After missing his first year recovering from a torn ACL, Jeremy Kivel made his professional debut in June with the Arizona League Reds. The right hander would spend his entire season there, throwing 50.2 innings with a 3.91 ERA.
On June 20th he made his first start against the Arizona League Indians. He threw 4.2 innings and allowed 1 earned run with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts. He followed that up with a start on the 26th against the Dodgers, lasting just 3 innings while allowing 3 earned runs to go along with 2 walks and 4 strikeouts. In two starts on the month he posted a 4.70 ERA with 5 walks and 10 strikeouts over 7.2 innings. Small sample size notes and all, his walk rate was a little higher than you would like and his strikeout numbers were strong.
July saw Kivel get six starts on the month, with the first one coming against the Giants on the 2nd. He allowed just 1 earned in 5 innings without allowing a walk and striking out 3 batters. His next start was against the Angels and he struggled some as he allowed 3 earned in 3 innings with 4 walks and 4 strikeouts while allowing his first home run of his career. The righty rebounded well in his next start,throwing 5 shutout innings with 2 walks and 4 strikeouts against the Cubs. Against the Diamondbacks on the 18th he allowed 1 earned run over 4 innings with a walk and 4 strikeouts. Kivel would struggle against the Giants on the 23rd, giving up 3 earned in 3.1 innings with 2 walks and 4 strikeouts. He ended the month with a strong start against the Brewers, firing 4 shutout innings with just a hit, 3 walks and 3 strikeouts. On the month he would post an ERA of 2.96 in 24.1 innings with 12 walks and 22 strikeouts. The walk rate was once again a little bit higher than you would like, but the strikeout rate was strong and his ERA was quite good.
The season came to an end in August where the Texas native got 5 starts to end his season. On the 3rd against the Padres he ran into some trouble as he allowed 3 earned and was charged with 3 unearned runs in 3.1 innings without a walk and with 5 strikeouts. In his third start of the year against the Giants Kivel threw 5 shutout innings with 2 walks and 7 strikeouts, which was the best start of his career. He would run into more trouble on the 13th against the Angels as he allowed 2 earned and was charged with 3 unearned in just 2.1 innings with no walks and 2 strikeouts. Facing the Padres for the second time in the month he would allowed 2 earned in 3.2 innings with 3 walks and 5 strikeouts. In the final start of the year he would allowed 3 earned runs in 5 innings against the Diamondbacks with 1 walk and 5 strikeouts. He would finished August with a 4.66 ERA in 19.1 innings with 6 walks and 24 strikeouts. His strikeout rate remained high and his walk rate dropped off to a very strong level for the month.
Season Stats
| W | L | ERA | SV | IP | H | HR | BB | K | WHIP | BB% | K% | K/BB |
| 0 | 2 | 3.91 | 0 | 50.2 | 50 | 4 | 23 | 56 | 1.44 | 9.9% | 24.0% | 2.4 |
Overall Thoughts
Jeremy Kivel had a strong professional debut with the Arizona League Reds. In a hitter friendly league he posted a good ERA and high strikeout numbers. His walk rate will need to be lowered a little bit moving forward, but it wasn’t a high rate by the end of the season thanks to a strong August in the walks department. He shows a really big fastball, but is still a bit raw on the mound and will take some time to develop.
For more player season review, you can see the entire list here.