 74 | 12 | |||
2023vs Right | .252 | 63 | 31 | 81 | 8 | |||
2022vs Left | .242 | 57 | 23 | 57 | 7 | |||
2022vs Right | .239 | 75 | 22 | 86 | 8 | |||
2021vs Left | .192 | 63 | 32 | 48 | 10 | |||
2021vs Right | .250 | 83 | 23 | 85 | 16 | |||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2021
-28%
ERA at Home
2023
-32%
ERA at Home
ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Since 2021Home | 3.48 | 1.13 | 250.2 | 8.1 | 3.1 | ||||
Since 2021Away | 4.80 | 1.33 | 238.1 | 7.2 | 3.2 | ||||
2023Home | 3.55 | 1.23 | 88.2 | 7.8 | 4.0 | ||||
2023Away | 5.25 | 1.39 | 84.0 | 6.5 | 3.4 | ||||
2022Home | 3.42 | 1.17 | 71.0 | 7.7 | 2.5 | ||||
2022Away | 3.54 | 1.22 | 86.1 | 7.4 | 2.6 | ||||
2021Home | 3.46 | 1.01 | 91.0 | 8.7 | 2.8 | ||||
2021Away | 5.82 | 1.41 | 68.0 | 7.7 | 3.6 | ||||
More Splits→ | View More Split Stats |
Stat Review
How does Taijuan Walker compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 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 120 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 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
1.94K/9
7.2BB/9
3.7HR/9
1.0Fastball
92.7 mphERA
4.38WHIP
1.31BABIP
.279GB/FB
1.46Left On Base
70.2%Exit Velocity
82.5 mphBarrels/BBE
4.7%Spin Rate
1895 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
26.8%Swinging Strike
8.7%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 Taijuan Walker See More
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
Walker struggled during the second half of 2021 and finished with a 4.47 ERA, but he didn't fade as much down the stretch last season and overall produced a 3.49 ERA and 1.19 WHIP across 157.1 innings. The right-hander's strikeout rate dropped two percentage points to 20.3 percent, but he also cut his walk rate to 6.9 percent, which is his best figure since 2016. The advanced stats indicate Walker could be due for some regression (3.94 xERA, 4.05 SIERA, 3.89 xFIP), and he won't be helped much by the defense after joining Philadelphia on a four-year, $72 million deal. He'll be stable in the middle of the rotation for the reigning NL Champions and should be a solid mixed-league option for fantasy managers in 2023, though his strikeout numbers certainly limit his upside.
More Fantasy News
Set for Grapefruit debut Saturday
Walker (knee) will see his first Grapefruit League action of the spring Saturday, Corey Seidman of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.
ANALYSIS
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Spring debut as soon as Monday
Walker (knee) is on track for either live batting practice or possibly a game Monday, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
ANALYSIS
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Could make spring debut soon
Manager Rob Thomson said Tuesday that Walker (knee) felt good after a bullpen session over the weekend and is expected to throw live batting practice within the next couple days, Jayson Stark of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
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Aiming to throw off mound soon
Walker (knee) told reporters Saturday that he's aiming to throw off the mound in the next few days after playing catch Saturday, Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
ANALYSIS
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Managing knee soreness
Walker experienced soreness in his right knee during a bullpen session Thursday and will rest for the next few days, Corey Seidman of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.
ANALYSIS
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