| Year | W | L | ERA | GS | IP | K | BB | WHIP | K/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5 | 8 | 3.99 | 20 | 99.0 | 38 | 33 | 1.29 | 3.44 |
| 2025 | 4 | 9 | 4.71 | 22 | 109.1 | 49 | 40 | 1.45 | 4.0 |
| 2026 ST | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Elite Ground Balls. Zero Swing-and-Miss. That's the Problem.
Jack Kochanowicz generates ground balls at an elite rate — 57.3% in 2024, third-best in the AL. At 6'7" with a heavy sinker that bores into right-handed hitters, he has a legitimate weapon that produces soft contact. A ground ball machine in a league that increasingly values launch angle is a real competitive advantage.
The problem is sitting right next to the asset: 3.44 K/9 in 2024 was the worst mark of any MLB starter with 50+ innings pitched. He threw his sinker 72% of the time. Lineups that set up against it — sitting on the heater, taking the sinker, attacking elevated pitches — had a clear path against him. The margin for error in the AL West without any swing-and-miss stuff is dangerously thin.
His spring debut on Feb 24 vs Colorado was more of the same pattern: 1⅔ IP, went to sinker early and often. The leash is short in the fifth-starter competition against Manoah. If Manoah's velocity holds through April, Kochanowicz begins the year in Salt Lake. If he shows a second weapon before then, the conversation changes.