Zach McKinstry

27-Year-Old Second Baseman2B

Chicago Cubs

2022 Stats

AVG

.199

RBI

2023 Projections

AVG

RBI

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2023 Fantasy Outlook

After beginning his career with two seasons and change in a Dodgers uniform, McKinstry finished 2022 with the Cubs after a midseason trade from Los Angeles. He showed good defensive versatility by appearing at five different positions, though he continued to do very little at the plate. He slashed .199/.273/.361 and contributed five home runs across 57 games. While those numbers don't jump off the page, McKinstry was at least able to record a career-high seven stolen bases on seven attempts. Heading into his age-28 season, McKinstry looks like a backup to Nick Madrigal and Nico Hoerner up the middle, and he could see some time in the outfield as well. His uncertain playing time and probable low batting average limits his appeal, though McKinstry could have a little value in deeper leagues if he somehow sees an expanded role and also continues to steal bases at a regular clip. Read Past Outlooks

RANKS

#598

ADP

Overall

League Majors

Bats L

Throws R

40 Man Yes

Height 6'1"

Weight 175

DOB 4/29/1995

Drafted 33rd Rd 2016

Gets look in left field

2BChicago Cubs

March 11, 2023

McKinstry will get looks in the outfield for the rest of the Cactus League season, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports reports.

ANALYSIS
McKinstry got a look in left field on Saturday, and it's something the Cubs will have him do again during the exhibition season. The former Dodgers prospect is out of options, so Chicago would risk losing him on waivers if he doesn't make the Opening Day roster. Showing the versatility to handle the outfield would go a long way towards McKinstry being a part of the opening group.

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Batting Stats

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2022

2021

2020

2022 MLB Game Log

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2021 MLB Game Log

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2020 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

+10%

OPS vs RHP

2022

+40%

OPS vs RHP

2021

+4%

OPS vs RHP

2020

-100%

OPS vs RHP

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020vs Left	.605	73	7	1	10	1	.215	.282	.323
Since 2020vs Right	.664	291	34	11	34	7	.207	.266	.398
2022vs Left	.465	20	3	0	1	1	.188	.278	.188
2022vs Right	.653	165	18	5	14	6	.200	.273	.380
2021vs Left	.650	53	4	1	9	0	.224	.283	.367
2021vs Right	.676	119	15	6	20	1	.211	.254	.422
2020vs Left	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020vs Right	.714	7	1	0	0	0	.286	.286	.429
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Home/Away Batting Splits

Since 2020

+29%

OPS at Home

2022

+30%

OPS at Home

2021

+30%

OPS at Home

2020

-100%

OPS on Road

	OPS	PA	R	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP	SLG
Since 2020Home	.743	165	21	8	24	2	.230	.282	.461
Since 2020Away	.576	199	20	4	19	6	.190	.258	.318
2022Home	.733	75	10	3	6	1	.232	.284	.449
2022Away	.565	110	11	2	8	6	.175	.266	.299
2021Home	.751	90	11	5	18	1	.229	.281	.470
2021Away	.577	82	8	2	11	0	.200	.244	.333
2020Home	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2020Away	.714	7	1	0	0	0	.286	.286	.429
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Stat Review

How does Zach McKinstry 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

0.31

BB Rate

8.6%

K Rate

28.1%

BABIP

.257

ISO

.163

AVG

.199

OBP

.273

SLG

.361

OPS

.635

wOBA

.282

Exit Velocity

86.4 mph

Hard Hit Rate

25.0%

Barrels/PA

2.7%

Expected BA

.229

Expected SLG

.342

Sprint Speed

24.7 ft/sec

Ground Ball %

37.2%

Line Drive %

24.8%

Fly Ball %

38.1%

Prospect Rankings History

View Complete Zach McKinstry 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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Past Fantasy Outlooks

2021

2020

McKinstry came out of nowhere to appear on the Dodgers' radar by logging a 177 wRC+ in his first Triple-A stint in 2019. The 25-year-old followed with a strong spring training last season, logging a 1.314 OPS and drilling three homers over 31 plate appearances. Simply receiving a big-league call-up was an against-the-odds achievement in itself -- McKinstry was a slap-hitting 33rd-round pick in the 2016 first-year playoff draft -- and he ran with the opportunity, collecting a pair of hits in seven at-bats. McKinstry's minor-league track record reveals favorable walk and strikeout rates, which often translates to similar characteristics in the majors. The big question is whether the power that began to emerge in 2019 will continue to blossom as McKinstry further evolves as a hitter. If so, his ability to play all over the field could help McKinstry fill the type of super-utility role the Dodgers tend to covet.

He doesn't have much pedigree (33rd-round pick in 2016), but McKinstry earned a spot on the Dodgers' 40-man roster with a breakout 2019 at Double-A and Triple-A. He had excelled at some previous stops but was old for those levels, so his production didn't really register. However, he was 26% better than the average Texas League hitter and used the juiced ball and hitter-friendly environment of the Pacific Coast League to log a 177 wRC+ after his promotion. His strikeout rate was below 20% at both stops, and he utilized an all-fields line drive and flyball-oriented approach. McKinstry played double-digit games at second base, shortstop, third base and the outfield, which is critical, as he will probably have to break in as a super-utility option. He hits left-handed but had reverse splits last year (.873 OPS vs. RHP, .924 OPS vs. LHP). McKinstry has a chance to hit for a high average with 20-homer pop.

More Fantasy News

May see time at DH

2BChicago Cubs

February 21, 2023

McKinstry is a candidate to see some time at DH or as a utility player for the Cubs in 2023, Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic report.

ANALYSIS
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