Biographical

Kelvin Herrera PCubs

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2019 Projections (Preseason PECOTA - seasonal age 29)

IP	ERA	WHIP	SO	W	L	SV	WARP
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Birth Date	12-31-1989
Height	5' 10"
Weight	220 lbs

Age	34 years, 10 months, 21 days
Bats	R
Throws	R

: 1.02015
: 2.12016
: 0.92017
: 0.52018
: 0.22019
proj

WARP Summary

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MLB Statistics

Historical (past-seasons) WARP is now based on DRA..
cFIP and DRA are not available on a by-team basis and display as zeroes(0). See TOT line for season totals of these stats.
Multiple stints are are currently shown —Click to hide.

YEAR	Team	Lg	G	IP	W	L	SV	H	BB	SO	HR	PPF	H/9	BB/9	HR/9	K/9	GB%	BABIP	WHIP	FIP	ERA	cFIP	DRA	DRA-	WARP
2011	KCA	MLB	2	2.0	0	1	0	2	0	0	1	109	9.0	0.0	4.5	0.0	0%	.143	1.00	11.06	13.50	123	6.83	158.8	0.0
2012	KCA	MLB	76	84.3	4	3	3	79	21	77	4	101	8.4	2.2	0.4	8.2	0%	.313	1.19	2.65	2.35	79	2.60	59.6	2.2
2013	KCA	MLB	59	58.3	5	7	2	48	21	74	9	99	7.4	3.2	1.4	11.4	0%	.281	1.18	3.72	3.86	83	2.74	65.6	1.3
2014	KCA	MLB	70	70.0	4	3	0	54	26	59	0	101	6.9	3.3	0.0	7.6	0%	.274	1.14	2.71	1.41	95	3.53	86.5	0.8
2015	KCA	MLB	72	69.7	4	3	0	52	26	64	5	102	6.7	3.4	0.6	8.3	0%	.249	1.12	3.40	2.71	99	3.46	80.9	1.0
2016	KCA	MLB	72	72.0	2	6	12	57	12	86	6	103	7.1	1.5	0.8	10.8	46%	.290	0.96	2.42	2.75	69	2.39	52.9	2.1
2017	KCA	MLB	64	59.3	3	3	26	60	20	56	9		9.1	3.0	1.4	8.5	47%	.295	1.35	4.29	4.25	95	3.82	81.2	0.9
2018	KCA	0	27	25.7	1	1	14	19	2	22	2	102	6.7	0.7	0.7	7.7	39%	.246	0.82	2.72	1.05	97	3.88	86.7	0.3
2018	WAS	0	21	18.7	1	2	3	24	8	16	4	97	11.6	3.9	1.9	7.7	36%	.333	1.71	5.64	4.34	103	4.20	93.7	0.2
2019	CHA	MLB	57	51.3	3	3	1	60	23	53	8	101	10.5	4.0	1.4	9.3	39%	.347	1.62	4.61	6.14	106	5.21	107.0	0.1
2018	TOT	MLB	48	44.3	2	3	17	43	10	38	6	100	8.7	2.0	1.2	7.7	38%	.287	1.20	3.95	2.44	100	4.01	89.7	0.5
Career		MLB	520	511.3	27	32	61	455	159	507	48	89	8.0	2.8	0.8	8.9	48%	.297	1.20	3.38	3.15	90	3.37	76.2	8.9

Statistics for All Levels

'opp' stats - Quality of opponents faced - have been moved and are available only as OPP_QUAL in the Statistics reports now.
Minor league stats are currently shown —Click to hide.

YEAR	Team	Lg	LG	G	GS	IP	W	L	SV	H	BB	SO	HR	PPF	H/9	BB/9	HR/9	K/9	GB%	BABIP	WHIP	FIP	ERA	cFIP	DRA	DRA-
2007	DOY	Rk	DSL	11	5	42.7	4	1	1	30	15	50	1		6.3	3.2	0.2	10.5	0%	.284	1.05	2.35	0.84	0	0.00	0.0
2008	BUR	A	MDW	3	1	12.7	2	0	0	13	2	7	0	97	9.2	1.4	0.0	5.0	0%	.302	1.18	2.86	2.13	95	4.53	92.8
2008	BNC	Rk	APL	11	8	50.7	2	2	0	48	5	45	0	88	8.5	0.9	0.0	8.0	0%	.331	1.05	2.48	1.42	80	3.98	81.5
2009	BUR	A	MDW	1	1	5.0	1	0	0	3	0	1	0	99	5.4	0.0	0.0	1.8	0%	.188	0.60	3.22	0.00	108	3.81	80.1
2010	BUR	A	MDW	8	8	41.3	2	3	0	38	15	40	2	103	8.3	3.3	0.4	8.7	0%	.321	1.28	3.67	4.36	0	0.00	0.0
2011	KCA	MLB	AL	2	0	2.0	0	1	0	2	0	0	1	109	9.0	0.0	4.5	0.0	0%	.143	1.00	11.06	13.50	123	6.83	158.8
2011	WIL	A+	CAR	8	0	14.7	2	1	1	8	2	12	1		4.9	1.2	0.6	7.4	0%	.184	0.68	2.88	0.61	87	2.87	58.6
2011	NWA	AA	TEX	23	0	36.0	4	0	7	22	6	40	4		5.5	1.5	1.0	10.0	0%	.207	0.78	3.18	1.75	72	1.71	34.9
2011	OMA	AAA	PCL	14	0	17.0	1	0	6	12	7	18	1		6.4	3.7	0.5	9.5	0%	.250	1.12	3.66	2.12	81	2.55	52.0
2011	ESC	Wnt	LID	12	0	17.3	0	0	1	14	4	15	0		7.3	2.1	0.0	7.8	0%	.286	1.04	2.20	0.52	0	0.00	0.0
2012	KCA	MLB	AL	76	0	84.3	4	3	3	79	21	77	4	101	8.4	2.2	0.4	8.2	0%	.313	1.19	2.65	2.35	79	2.60	59.6
2013	KCA	MLB	AL	59	0	58.3	5	7	2	48	21	74	9	99	7.4	3.2	1.4	11.4	0%	.281	1.18	3.72	3.86	83	2.74	65.6
2013	NWA	AA	TEX	2	0	2.0	0	0	0	1	0	5	0		4.5	0.0	0.0	22.5	0%	.500	0.50	-1.95	0.00	30	1.57	34.2
2013	OMA	AAA	PCL	10	3	16.0	0	1	2	6	6	22	1	89	3.4	3.4	0.6	12.4	0%	.161	0.75	3.12	1.13	79	2.05	44.5
2013	DOM	int	WBC	2	0	2.3	0	0	0	2	0	0	0		7.7	0.0	0.0	0.0	0%	.200	0.86	3.63	0.00	0	0.00	0.0
2014	KCA	MLB	AL	70	0	70.0	4	3	0	54	26	59	0	101	6.9	3.3	0.0	7.6	0%	.274	1.14	2.71	1.41	95	3.53	86.5
2015	KCA	MLB	AL	72	0	69.7	4	3	0	52	26	64	5	102	6.7	3.4	0.6	8.3	0%	.249	1.12	3.40	2.71	99	3.46	80.9
2016	KCA	MLB	AL	72	0	72.0	2	6	12	57	12	86	6	103	7.1	1.5	0.8	10.8	46%	.290	0.96	2.42	2.75	69	2.39	52.9
2017	KCA	MLB	AL	64	0	59.3	3	3	26	60	20	56	9		9.1	3.0	1.4	8.5	47%	.295	1.35	4.29	4.25	95	3.82	81.2
2018	KCA	MLB	AL	27	0	25.7	1	1	14	19	2	22	2	102	6.7	0.7	0.7	7.7	39%	.246	0.82	2.72	1.05	97	3.88	86.7
2018	WAS	MLB	NL	21	0	18.7	1	2	3	24	8	16	4	97	11.6	3.9	1.9	7.7	36%	.333	1.71	5.64	4.34	103	4.20	93.7
2019	CHA	MLB	AL	57	0	51.3	3	3	1	60	23	53	8	101	10.5	4.0	1.4	9.3	39%	.347	1.62	4.61	6.14	106	5.21	107.0
2019	CHR	AAA	INT	3	1	3.0	0	1	0	5	0	2	2		15.0	0.0	6.0	6.0	75%	.000	1.67	10.96	12.00	87	3.22	66.4

Plate Discipline

YEAR	Pits	Zone%	Swing%	Contact%	Z-Swing%	O-Swing%	Z-Contact%	O-Contact%	SwStr%
2011	32	0.5625	0.4688	1.0000	0.5556	0.3571	1.0000	1.0000	0.0000
2012	1265	0.4941	0.5107	0.7539	0.6480	0.3766	0.8198	0.6432	0.2461
2013	1002	0.5020	0.4900	0.6802	0.6581	0.3206	0.7492	0.5375	0.3198
2014	1099	0.4732	0.5032	0.7342	0.7173	0.3109	0.7802	0.6389	0.2658
2015	1086	0.4972	0.5276	0.7260	0.7185	0.3388	0.7655	0.6432	0.2740
2016	1088	0.5110	0.5092	0.6823	0.6799	0.3308	0.7593	0.5170	0.3177
2017	1011	0.5223	0.5094	0.7437	0.6780	0.3251	0.7821	0.6561	0.2563
2018	696	0.4828	0.5316	0.7297	0.7113	0.3639	0.8201	0.5649	0.2703
2019	888	0.4685	0.4910	0.7362	0.6803	0.3242	0.7880	0.6405	0.2638
Career	8167	0.4949	0.5085	0.7247	0.6844	0.3365	0.7831	0.6089	0.2753

Injury History — No longer being updated

Last Update: 12/31/2014 23:59 ET

Date On	Date Off	Transaction	Days	Games	Side	Body Part	Injury	Severity	Surgery Date	Reaggravation
2010-05-17	2010-09-08	Minors	114	0	Right	Elbow	Inflammation		-

Compensation

Year	Team	Salary
2021	CHA	$
2020	CHA	$8,500,000
2019	CHA	$8,500,000
2018	KCA	$7,937,500
2017	KCA	$5,325,000
2016	KCA	$2,550,000
2015	KCA	$1,600,000
2014	KCA	$522,500
2013	KCA	$508,175
2012	KCA	$480,650

Years	Description	Salary
9 yr	Previous	$35,923,825
9 yr	Total	$35,923,825

Service Time	Agent	Contract Status
7 y 157 d	Republik Sports	2 years/$18M (2019-20), 2021 option

Details

2 years/$18M (2019-20), plus 2021 option. Signed by Chicago White Sox as a free agent 1/8/19. 19:$8.5M, 20:$8.5M, 21:$10M club option ($1M buyout). 2021 option is guaranteed with 110 games combined in 2019-20, including at least 55 games in 2020, and if Herrera passes a physical after the 2020 season. DFA by Chicago White Sox 7/31/20. Released 8/2/20. Signed by Chicago Cubs as a free agent 8/6/20 (minor-league contract). Released by Chicago Cubs 8/26/20. Retired 2/26/21.
1 year/$7.9375M (2018). Re-signed by Kansas City 1/12/18 (avoided arbitration).
1 year/$5.325M (2017). Re-signed by Kansas City 2/3/17 (avoided arbitration, $5.6M-$5.05M). Award bonus: $50,000 for All-Star.
2 years/$4.15M (2015-16). Signed extension with Kansas City 2/12/15 (avoided arbitration, $1.9M-$1.15M). 15:$1.6M, 16:$2.55M. 2016 salary may increase up to $0.25M based on 2015 games finished.
1 year/$522,500 (2014). Re-signed by Kansas City 2/21/14.
1 year/$508,175 (2013). Re-signed by Kansas City 2/20/13.
1 year/$480,650 (2012). Re-signed by Kansas City 2/10/12.
1 year (2011). Contract purchased by Kansas City 9/21/11.
Signed by Kansas City 12/13/06 as an amateur free agent from the Dominican Republic.

2019 Preseason Forecast

Last Update: 1/27/2017 12:35 ET

PCT	W	L	SV	G	GS	IP	H	BB	SO	HR	BABIP	WHIP	ERA	DRA	VORP
90^o	0	0	0	0	0	14.5	11	4	14	2	.250	1.05	3.19	3.47	0.0
80^o	0	0	0	0	0	9.5	8	3	9	1	.263	1.13	3.57	3.87	0.0
70^o	0	0	0	0	0	5.9	5	2	6	1	.273	1.19	3.84	4.16	0.0
60^o	0	0	0	0	0	3.0	3	1	3	0	.282	1.24	4.09	4.42	0.0
50^o	0	0	0	0	0	0.3	0	0	0	0	.290	1.29	4.31	4.66	-0.1
Weighted Mean	?	?	?	?	?	0.0	?	0	0	?	.000	0.00	0.00	?	0.0

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BP Annual Player Comments

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BP Articles

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BP Chats

Date	Question	Answer
2018-12-11 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Who are your top three most realistic starting pitchers and relievers that the twins should target? Could you speculate the years and annual salary of the free agents please? (Sabir from Saint Paul)	Realistic? Maybe someone like Trevor Cahill among starters and Joakim Soria or Kelvin Herrera among relievers. I'd like to see them aim a bit higher, especially for the bullpen, but "realistic" is Twins speak for "decent but underwhelming" when it comes to free agency. Regardless of the specific names, I'd be surprised if the Twins went beyond two guaranteed seasons for any free agent this offseason. (Aaron Gleeman)
2017-07-13 14:00:00 (link to chat)	True or False: Kelvin Herrera is traded (likely not going to happen given Royals recent success) and the Royals announce that Mike Minor is the first to get a crack at closing. (Punchoutpappy from First in Flight)	The June/July surge from the Royals definitely muddies the waters for them a bit at the deadline. I would have said "True" without hesitation two months ago, but now I'm not so sure. For Minor, it feels like they enjoy having him in that multi-inning role, so I don't know if he'd be first in line. (Mark Barry)
2017-05-03 20:00:00 (link to chat)	Does Koda Glover lead the Nats in saves, or will it be Kelvin Herrera? (Gregg from Cali)	Let me continue here. This SEEMS like a natural landing spot for Herrera. Pair him with Lorenzo Cain (I stole this idea from a twitter follower) and can the Royals get Robles back? He's heretofore been untouchable, but for that package, perhaps a deal could be swung. So, that gives Soria a chance for saves. Who else... Nate Jones on the White Sox (unless they trade him AND Robertson, which might leave... Tommy Kahnle?! Who else... I have this feeling about Archie Bradley, who also could go into the rotation. (David Brown)
2017-05-02 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Do you think Kelvin Herrera get traded this summer? His numbers haven't been great, but he'd look pretty good closing for the Nats, no? (Boomer from Balt)	If the Royals fail to get back in the playoff picture, there is almost no incentive to keep Herrera. The nice thing about Herrera is that he's not locked into closing. You could deal for him and have him go back to setting up ahead of an established closer for a team like the Dodgers. (George Bissell)
2014-11-12 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Are the Dodgers and Cubs implicitly following Lewie Pollis' advice to spend indiscriminately on management? (ssimon from Pelham, N.Y.)	Implicitly? I guess. Explicitly? I... guess. I'm not totally sure I believe it's the right way to do it, to be honest. I think there are so many smart people out there right now that front office guys might be more like relievers than anything. Fairly unpredictable (even the seemingly great ones), fairly replaceable, fairly short window of genius. The Dodgers have signed a ton of big front office guys this year. It seems like a great idea. But so did spending $30 million on a bullpen last offseason. Turned out the right answer was "Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera," and nobody knew it. (Sam Miller)
2014-10-17 12:00:00 (link to chat)	Is Ned Yost just inconsistent or is he getting better? (William from Spokane)	He's getting better. A crucial thing happened in September. The Aaron Crow Game (the cousin of The Jonny Gomes Game) showed the limits of Yost's rigid bullpen management. After that game, pitching coach Dave Eiland implored him to be more aggressive in using Kelvin Herrera and Wade Davis. One point to Yost's credit: He listened. The next night, Herrera pitched in the sixth. Davis pitched in the seventh. Another point to Yost's credit: He did not waver. Because the Royals lost that next night, and Yost could have easily backslid into the routine. He didn't. During the ALCS, multiple Orioles officials lamented to me their frustration that Yost had optimized his bullpen deployment. It was almost unfair, they said. And this was when the team wasn't even using Danny Duffy, who was their best pitcher for much of the summer. So, in short, Yost has gotten better. He still does goofy things, like letting his No. 3 hitter bunt in the first inning. But they've found a horseshoe. At this point, it's Ned's world, and we're all just living in it. Hope you are all enjoying the #Yostseason. (Andy McCullough)
2014-05-21 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Scoresheet league here .Don't have a real closer.Alternating between David Carpenter,Jake McGee and Kelvin Herrera at this point.Based solely on E.R.A,who would you entrench as your closer the rest of way ? (Spirou from Montreal)	Herrera for me (Paul Sporer)
2014-03-14 09:00:00 (link to chat)	I'm in a league that has holds as a category. Who are 3 guys I can target? (DServi4 from Maryland)	I never really recommend targeting pitchers specifically for holds. With non-closers, I'm an advocate for going for skills, not roles. If you are going to target holds, though, I would probably go with Brian Wilson, David Carpenter, and Kelvin Herrera. I like the idea of getting pitchers behind strong closers, since you reduce your risk of losing holds with a solid option in the stopper role. (Mike Gianella)
2013-09-26 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Looking for saves in 2014, how many of these guys are capable/likely to grab 20+ saves next season: Trevor Rosenthal, David Robertson, Cody Allen, Jake McGee, Brian Wilson, Luke Gregerson, Pedro Strop, Drew Storen, Ryan Cook, Carlos Martinez, Vic Black, Joakim Soria, Neftali Feliz, Steve Delebar, Kelvin Herrera, Carter Capps, and/or AJ Ramos? (J-Qwellin from Deplorable Future Leaders of America Club)	J-QWELLIN!!!! Interestingly enough, I'm working on such a piece re: 2014 closers. From your group, I'd go Rosy & D-Rob, but honestly any of them have the capability. I know that's a little copout-y, but that's the nature of the beast with relievers. (Paul Sporer)
2013-02-27 20:00:00 (link to chat)	Romo & Holland are amongst my keepers this season - do both keep their closer jobs all year? (Mike from Chi-town)	I'd say yes to Sergio Romo in all likelihood... keeping in mind that the Giants aren't afraid to switch roles at the earliest sign of trouble. I think Greg Holland will be OK, but Kelvin Herrera is extremely talented. If you're a believer in the skills versus roles thing, Herrera's a guy you'll want to grab in deeper formats. (Mike Gianella)
2013-02-15 12:00:00 (link to chat)	Are the chances good that Carter Capps and Kelvin Herrera can unseat Tom Wilhemsen and Greg Holland is the (primary) 9th inning option? (Mateo from Reno)	I'd say more for injury than skills as I like both of those incumbents. (Jason Collette)
2012-12-18 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Seattle and KC don't have a closer who has his gig locked down. I'm betting on Carter Capps in Seattle and Kelvin Herrera in Kansas City (unless Ventura is moved to the bullpen down the road). Smart money, or should I invest in someone else? (Jonah from Brooklyn)	What's wrong with incumbents Wilhelmsen and Holland? You can speculate on those others on the cheap, but I'd still bet on the 2012 guys. (Paul Sporer)
2012-12-28 13:00:00 (link to chat)	When will Kelvin Herrera supplant Holland for closing duties in KC? (John from Kansas City)	Hi John. I'm guessing as soon as the Royals find a taker for Holland? It shouldn't be hard; he's a good pitcher. (Geoff Young)
2012-12-28 13:00:00 (link to chat)	Kelvin Herrera in KC, Arodys Vizcaino in North Chicago, and Carter Capps in Seattle. Who has the best chance to lead their team in saves in 2013?* In 2014? (*I know Vizcaino is coming back from TJS). (Kevin from Des Moines)	Thanks for the question, Kevin. Trying to guess save opportunities is a fool's errand, but I'll go with Herrera on the basis that he has the most big-league experience. (Geoff Young)

BP Roundtables

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PITCHf/x Pitcher Profile

A Collaboration between BrooksBaseball.net and Baseball Prospectus - Pitch classifications provided by Pitch Info LLC

Although he has not thrown an MLB pitch in 2024, Kelvin Herrera threw 9,126 pitches that were tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2011 and 2020, all of them occuring in Spring Training. In 2020, he relied primarily on his Sinker (95mph), Fourseam Fastball (94mph) and Change (86mph), also mixing in a Curve (79mph). He also rarely threw a Slider (89mph).