Royals Sign Pitcher Hobie Harris

[Kevin O'Brien]

 

On Friday, Boston-area reporter Ari Alexander announced on Twitter that right-handed veteran pitcher Hobie Harris would be signing a Minor League deal with the Kansas City Royals for the upcoming season.

 

The New York Yankees drafted Harris in the 31st round in 2015 out of the University of Pittsburgh. Harris has had only one Major League stint, in 2023 with the Nationals. In that 19.1 IP, he posted a 5.12 ERA, 1.76 WHIP, 5.69 FIP, and -4.4 K-BB%. 

Last year, Harris pitched for the Worcester Woo Sox, the Boston Red Sox's Triple-A affiliate. In 24.2 IP with Worcester, he posted a 2.55 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 3.43 FIP, and 10.4% K-BB%. In his tenure in Worcester last year, Harris was known for limiting barrels and hard contact and throwing a lot of strikes, both called and swinging. 

Overall, his TJ Stuff+ is below average; his 96 TJ Stuff+ ranked in the 29th percentile last year with the Woo Sox. However, his splitter, cutter, and curveball all rated at 100 or higher in TJ Stuff+, and lackluster movement weighed him down on his four-seam fastball and sinker. Despite two sub-par pitches, that didn't seem to hurt him in important categories such as whiff rate and xwOBACON, as illustrated in the TJ Stuff+ Summary below.

Finding the zone consistently (45.2% zone rate last year) has been a challenge for Harris, but that's to be expected for a splitter-heavy pitcher. He generated a ton of chase on his splitter last year (37.4%), and it proved to be his best pitch in many categories. Even in 2023 with the Nationals, when he located it well, his splitter could be a nasty offering to opposing hitters, as shown in this strikeout of the Mets' Francisco Alvarez.

 

Because he is on a Minor League contract, Harris will have to earn a spot on the 40-man roster in Spring Training. That said, he should at least provide solid organizational bullpen depth in Omaha, something the Royals lacked a season ago. 

 

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