Position: IF
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 190 lbs
Bats/Throws: R/R
Born: 03/23/1995
High School: Mid Pacific Institute HS (Honolulu, HI)
How Acquired: Trade (with Blue Jays for Charles McAdoo)
Drafted: 4th Round, 115th Overall, 2013 (Rangers)
Bonus: $202,000
40-man Roster: Yes
Rule 5 Eligible: N/A
Minor League Free Agency: N/A
Options Left: N/A
Overview
Kiner-Falefa is a veteran utility player who’s bounced all around the field, oddly including 73 major league and 80 minor league games behind the plate. The bulk of his time in the majors has come at short and third, and he’s played a good deal in the outfield, including center. He’s seen some time — 61 games in the majors — at second, over half of it in 2024. Defensive metrics regard him as a solid defender — around average at short, above at third, and above so far at second. Statcast rates his speed as a little above average, and his range as good at second and third. His arm is below average. Kiner-Falefa has generally hit for solid averages without many walks or strikeouts. He has limited power. The Pirates acquired him in a 2024 deadline deal with Toronto.
2013-16
Kiner-Falefa made his way gradually through the Texas system, reaching AA in 2016. He usually hit for averages around .250-60, with passable walk rates and not many strikeouts. He did bat .309 in half a season in the high-offense California League, playing with the very high-offense High Desert affiliate. Power wasn’t a part of his game; in fact, he had no home runs in his first four pro seasons. In 2016, in AA, he batted .256 but slugged only .286. Kiner-Falefa mostly split his time between short and second in those years.
2017-19
In 2017, Texas sent Kiner-Falefa back to AA and he improved to 289/350/390, showing some power, including 31 doubles and five home runs, for the first time. He split his time among second, third and catcher. The Rangers added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
In 2018, Kiner-Falefa opened the season in AAA but got called up after five games. He spent the rest of the year in the majors as a utility player, with his time in the field again being divided roughly evenly among third, catcher and second. He hit respectably, with a .682 OPS. In 2019, he played a similar role, this time divided just between third and catcher, but he also missed two months in the middle of the season due to an injured finger. His OPS dropped to .620.
2020-21
In the shortened 2020 season, Texas kept Kiner-Falefa at third the bulk of the time, although he played some at second, and he won the AL Gold Glove at the former position. He batted .280, without much power or many walks. The Rangers kept him at short all year in 2021 and he put up a .670 OPS. He started running more, stealing 20 bases in 25 tries.
2022-24
During spring training, Texas traded Kiner-Falefa to the Twins, who shipped him on the next day to the Yankees. He spent two years in New York, playing short regularly in 2022 and dividing his time more or less equally among third, center and left in 2023. He hit about like he generally has both years, and continued to run more.
Kiner-Falefa became a free agent after the 2023 season and signed a two-year deal with Toronto, worth $7,500,000 in each season. Through the first four months of 2024 he had easily his best major league season, batting 292/338/420. The Jays split his time mostly between second and third, with a little at short. He suffered a knee sprain at the end of June and missed all of July, although he went on a rehab assignment to AAA a couple days before the end of the month.
The Pirates acquired Kiner-Falefa at the trade deadline. Toronto included enough cash in the deal so that the Pirates would be paying him essentially the major league minimum. His hitting collapsed after the trade, to 240/265/322. Especially baffling was a miserable BB:K of 3:41, which was nearly identical to the same numbers for fellow deadline acquisition Bryan De La Cruz. Kiner-Falefa started 26 games at short for the Pirates, 15 at second and seven at third. He’s signed for one more year, so it’s not unlikely the Pirates will look to dump his salary during the off-season.
Stats
Transactions
June 7, 2013: Drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 4th round, 115th overall pick; signed on June 9.
November 20, 2017: Contract purchased by the Texas Rangers.
March 12, 2022: Traded by the Texas Rangers with Ronny Henriquez to the Minnesota Twins for Mitch Garver.
March 13, 2022: Traded by the Minnesota Twins with Josh Donaldson and Ben Rortvedt to the New York Yankees for Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela.
November 2, 2023: Became a free agent.
December 29, 2023: Signed as a free agent by the Toronto Blue Jays.
July 30, 2024: Traded by the Toronto Blue Jays with $2,216,989 to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Charles McAdoo.