Kyle McMyne is currently pitching in part of a third season for Double-A Penascola. In 2014 he would make seven appearances with the Blue Wahoos in August after spending most of the year in Bakersfield. His ERA was 6.10 with six walks and eight strikeouts in 10.1 innings.
He returned to Pensacola for the 2015 season and he would spend the entire year there. His ERA was outstanding, posting a 2.77 mark in 61.2 innings. That ERA came along with very poor peripherals though, as he walked 33 batters with just 30 strikeouts in 61.2 innings. The right hander kept runs off of the board, but his underlying numbers didn’t project so well for strong future performance without improvement.
This season, the 26-year-old reliever returned to Pensacola and he’s spent the entire year there again. The numbers don’t look the best for the season. He’s posted a 5.65 ERA in 51.0 innings with 17 walks and 36 strikeouts. His walk rate is the best of his career and it’s taken big strides from where it’s been in the past, but his strikeout rate remains low.
His struggles in the first three months of the season hide how well he’s pitched over the last two months though. On June 27th he allowed seven runs in an inning of work on eight hits and a walk. It was an ugly outing and probably the worst of his entire career.
Kyle McMyne didn’t pitch again for nearly a week. When he returned on July 2nd he allowed a run in an inning of work. He’s allowed three runs since then. Since the start of July the righty has pitched in 16 games, covering 20.1 innings and his ERA is 1.77. More impressive has been where he’s walked just four batters and struck out 19 without allowing a home run.
Let’s take a look at his numbers from his time in Pensacola, dating back to 2014 through June of 2016 and compare them to what he’s done since July rolled around:
| Time | IP | ERA | BB% | K% |
| 2014-June 2016 | 102.2 | 4.91 | 11.16% | 11.80% |
| July 2016-Today | 20.1 | 1.77 | 5.06% | 24.05% |
There’s an obvious difference in the sample size here, with five times as many innings in one as the other. That is worth noting, but we are also seeing a very significant difference in the peripheral stats as well. McMyne has cut his walk rate by more than 50% in the last two months compared to where it’s been in the past. It’s gone from a below-average rate to a significantly above-average rate. He’s also taken a strikeout rate that was well below-average and turned it into one that’s significantly above-average.
His strikeout-to-walk ratio has gone from nearly 1-to-1 to nearly 5-t0-1. That’s an incredible turn around and one that may be enough to put him in the conversation this offseason as a player that the Cincinnati Reds will need to consider protecting from the upcoming Rule 5 draft.
Kyle McMyne Scouting Report
The right hander has always had good stuff, but he hasn’t always been able to use it to the best of it’s abilities. Throwing strikes has been an issue and it’s let hitters eliminate options at times and let them make more contact against him. His fastball has tons of movement on it and it’s helped him generate tons of ground balls over his career. This season he’s gotten ground balls on 60% of the balls put in play against him. That’s an incredibly high rate that would rank near the top in the Major Leagues if he were able to keep that number moving forward.
[private_subscriber]
His fastball works mostly in the 91-94 MPH range, though there’s some extra zip on it at times and he’s been up to 97 MPH in the past with the pitch. It’s got movement on both planes with late sink to it.
For his secondary offering he brings a slider that’s also got two plane movement. It’s not a big sweeping slider, but it’s got biting action and a little bit of movement away from righties or into lefties. At times it’s got more biting action than others, but it’s an above-average pitch.
Throwing strikes will be key for McMyne, but when he’s able to throw both pitches in the zone he’s able to miss plenty of bats and get tons of grounders. It’s a very good combination if you can get it.
[/private_subscriber]