Wade LeBlanc

Wade LeBlanc

40-Year-Old PitcherP
 Free Agent  
2025 Fantasy Outlook
There was no outlook written for Wade LeBlanc in 2025. Check out the latest news below for more on his current fantasy value.
$Signed a one-year contract with the Cardinals in June of 2021.
Retires from baseball
PFree Agent  
Elbow
April 2, 2022
LeBlanc (elbow) announced his retirement from professional baseball Saturday, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.
ANALYSIS
After 13 seasons in the majors, LeBlanc has decided to hang up his cleats for good. The left-hander will finish his career with a 46-49 record, 4.54 ERA and 1.35 WHIP while striking out 671 batters over 931.1 innings. He played for nine different teams during his career, with his best season coming in 2018 in Seattle. He finished that year with a 9-5 record, 3.72 ERA and 1.18 WHIP while starting 27 games.
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2020
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2020 MLB Game Log
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Wade LeBlanc See More
MLB: Jeff Zimmerman on Starter/Relievers Part 2
November 12, 2021
Jeff Zimmerman circles back and examines eight more pitchers who split time between starting and relieving in 2021. Are any of them worth a roster spot in mixed leagues in 2022?
MLB: Jeff Zimmerman on Starter/Reliever Splits
October 29, 2021
Jeff Zimmerman discusses why it's important to look at starter/reliever splits and identifies the 65 players who started five games and relieved in five others in 2021.
Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Mad Max Road Fury
August 7, 2021
Todd Zola ranks the week's starting pitching as Max Scherzer gets a two-start week for the Dodgers.
DraftKings MLB: Thursday Breakdown
August 5, 2021
Centered around the red-hot Joey Votto, Mike Barner delivers his best DraftKings picks for a six-game Thursday slate.
Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Familiar Faces in Different Places
July 31, 2021
Todd Zola ranks Gerrit Cole atop his pitcher list in a week that has a number of hurlers debuting for new teams following the trade deadline.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2020
2019
2017
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
LeBlanc went from working mostly as a true starter in 2018 to more of primary pitcher or bulk reliever in 2019. Just eight of his 26 appearances with Seattle were as a starter, but LeBlanc still threw 121.1 innings, fourth-most on the team. Relying mostly on fastballs and changeups -- the term "fastballs" being used loosely, since he sits 84-86 mph with his variants (four-seamer, sinker, cutter) -- LeBlanc struck batters out at a 17.3% clip, down from 19.6% in 2018. His HR/9 shot up from 1.33 to 2.08 in a record-setting home run season. Opponents hit .290 against LeBlanc, which was the ninth-worst mark in baseball (min. 100 IP). The ERA estimators suggest he deserved a little bit better, likely on account of another strong walk rate (5.8%). However, swing-and-miss dominance is the name of the game nowadays, and LeBlanc simply does not miss enough bats to be worthy of consideration in a mixed league.
A late signee last spring, LeBlanc built up his arm strength throughout April before joining the Mariners' rotation in May. In the end, he was one of Seattle's most dependable starters, finishing third on the team in strikeouts and second among its rotation members in WHIP. He has one of the most balanced repertoires in the game; LeBlanc throws his fastball, cutter and changeup all between 25-35% of the time, and he incorporates a curveball close to 10% of the time. Only one of those pitches -- his cutter -- is really an above-average pitch, but he commands them all well enough and mixes them well enough to be effective. The K-rate won't get anyone excited, but he did boost his strikeout rate to over 21% in the second half and his 33.9% O-Swing% was a top-20 mark among pitchers with 150 innings. Owners would be wise to pick their spots carefully, as LeBlanc has always been prone to the long ball (career 1.32 HR/9).
Pitching for his seventh major league team in six seasons, LeBlanc was nearly unhittable in his eight outings (12 innings, one earned run) for Pittsburgh in 2016. He owns a career 4.39 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in parts of eight seasons, but the 32-year-old lefty has pitched a bit better coming back from Japan after the 2015 campaign. Most likely, he'll continue to toil as a LOOGY for Pittsburgh or another team in 2017, given that his fastball -- 87.8 mph average before Japan, 86.9 mph after Japan -- hasn't appreciably changed, and he hasn't uncovered a new pitch. LeBlanc threw his changeup at a career-high 30 percent clip, but that isn't enough to change his profile to anything more than that of a situational reliever.
It was an interesting season for LeBlanc, who was claimed off waivers by the Yankees in June, only to be re-signed by the Halos a few weeks later after being outrighted to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. LeBlanc saw his ups and downs in between, including another placement on waivers in August, but he had a strong showing in September, allowing just one earned run in 19 innings over eight appearances (two starts). While the 30-year-old didn't see the same level of success at Triple-A Salt Lake, his peripherals were strong, as he posted a 21.6% strikeout rate, and allowed just 11 home runs in 128 innings. Despite his run of success in September, LeBlanc was non-tendered by the Angels and ultimately decided to pitch in Japan in 2015 with the Seibu Lions.
LeBlanc didn't have a strong showing in 2013, as he pitched to a combined 5.40 ERA with the Marlins and Astros last season. The left-hander signed a minor league deal with the Angels in November, where he will likely serve as rotation depth.
LeBlanc functioned as a swing man for the Marlins in 2012 and actually notched a respectable 3.67 ERA and 1.31 WHIP in 68.2 innings pitched in the majors (nine starts, 16 relief appearances). The lefty posted similar numbers in 16 Triple-A starts (3.74 ERA and 1.13 WHIP) with much improved command ratios against the lesser competition. LeBlanc's arsenal comprises three flavors of high-80s heat (four-seam, two-seam and cutter) and a solid changeup that is complemented by a slow hooking curveball. Under contract through 2016, LeBlanc will get a look as a back-end starter in the Marlins' barren rotation and could be serviceable if he maintains the career-low 2.5 BB/9 he flashed last season.
After spending the first six seasons of his career in the Padres organization, LeBlanc was shipped to Miami in exchange for catcher John Baker. His overall numbers are far from appealing to fantasy owners, and in 2011 he posted a 4.63 ERA and a reduced K/9IP of 5.76 with a career-low 1.82 K/BB. Looking at his home/road splits makes an even greater case against him -- 3.65 ERA with a 1.93 K:BB ratio at Petco vs. a 5.86 ERA and 1.69 K:BB ratio everywhere else. He's buried on the depth chart in Miami, and in 2012 will either find a spot in the bullpen doing mop-up duty or end up back in Triple-A.
In his first full season as a starter, LeBlanc was useful to fantasy owners, until a disastrous August knocked him from the Padres' rotation. He was able to reduce his walk rate, while maintaining his strikeout rate, but a home run rate of 1.48 HR/9IP had a way of making it all for naught. Moving forward, if he can approach the 8.1 K/9IP strikeout rate he had in Triple-A, he'll be able to make some real headway. As is, he's fortunate that he pitches in PETCO as his long-ball woes would play much worse in another ballpark. LeBlanc might not begin the year in the rotation, following the Padres' acquisitions of Aaron Harang and Dustin Moseley in the offseason.
The Padres are lousy with pitchers like LeBlanc, who rely on command, deception and not allowing home runs. The lefty bounced back from an off year in 2008 and made it back to the majors, filling in nicely at season's end. His upside is last year's line with 30 starts, and the downside is...pretty ugly. He's not someone to target in your draft.
LeBlanc earned a late-season audition after a good year at Triple-A Portland, highlighted by an impressive 139:42 K:BB ratio in 138.2 innings. His ERA was a bit high at 5.32, largely the result of surrendering 21 homers. This carried over to his September tryout, as he served up seven gopher balls in only 21.1 big league innings. He also had an unimpressive 15:14 K:BB ratio. Even though this is a limited sample, LeBlanc will need a good spring to show he is indeed ready to help the Padres' staff. The key will be his home-run rate, as LeBlanc's minor league history suggests he will overcome his September control woes.
LeBlanc asserted himself among San Diego's top prospects with an excellent 2007 split almost evenly between High-A and Double-A. He has strikeout stuff (145 in 149.1 innings) and excellent control (only 36 walks). The lefty is working towards a potential major league rotation spot in 2009, when he will be 24 years old.
More Fantasy News
Ruled out for season
PSt. Louis Cardinals  
Elbow
September 9, 2021
LeBlanc (elbow) will be shut down for the remainder of the 2021 campaign, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
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Bullpen pushed back
PSt. Louis Cardinals  
Elbow
September 7, 2021
LeBlanc (elbow) saw a bullpen session scheduled for Saturday pushed back in order to ensure he can handle the intensity, the team's official site reports.
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May not return in 2021
PSt. Louis Cardinals  
Elbow
August 26, 2021
LeBlanc (elbow) hasn't recovered well from Tuesday's bullpen session and may not be able to return this season, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
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Throws twice in recent days
PSt. Louis Cardinals  
Elbow
August 23, 2021
LeBlanc (elbow) threw off flat ground Thursday and Saturday, the team's official site reports.
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Set to throw Thursday
PSt. Louis Cardinals  
Elbow
August 18, 2021
LeBlanc (elbow) is slated to play catch Thursday, the team's official site reports.
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Could sign non-guaranteed deal?
PFree Agent  
January 14, 2021
LeBlanc (elbow) might have to settle for a non-guaranteed deal if he signs with a team before the start of the season, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
ANALYSIS
Teams looking for a spot starter and long reliever will soon have another option to consider, as LeBlanc is still looking to sign with a new team after suffering a tough elbow injury in 2020. LeBlanc posted a strong 2018 season but hasn't done much since, but he might command interest as a swingman if he's able to prove that he's healthy. His numbers aren't promising, though -- he posted an 8.06 ERA in 22.1 innings last year while struggling with a 5.71 ERA across 121.1 innings in 2019.
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