Kyle Isbel

26-Year-Old OutfielderOF

Kansas City Royals

2022 Stats

AVG

.211

RBI

2023 Projections

AVG

RBI

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2023 Fantasy Outlook

Entering his age-26 season, Isbel has yet to claim a full-time major-league role. He was mainly a strong-side platoon option in the Royals' outfield in 2022, but a brutal .211/.264/.340 slash line didn't strengthen his case to see more time. The Royals are at the point in their latest round of rebuilding where prospects are given a look in the majors, and that could make for an outfield logjam, though Isbel's speed and solid defense will keep him in the conversation for another year. He had five home runs, nine stolen bases and 28 RBI in 278 plate appearances last year -- that's not huge, but hitting anywhere around .260 would likely make him look like a much more viable player. The biggest concern for Isbel is the likes of Drew Waters, Edward Olivares and MJ Melendez picking up time in the outfield at his expense if he can't get his bat going early in the year. Read Past Outlooks

RANKS

#552

ADP

League Majors

Bats L

Throws R

40 Man Yes

Height 5'11"

Weight 190

DOB 3/3/1997

Born Fontana, CA

College UNLV

Drafted 3rd Rd 2018 KC

Cruising in spring

OFKansas City Royals

March 21, 2023

Isbel is slashing .438/.500/.563 through 13 Cactus League games.

ANALYSIS
Isbel has two stolen bases, four doubles, five RBI and six runs scored. Drew Waters' oblique injury opened the door for Isbel to earn a starting role to begin 2023, and he's run with the opportunity in spring. He could be a late-round source of speed in fantasy drafts.

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Batting Stats

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2022

2021

2022 MLB Game Log

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2021 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 2020

+14%

OPS vs RHP

2022

+25%

OPS vs RHP

2021

+18%

OPS vs LHP

2020

No Stats

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020vs Left	.577	68	10	0	7	2	.230	.299	.279
Since 2020vs Right	.657	293	38	6	28	9	.225	.276	.380
2022vs Left	.502	55	6	0	6	2	.204	.278	.224
2022vs Right	.627	223	26	5	22	7	.213	.260	.367
2021vs Left	.885	13	4	0	1	0	.333	.385	.500
2021vs Right	.750	70	12	1	6	2	.266	.329	.422
2020vs Left	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020vs Right	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
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Home/Away Batting Splits

Since 2020

+33%

OPS at Home

2022

+46%

OPS at Home

2021

+1%

OPS on Road

2020

No Stats

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020Home	.721	198	31	4	20	10	.265	.305	.416
Since 2020Away	.544	163	17	2	15	1	.177	.252	.293
2022Home	.705	149	21	3	14	8	.257	.291	.414
2022Away	.483	129	11	2	14	1	.155	.233	.250
2021Home	.769	49	10	1	6	2	.289	.347	.422
2021Away	.775	34	6	0	1	0	.258	.324	.452
2020Home	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020Away	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
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Stat Review

How does Kyle Isbel 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

0.21

BB Rate

5.8%

K Rate

27.0%

BABIP

.275

ISO

.129

AVG

.211

OBP

.264

SLG

.340

OPS

.603

wOBA

.267

Exit Velocity

89.7 mph

Hard Hit Rate

32.6%

Barrels/PA

3.3%

Expected BA

.220

Expected SLG

.323

Sprint Speed

24.4 ft/sec

Ground Ball %

43.1%

Line Drive %

19.3%

Fly Ball %

37.6%

Prospect Rankings History

View Complete Kyle Isbel 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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Royals Depth Chart

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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Kyle Isbel See More

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208 days ago

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Past Fantasy Outlooks

2022

2021

2020

2019

Isbel has two of the most important things any hitting prospect can have: speed and opportunity. He is a plus runner and a potentially plus defender in any of the three outfield spots, and the depth chart is wide open in right field and slightly open in center. Michael Taylor is an excellent defensive center fielder, but he hits right-handed, has a career 85 wRC+ and is only getting paid $4.5 million per year, so he could sit against some righties as Isbel moves between center and right. His best run of the season came when he got his second cup of coffee with the Royals, hitting .286/.362/.524 with one home run, one steal, a 10.6 BB% and a 17.0 K% in 47 plate appearances to close the year. He hit .269/.357/.444 with 15 home runs and 22 steals in 105 games at Triple-A. Isbel lacks impact power but could be a prime Adam Eaton type of contributor. On this team, that type of player could eventually lead off against righties. Considering he turns 25 in March, this will be an important year for him to prove he is a regular going forward.

The one poor hitting stretch of Isbel's minor-league career was in the second half of 2019 when he was returning from a broken wrist. He was his normal self later that year in the Arizona Fall League, hitting .315/.429/.438 with six steals in 21 games. Isbel spent this past summer at the alternate training site, where he faced arguably the best collection of pitching prospects at any team's alternate site and still did plenty of damage. He will be hit over power, but Isbel has enough left-handed pop to bang out 15-plus home runs while potentially leading off. The big selling point for fantasy, however, is his plus speed. He puts it to use on the bases with high success rates and could be a 20-to-25 steal guy in his prime. Isbel also has a chance to be a plus defensive outfielder, which should help keep his bat in the lineup. If he handles the upper levels, he could debut during his age-24 season.

While Isbel missed almost three months with hamstring and hamate injuries, he still had one of the better 2019 seasons by a Royals position player prospect (Nick Pratto, MJ Melendez and Seuly Matias all flopped). This is important to factor in, as the organizational depth chart looks pretty bleak over the next couple years, so basic competency will give a player a chance to play a lot when they first get to Kansas City. Isbel, who turns 23 in March, hit .348 through his first 13 games before the injuries struck. His performance was poor upon his return, which could be chalked up to the long layoff, but he rebounded by hitting .315/.429/.438 with a 20:14 K:BB and six steals on seven attempts in 91 PA in the Arizona Fall League. Isbel has plus speed and could be a center fielder in the early-career Adam Eaton mold. Given his age, the Royals will keep him on a fast track to the majors.

Isbel, the 94th overall pick in the 2018 draft, put up some of the best statistics of any player in that class after signing for $592,300. Let's throw out what the 21-year-old did in the hitter-friendly Pioneer League. He was old for the level and there is a lot of noise in those numbers. After getting a promotion to the Sally League, his K% jumped from 14.3% to 24.7% and his walk rate dipped from 11.8% to 6.9%. However, he started using the whole field more, dropping his Pull% from 51.1% to 41.0%, which will be important for the left-handed hitter as he moves up the ladder. His plus speed and aggressiveness on the bases were apparent at both stops, and those are the top selling points in dynasty leagues. Isbel has a chance to develop into a center fielder who steals 25-plus bases and hits double-digit home runs. If he can improve his contact rate, or regain the patient approach he showed in rookie ball, he could be the Royals' leadoff hitter in a couple years.

More Fantasy News

Expected to open in CF

OFKansas City Royals

February 21, 2023

Isbel is expected to be the Royals' Opening Day center fielder following the injury to Drew Waters (oblique), Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.