Kendall Graveman

Kendall Chase Graveman was originally signed by Blue Jays scout Brian Johnston…is married, Victoria…attended Mississippi State University…studied mechanical engineering and is an avid supporter of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education…regularly helps the A's and Chevron with Science of the Game demonstrations and clinics…graduated from Benjamin Russell HS (Alexander City, AL).

2017
Went 6-4 with a 4.19 ERA in 19 starts in a season shortened due to two stints on the disabled list with a strained right shoulder…the ERA was a career high as was his opponents batting average (.280), on-base percentage (.338), slugging percentage (.442) and OPS (.780)…allowed 12 home runs and his average of 1.03 home runs per nine innings was a career low…his 19 starts are his fewest in his three seasons with Oakland…his opponents batting average broke down to .238 (44-for-185) against left-handed hitters compared to .315 (70-for-222) against right-handers… entered the season with a .273 career average against lefties, .272 against righties…opponents batted .266 with runners in scoring position but just .186 with RISP and two outs…eight of the 12 home runs he allowed came with runners on base…went 5-0 with a 2.94 ERA in 11 starts at home compared to 1-4 with a 6.39 ERA in eight starts on the road…joins Kenny Rogers (11-0 in 1998) and Todd Burns (5-0 in 1988) as the only starting pitchers in Oakland history to go undefeated at home with five or more decisions…in three seasons with the A's, he is 12-10 with a 3.46 ERA (83 er in 216.0 ip) in 35 starts in Oakland compared to 10-14 with a 4.85 ERA (103 er in 191.0 ip) in 36 starts on the road…made 15 of his 19 starts at night…went 0-3 in seven starts with two runs of support or fewer, 6-1 in 12 starts with three runs of support or more…is now 1-20 in 32 career starts with run support of two or fewer, 21-4 in 39 starts with support of three or more…the bullpen blew the save in five of his 19 starts…over the last two years, the pen has blown 10 saves in his 50 starts…had a .240 opponents batting average with two strikes, which was second highest in the American League among pitchers with 100 or more innings pitched…the opponents number three hitter batted .479 with a .528 on-base percentage and .833 slugging percentage… went 5-2 with a 3.39 ERA in 14 starts against AL West competition compared to 1-2 with a 7.52 ERA in five starts against everyone else…was 3-0 with a 3.47 ERA in eight starts on four days rest, 3-4 with a 4.82 ERA in 11 starts on five days rest or more…is now 11-7 with a 3.83 ERA (85 er in 200.0 ip) in 34 career starts on four days rest compared to 11-17 with a 4.39 ERA (101 er in 207.0 ip) in 37 starts on five days rest or more…had a 7.11 ERA in the first inning, a 3.54 ERA from the second inning on…had four double plays, which tied for second among AL pitchers…tied for ninth in the AL in triples allowed (4).

OAKLAND: Was the A's Opening Day starter on April 3 against Los Angeles (AL) and picked up the win in a 4-2 decision…became the A's 11th different Opening Day starting pitcher in the last 12 years (Zito, Haren, Blanton, Braden, Sheets, Cahill, McCarthy, Anderson, Gray twice, Hill)…was just the second of those pitchers to pick up the win (Gray, 2015)…won his second consecutive start in the A's 6-1 win at Texas April 8…no hit the Rangers over the first six innings and Napoli broke up the no-hitter with a two out homer in the bottom of the seventh…did not strike out a batter in 5.0 innings on April 14 against Houston, his first career start without a strikeout…did it again on Aug. 3 at San Francisco and Sept. 16 at Philadelphia…was 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA and .203 opponents batting average in three starts when he was placed on the 10-day disabled April 17 retroactive April 15 with a strained right shoulder…did not have a rehab assignment and was reinstated April 27…had the second unassisted double play by a pitcher in Oakland history April 27 at Los Angeles (AL)…the other was by Blue Moon Odom, also against the Angels, in the second game of a July 11, 1971 doubleheader…went 2-1 with a 2.25 ERA in four starts in April…the ERA was the second lowest single month ERA of his career (1.93 in June, 2015)…issued a career-high tying four walks May 3 at Minnesota and allowed six runs on five hits in 3.1 innings in a 7-4 loss…left his start on May 14 at Texas with a 4-3 lead but Madson blew the save…it was the first of five times the bullpen blew a save in one of his starts (Aug. 8 vs. Seattle, Aug. 30 at Los Angeles-AL, Sept. 5 vs. Los Angeles-AL, Sept. 27 vs. Seattle)…was 0-2 with a 4.97 ERA and .289 opponents average in five starts after his April 27 reinstatement from the DL before returning to the DL a second time with a right shoulder strain on May 29 (retroactive to May 26)…was sent to Triple-A Nashville on a rehab assignment July 19 and went 0-1 with a 7.20 ERA and .383 opponents batting average in three starts…allowed four runs in 2.1 innings at Iowa July 19 and seven runs in 3.0 innings at New Orleans July 24 before allowing one run in 4.2 innings against Salt Lake July 29…was reinstated from the DL Aug. 3 and went 4-2 with a 4.47 ERA and .297 opponents batting average over his final 11 starts…struck out a career-high tying eight batters in a 9-3 victory over Baltimore Aug. 13…that began a season-ending stretch where he went 4-1 with a 3.35 ERA over his final nine starts…the bullpen had three blown saves in his four no decisions over that span and he tossed 2.0 scoreless innings in the other start (Sept. 16 at Philadelphia) before he was removed following a rain delay.

2016
Compiled a 10-11 record and a 4.11 ERA in a team-leading 31 starts in his second season with the A's…went 1-6 with a 5.36 ERA over his first nine starts, 9-2 with a 3.33 ERA over his next 16 starts from May 30 to Aug. 24, and 0-3 with a 4.71 ERA over his final six starts…in addition to starts, he also led the A's in wins, losses (tied), innings pitched (186.0), hits (196), runs (87), earned runs (85), home runs (22) and walks (47)…all those marks are career highs as are his 108 strikeouts…averaged 5.23 strikeouts per nine innings, which was the third lowest mark in the American League…walked just 47 (2.27 per nine innings), which were the fewest in Athletics history by an A's team-leader, besting the previous low of 59 by Sonny Gray in 2015…tied for second in the AL in shutouts (1), tied for fifth in complete games (2), tied for sixth in opponents reaching on an error (8), ranked seventh in fewest pitches per game (91.4) and was ninth in hits (196)…averaged 4.16 runs of support per start, which was 10th lowest in the AL…received two runs of support or fewer in 12 of his 31 starts and was 0-8 in those games…went 10-3 in 19 starts with support of three or more…is now 1-17 in 25 career starts with two runs of support or fewer, 15-3 in 27 starts with three runs of support or more…left with a lead five times in 2016 only to have the bullpen blow the save…had a .271 opponents batting average, which broke down to .270 (90-for-333) against right-handed hitters compared to .272 (106-for-390) with 35 of his 47 walks against left-handers…his career splits are .272 (157-for-577) with a .743 OPS against right-handers, .273 (169-for-620) with 59 of his 85 walks and a .740 OPS against left-handers…yielded a .302 average with runners on base but 14 of the 22 home runs he allowed were solo shots…24 of his 37 career home runs have come with the bases empty…tied for third among AL pitchers in total chances (42), tied for seventh in assists (27) and ranked eighth in putouts (15)…did not commit an error and his 42 total chances were the most in the AL and tied for second most in the majors among pitchers with no errors…now has a 49-game errorless streak dating back to his last miscue on April 20, 2015 at Los Angeles (AL)…compiled a 1.74 ERA in the first inning, which tied Arrieta (CHC) for second lowest in the majors (Tanaka, NYY 1.16) among pitchers with 30 or more innings…using the same minimum, it was 10th lowest in Oakland history…logged a 4.59 ERA from the second inning on…went 5-6 with a 3.39 ERA in 14 starts at home compared to 5-5 with a 4.80 ERA in 17 starts on the road…had the ninth lowest home ERA in the AL…surrendered seven home runs in 90.1 innings at home, 15 in 95.2 innings on the road…was 3-5 with a 4.82 ERA in 15 starts against AL West competition compared to 7-6 with a 3.46 ERA in 16 starts against everyone else…his ground ball to fly ball ratio of 2.40 was fourth highest in the AL…the A's were 14-17 (.452) in his starting assignments…walked one batter or fewer in 18 of his 31 starts.

2015
The rookie right-hander went 6-9 with a 4.05 ERA in 21 starts over two stints with the A's before his season ended in late August due to an oblique injury…was on the A's Opening Day roster and went 1-2 with an 8.27 ERA in four starts before he was optioned to Nashville April 26…was brought back May 23 and went 5-2 with a 1.78 ERA over his first nine starts following his return…then went 0-5 with a 5.82 ERA over his final eight starts beginning July 10…was placed on the 15-day disabled list Aug. 24 with a strained left oblique…tied for fourth among American League rookies in games started (21), ranked fifth in innings pitched (115.2), ninth in strikeouts (77) and tied for ninth in wins…had one of seven complete games by an AL rookie…allowed a .276 opponents batting average, including .275 (61-for-222) against lefties and .278 (65-for-234) against righties…surrendered 11 of his 15 home runs to righties but issued 24 of his 38 walks to lefties…had a .369 slugging percentage against lefties, .474 against righties…opponents hit .271 with the bases empty, .285 with runners on…10 of the 15 home runs he allowed were solo shots…yielded a .356 average against the opponents three, four and five hitters compared to .233 against all other hitters…had a .235 opponents average the first time through the lineup, .289 the second time and .317 after that…was 4-4 with a 3.22 ERA in 11 starts at night, 2-5 with a 5.08 ERA in 10 starts during the day…was 1-9 in 13 starts with two runs of support or fewer, 5-0 in eight starts with three runs of support or more…walked two batters or fewer in 16 of his 21 starts.

2014
Was named a Baseball America Minor League Baseball First Team All-Star after combining for a 14-6 record and a 1.83 ERA in 27 starts with Single-A Lansing, Single-A Dunedin, Double-A New Hampshire and Triple-A Buffalo…then made his Major League debut with Toronto in September in just his second professional season…was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo Sept. 2 and had no decisions and a 3.86 ERA in five relief appearances…allowed a .222 batting average and did not walk a batter in 4.2 innings…yielded a .200 (2-for-10) average against right-handed hitters, .250 (2-for-8) against lefthanders… stranded his only inherited runner but first batters faced were 2-for-5 (.400)…made his debut Sept. 5 at Boston and allowed a single to the only batter he faced, Yoenis Céspedes…he later scored…struck out Nelson Cruz to end the seventh inning in his second outing Sept. 16 at Baltimore for his first strikeout…did not allow a run over his final two appearances (3.0 ip)…his 14 minor league wins tied for third most in the all of the minor leagues and his 1.83 ERA ranked fourth among full season minor leaguers…ranked seventh in the minors in innings pitched (167.1)…led the Blue Jays farm system in ERA and wins and ranked fourth in strikeouts (115)…surrendered just two home runs, an average of 0.11 per nine innings…allowed a .232 opponents batting average, including .196 (66-for-335) against right-handed hitters compared to .272 (76-for-279) against left-handers…compiled a 1.41 ERA over the first five innings of a game, a 4.91 ERA in the sixth inning and a 0.79 ERA from the seventh inning on…did not allow an earned run in the second inning (27.0 ip)…his teams were 17-10 (.630) in his starting assignments…allowed four runs or fewer in all 27 of his starts, including two runs or fewer 23 times…walked two batters or fewer 25 times and tossed at least six innings in 21 of his starts…was named the A's sixth best prospect by Baseball America following the trade.

MINORS: Began the season at Single-A Lansing where he went 2-0 with a 0.34 ERA in four starts…allowed a .126 batting average and opponents were hitless in 14 at bats with runners in scoring position…walked a season-high three batters in his first start April 6 at Lake County…then struck out a seasonhigh seven in each of his next three starts…including April 18 at Beloit when he tossed a season-high 8.1 shutout innings and allowed just one hit and one walk…was named Midwest League Pitcher of the Week for the week of April 14 to 20…was promoted to Single-A Dunedin of the Florida State League April 30 and logged an 8-4 record and a 2.23 ERA in 16 starts…the wins tied for second most in the FSL during his stint there, which ran through July 27, while his ERA ranked seventh…went 4-0 with a 2.27 ERA in five starts at home…allowed a season-high four runs in a season-low 4.0 innings in his first start April 30 at Tampa…picked up the win in five consecutive starts from May 12 to June 3…compiled a 3.14 ERA during the winning streak…surrendered his first home run of the season May 22 against Ft. Myers and matched his season high by allowing four runs…would not allow his second and final home run until Aug. 7 against Durham…had a 13-start, 87.0-inning, 347-batter homerless streak in between…matched his season high by allowing four runs in a June 8 loss at Lakeland…that ran his overall minor league record to 7-2 with a 2.44 ERA in 12 starts…went 7-4 with a 1.39 ERA over his final 15 starts…matched his season high with three walks June 16 at Brevard County…did not allow a run in consecutive starts July 1 at Clearwater and July 6 vs. Tampa…tossed 6.0 shutout innings in each start and had a 20.0-inning scoreless streak from June 26 to July 11…allowed a season-high nine hits July 17 against Jupiter but yielded just one run in 7.0 innings for the win…was promoted to Double-A New Hampshire July 28 and made just one start for the Fisher Cats that day at Binghamton…picked up the win in a 5-1 decision (6.0 ip, 8 h, 1 r, 1 er, 2 bb, 4 so)…went 3-1 with a 0.93 ERA in six starts overall in July…moved up to Triple-A Buffalo Aug. 1 and went 3-2 with a 1.88 ERA in six starts…ranked third in the International League in ERA in August…tossed 7.0 shutout innings in consecutive starts Aug. 12 against Norfolk and Aug. 17 at Lehigh Valley as part of a 17.0-inning scoreless streak from Aug. 12 to 23…allowed a season-high tying nine hits Aug. 23 against Pawtucket but surrendered just two runs in 7.0 innings for the win…matched his season high with seven strikeouts in his final minor league start Aug. 28 at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

2013
Was assigned to Single-A Lansing of the Midwest League after signing with Toronto in July…went 1-3 with a 4.31 ERA in 10 starts with the Lugnuts…allowed a .266 opponents batting average, including .253 against right-handed hitters compared to .280 against left-handers…opponents hit .354 with runners on compared to .202 with the bases empty…yielded a .368 average with runners in scoring position and two outs…had a 2.88 ERA over the first four innings of a game compared to 13.50 in the fifth inning…surrendered nine of his 23 runs in the fifth inning…did not pitch after the fifth inning… went 1-2 with a 2.92 ERA in six starts at home, 0-1 with a 6.60 ERA in four starts on the road…Lansing went 3-7 in his starting assignments…tossed a season-high 5.0 innings five times and allowed one earned run in four of those starts…made his professional debut July 14 against Burlington…tossed 2.0 scoreless innings and did not allow a hit while walking one…did not record his first strikeout until his third start July 26 against Dayton…struck out a season-high five batters Aug. 6 at Fort Worth and allowed just two runs in five innings but was charged with his first professional loss…lost each of his first three decisions before recording his first win in his penultimate start of the season Aug. 28 at Lake County…allowed a run on six hits in 5.0 innings in an 11-2 win.

*Courtesy Cubs.com