2026 Stats
W-L
1-1
ERA
1.48
WHIP
0.99
K
21
SV
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2026 Fantasy Outlook
After a career year in 2024 that saw Lugo entrench himself as an MLB starter with a 3.00 ERA and 1.09 WHIP over 206.2 innings, he took a step back last season before missing all of September due to a back injury. The right-hander actually delivered a strong first half in 2025 with a 2.67 ERA, but he stumbled out of the All-Star break and never got back on track, surrendering 37 earned runs over 44.1 frames in his final nine starts. Lugo especially struggled with free passes during the second half, as his 4.9 BB/9 nearly doubled his first-half mark of 2.8. The long ball was also an issue, with his 1.7 HR/9 ranking seventh worst among pitchers with at least 140 innings. Lugo primarily worked as a reliever early in his MLB career but has been a full-time starter the past three seasons, with him being very effective in those first two years. It's possible the heavier workload has started to catch up with him -- particularly after throwing 200-plus innings during 2024 -- but that's not quite enough to fully write him off for 2026. Lugo's 3.50 ERA and 1.18 WHIP across the past three seasons offer plenty of fantasy value, but his 8.1 K/9 during that stretch limits his upside, especially coming off a down year. Read Past Outlooks
Signed a two-year, $46 million contract extension with the Royals in July of 2025. Contract includes $20 million vesting option or $17 million team option ($3 million buyout) for 2028.
Logs another quality start
Lugo did not factor into the decision Wednesday against the Tigers, allowing one run on five hits while striking out seven over 6.2 innings.
Analysis
Lugo turned in another strong outing, continuing his excellent start to the season. The right-hander faced the minimum in every inning except the third, when Detroit strung together four hits but managed only one run on a sacrifice fly that brought home Javier Baez. Outside of that frame, Lugo was in full control, limiting traffic and missing bats effectively. The 36-year-old has now logged quality starts in three of his first four outings of the campaign and has yet to allow more than two runs in any start. Through 24.1 innings, Lugo owns a sparkling 1.48 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 21:6 K:BB, though he'll face a tougher test in his next scheduled outing against Baltimore.
Lugo turned in another strong outing, continuing his excellent start to the season. The right-hander faced the minimum in every inning except the third, when Detroit strung together four hits but managed only one run on a sacrifice fly that brought home Javier Baez. Outside of that frame, Lugo was in full control, limiting traffic and missing bats effectively. The 36-year-old has now logged quality starts in three of his first four outings of the campaign and has yet to allow more than two runs in any start. Through 24.1 innings, Lugo owns a sparkling 1.48 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 21:6 K:BB, though he'll face a tougher test in his next scheduled outing against Baltimore.
Pitching Stats
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2026 MLB Game Log
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Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
91
Last 10 Games
91
Last 5 Games
91
How many pitches does Seth Lugo generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Seth Lugo generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2024
-20%
BAA vs RHP
2026
-45%
BAA vs RHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2024vs Left | .257 | 184 | 69 | 201 | 28 | |||
| Since 2024vs Right | .205 | 143 | 40 | 127 | 15 | |||
| 2026vs Left | .250 | 16 | 6 | 14 | 0 | |||
| 2026vs Right | .138 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||
| 2025vs Left | .272 | 67 | 31 | 88 | 21 | |||
| 2025vs Right | .203 | 58 | 24 | 45 | 6 | |||
| 2024vs Left | .246 | 101 | 32 | 99 | 7 | |||
| 2024vs Right | .211 | 80 | 16 | 78 | 9 | |||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | |||||||
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2024
-3%
ERA on Road
2026
-71%
ERA on Road
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2024Home | 3.40 | 1.23 | 195.2 | 7.2 | 3.1 | ||||
| Since 2024Away | 3.29 | 1.08 | 180.2 | 8.5 | 2.1 | ||||
| 2026Home | 2.38 | 1.24 | 11.1 | 8.7 | 4.8 | ||||
| 2026Away | 0.69 | 0.77 | 13.0 | 6.9 | 0.0 | ||||
| 2025Home | 3.61 | 1.36 | 77.1 | 7.3 | 4.2 | ||||
| 2025Away | 4.76 | 1.22 | 68.0 | 8.2 | 2.5 | ||||
| 2024Home | 3.36 | 1.14 | 107.0 | 7.0 | 2.1 | ||||
| 2024Away | 2.62 | 1.03 | 99.2 | 8.8 | 2.1 | ||||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | ||||||||
Stat Review
How does Seth Lugo compare to other starting pitchers?
This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
3.50K/9
7.8BB/9
2.2HR/9
0.0Fastball
91.7 mphERA
1.48WHIP
0.99BABIP
.274GB/FB
1.42Left On Base
79.2%Exit Velocity
82.2 mphBarrels/BBE
4.0%Spin Rate
2539 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
20.0%Swinging Strike
9.6%Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
No team allocated free agent starting pitching dollars more wisely than the Royals last offseason. Michael Wacha was great and Lugo was even better, winning 16 games and finishing with an even 3.00 ERA over a league-high 33 starts. A 21.7 percent strikeout rate left something to be desired, but Lugo provided so much volume with a surprising 206.2 innings that he accumulated 181 strikeouts, which tied him for 20th in baseball. It looked from July to August like the former reliever might be tiring as he put up a 4.86 ERA, but Lugo bounced back with a 2.28 ERA and 26:4 K:BB in 27.2 September innings. Perhaps the big workload increase will catch up with Lugo in 2025 instead, and some natural regression is likely either way, given his xERA of 3.72 in 2024.
More Fantasy News
Takes loss despite quality start
Lugo (1-1) took the loss against the White Sox on Thursday, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and four walks while striking out four batters over 6.1 innings.
Analysis
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Punches out seven Saturday
Lugo took a no-decision Saturday against the Brewers, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks in five innings. He struck out seven.
Analysis
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Sharp in season debut
Lugo (1-0) earned the win Sunday over Atlanta, allowing five hits over 6.1 scoreless innings. He struck out three.
Analysis
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Sees MiLB action in return from WBC
Lugo threw five innings in a minor-league game Thursday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
Analysis
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Throwing off mound early in camp
Lugo (back) threw a bullpen session in Royals camp Thursday, Jaylon T. Thompson of The Kansas City Star reports.
Analysis
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Unlikely to return soon
Lugo, who's dealing with a back injury, isn't expected back on the mound in the near future, according to Anne Rogers of MLB.com.
Analysis
Lugo hasn't pitched since August 29 due to a lower back strain, and he had a setback following a bullpen session on Monday. As such, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters that a scenario where Lugo returns to action before the end of the season is a "long shot." Simply put, the veteran might not have enough time to ramp up and recover before the end of the season.
Lugo hasn't pitched since August 29 due to a lower back strain, and he had a setback following a bullpen session on Monday. As such, manager Matt Quatraro told reporters that a scenario where Lugo returns to action before the end of the season is a "long shot." Simply put, the veteran might not have enough time to ramp up and recover before the end of the season.