Joel Kuhnel

Joel Kenneth Kuhnel (born February 19, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Cincinnati Reds organization.

Joel Kuhnel
Kuhnel with the Dayton Dragons in 2017
Cincinnati Reds – No. 66
Pitcher
Born: (1995-02-19) February 19, 1995
Goldsboro, North Carolina
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
August 16, 2019, for the Cincinnati Reds
MLB statistics
(through 2020 season)
Win–loss record2–0
Earned run average4.97
Strikeouts12
Teams

Amateur career

Kuhnel attended Sunrise Mountain High School in Peoria, Arizona. Undrafted in the 2013 Major League Baseball draft, he enrolled at Central Arizona College where he played college baseball.

As a freshman at Central Arizona in 2014, Kuhnel pitched to a 2–0 record with a 1.62 ERA over 39 innings. After the season, he transferred to the University of Texas at Arlington. In 2015, his first season with UTA, he went 4–4 with a 3.55 ERA over 16 games (12 starts).[1] As a junior in 2016, Kuhnel compiled a 6–4 record with a 2.99 ERA across 12 starts.[2] After the year, he was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 11th round of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft.[3]

Kuhnel signed with the Reds and made his professional debut with the Billings Mustangs, pitching to a 0–1 record and a 3.43 ERA over 18 relief appearances.[4] In 2017, he pitched with the Dayton Dragons and compiled a 2–4 record, a 4.36 ERA, and 54 strikeouts over 64 relief innings pitched, and in 2018, he played for the Daytona Tortugas, with whom he was named a Florida State League All-Star,[5] going 1–4 with a 3.04 ERA in 44 games pitched out of the bullpen.[6] Kuhnel began 2019 with the Chattanooga Lookouts, earning Southern League All-Star honors, and was promoted to the Louisville Bats in June.[7] Over 41 relief appearances between the two teams, he went 5-3 with a 2.18 ERA and fifty strikeouts over 53+2⁄3 innings.[8]

Professional career

On August 15, 2019, the Reds selected Kuhnel's contract and promoted him to the major leagues.[9] He made his major league debut on August 16 versus the St. Louis Cardinals.[10] He pitched a total of 9+2⁄3 innings for the Reds in 2019, going 1-0 with a 4.66 ERA and nine strikeouts.[11] In 2020, Kuhnel pitched to a 6.00 ERA over three games and three innings pitched. On October 26, 2020, he was outrighted off of the 40-man roster.[12] He spent all of 2021 in the minor leagues, but missed a majority of the season while dealing with a shoulder injury, and pitched only eight innings throughout the course of the year.[13]

References
  1. "UTA looking for atonement from disappointing 2015 baseball season". Arlington Voice. February 6, 2016.
  2. "BSB: Kuhnel selected in 11th round of MLB Draft".
  3. staff, Selby Lopez, The Shorthorn. "Two UTA baseball players get drafted to MLB". The Shorthorn.
  4. "Dayton Dragons player profile: Pitcher Joel Kuhnel".
  5. Dean, Zach. "Tortugas sending eight players to All-Star game on Saturday". Daytona Beach News-Journal Online.
  6. "Vaqueros in pro baseball: Final 2018 statistics". PinalCentral.com.
  7. "Five Lookouts tabbed as Southern League midseason all-stars". 2019-06-07.
  8. "Cincinnati Reds notebook: Joel Kuhnel cherishes 1st strikeout; Nick Senzel scratched from lineup".
  9. John Fay (August 15, 2019). "Joel Kuhnel: The pitching version of Josh VanMeter for the Cincinnati Reds". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  10. "St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds Box Score, August 16, 2019". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  11. "Reds recall Joel Kuhnel, option José de León". 8 August 2020.
  12. "Reds Outright Joel Kuhnel".
  13. "Kuhnel healthy, eager to compete for bullpen spot". MLB.com.
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