Atlanta acquired Kowar from the Royals on Friday in exchange for Kyle Wright, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
Kowar owns a brutal 9.12 ERA through his first 74 major-league innings, but he was a top-100 prospect just a few years ago and can maybe find himself with a change of scenery. The reigning NL East champs could try him as a long reliever in 2024, though he also has past experience as a starter.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Picks up second win
Rotowire
Kowar (2-0) allowed a hit and struck out two over a scoreless inning to earn the win Monday over the Guardians.
Kowar's two wins have come over his last five appearances, in which he's posted a 5.1-inning scoreless streak with a 6:1 K:BB. The right-hander is finding a bit more success out of the bullpen in the majors, though he still has a 4.91 ERA, 1.68 WHIP and 28:16 K:BB through 25.2 innings over 20 appearances this season. Kowar started just one of his 30 outings with Triple-A Omaha but pitched to a 5.96 ERA over 45.1 innings. It appears he'll mostly remain in a low-leverage role with the capability to take multiple innings for the rest of this season.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Snags first major-league win
Rotowire
Kowar (1-0) struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the win Tuesday over the White Sox.
Kowar pitched the ninth inning with the Royals down by one, but they scraped together two runs to walk it off. This was Kowar's fifth scoreless effort across eight appearances since he was recalled from Triple-A Omaha on Aug. 17. The right-hander has a 5.91 ERA, 1.83 WHIP and 23:15 K:BB over 21.1 innings in the majors this season while working almost exclusively as a reliever across all levels.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Recalled from Omaha
Rotowire
Kansas City recalled Kowar from Triple-A Omaha on Thursday.
Kowar returns to the Royals as a fresh bullpen arm ahead of Thursday's series finale against the Mariners. The 26-year-old right-hander has allowed 12 runs -- eight earned -- in 11.2 innings of work this season at the MLB level.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Sent back to Omaha
Rotowire
Kansas City optioned Kowar to Triple-A Omaha on Wednesday.
James McArthur has also been sent to Omaha, with Cole Ragans and Tucker Davidson joining the Royals ahead of Wednesday night's game against the Mets. Kowar, 26, did not make an appearance during his one-day stint on the major-league roster.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Promoted to KC
Rotowire
The Royals recalled Kowar from Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
Kowar and James McArthur will both come up from the minors to make up for the departures of Scott Barlow and Ryan Yarbrough at Tuesday's trade deadline. With a 9.83 ERA and 2.13 WHIP through 57.2 career MLB innings, Kowar offers very little fantasy value.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Back to minors
Rotowire
Kowar was optioned to Triple-A Omaha on Saturday.
Kowar was most recently promoted to the majors June 2, and he went on to pitch 9.1 innings across seven appearances. He allowed at least one run on four occasions, which amounted to a 7.71 ERA.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Recalled from Triple-A
Rotowire
Kansas City recalled Kowar from Triple-A Omaha on Friday.
The 26-year-old right-hander will replace Amir Garrett, who is headed to the 15-day injured list with a left elbow injury. A former top prospect, Kowar projects to operate in long relief as he joins the Royals' major-league roster for the second time this season.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Sent back to Omaha
Rotowire
Kowar was optioned to Triple-A Omaha on Saturday.
Kowar was called up Tuesday and tossed 2.1 scoreless innings while walking two batters and striking out three in Friday's 2-0 loss to the White Sox. With Amir Garrett (personal) being reinstated from the family emergency list Saturday, Kowar will head back to Triple-A. The right-hander could earn another call-up later this summer if a bullpen arm goes down for Kansas City.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Recalled from Triple-A
Rotowire
The Royals recalled Kowar from Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday.
Kowar holds a 7.84 ERA and 2.13 WHIP through 20.2 innings across 13 appearances in Omaha this season. His struggles are nothing new, as he hasn't maintained an ERA below 6.00 at any level since 2021. He has a knack for striking batters out at an above-average rate, but Kowar still holds virtually no fantasy value. Max Castillo was optioned to Omaha in a corresponding move.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Optioned to Triple-A
Rotowire
Kowar was optioned to Triple-A Omaha on Saturday.
Kowar was called up Wednesday, and he gave up two runs on two hits and two walks while failing to strike out a batter in one-third of an inning during Friday's game against the Yankees. He'll head back to the minors after Jonathan Heasley (shoulder) was reinstated from the 15-day injured list.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Called up Wednesday
Rotowire
Kowar was called up from Triple-A Omaha on Wednesday.
Kowar will return to the Royals just one day after being sent down to Omaha. He'll replace Angel Zerpa (knee) on the active roster after the latter was placed on the 15-day injured list Wednesday. Kowar has produced a 8.80 ERA over 15.1 innings in six appearances with Kansas City this year.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Struggles in long relief
Rotowire
Kowar allowed five runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out three over 2.2 innings during Saturday's 13-1 loss to the Guardians.
Jonathan Heasley was blitzed in the first two innings, and Kowar didn't do much better, though he recorded the most outs of any Royals pitcher in the contest. With eight runs, 12 hits and eight walks in 10 innings across four appearances since his June 26 recall from Triple-A Omaha, Kowar hasn't looked very effective against major-league hitters. Daniel Lynch (finger) is expected to return from the injured list Monday, and it figures one of Heasley, Kowar or Kris Bubic is most likely to be headed back to Omaha to make room for him.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: On Opening Day roster
Rotowire
Kowar was awarded a spot on the Opening Day roster Tuesday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
The first-round pick from 2018 got his first taste of big-league action last season, but he struggled with an 11.27 ERA and 2.08 WHIP across nine appearances spanning 30.1 innings. He didn't have the best spring either, allowing four runs on eight hits and three walks through seven innings. Kowar will be able to log multi-inning assignments, though with Carlos Hernandez in the rotation, it's expected Kowar will operate out of the bullpen to begin the year.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Charged with loss in season finale
Rotowire
Kowar (0-6) allowed five runs on five hits and a walk while striking out six in four innings to take the loss against the Twins on Sunday.
Kowar gave up four runs in the top of the first inning before recording an out, but he settled down later in his outing and retired nine consecutive batters across the next three innings. However, he was forced to finish the season with his fourth loss in his last five appearances. The right-hander made nine appearances (eight starts) during his first major-league season and recorded an 11.27 ERA and 2.08 WHIP in 30.1 innings.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Struggles Monday
Rotowire
Kowar (0-5) got the loss after pitching 4.1 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits and walking one while striking out four versus Cleveland on Monday.
The right-hander was hit early, surrendering four runs in the first three innings including an Amed Rosario solo home run in the bottom of the third. It was the fourth straight outing for Kowar in which he gave up at least five runs. Since Sept. 7, he has thrown 15.1 innings while allowing 21 runs, good (or bad) for a 12.33 ERA. He'll look for his elusive first win in the season finale against the Twins on Sunday.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Hit hard again Sunday
Rotowire
Kowar (0-4) allowed five runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out three over four innings as he took the loss against the Mariners on Sunday.
Kowar was knocked around again in what was his third straight start allowing five runs or more. He gave up two in the first on a double from Jarred Kelenic, another in the second and two more in the third on a pair of solo home runs. His success in the minors has certainly not translated over to the big leagues just yet. The 24-year-old righty now owns an 11.45 ERA, 2.23 WHIP and 19:18 K:BB over 22 innings. He should be avoided in lineups at all costs for the remainder of the season.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Lasts one inning Tuesday
Rotowire
Kowar didn't factor into the decision Tuesday against Oakland after allowing five runs on three hits and four walks across one inning, fanning one. He also tossed a wild pitch.
It's not a secret that Kowar has struggled mightily in his first big-league campaign, but this one could go down easily as his worst start to date. The fact that he hasn't been able to complete two full innings in three of his six appearances is concerning, but so is the fact that he has allowed at least four runs in four of those six starts. With those numbers, the fact that he owns an 11.50 ERA with a 2.17 WHIP and a 7.5 BB/9 through 18 big-league innings shouldn't be surprising.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Thumped by Orioles
Rotowire
Kowar (0-3) took the loss Tuesday, coughing up six runs on five hits and three walks over six innings as the Royals fell 7-3 to the Orioles. He struck out seven.
The strikeouts were a silver lining on an otherwise stormy performance, as Kowar got taken deep by DJ Stewart in the first inning and Austin Hays in the third to account for most of the damage off him. The 24-year-old has lasted six innings in each of his last two starts, but his 9.53 ERA, 1.94 WHIP and 15:12 K:BB through his first 17 big-league innings makes Kowar impossible to trust in fantasy lineups.
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Royals' Jackson Kowar: Picks up another start
Rotowire
Kowar will draw a second straight turn through the Kansas City rotation in Tuesday's game at Baltimore, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
After joining Kansas City when the roster expanded from 26 to 28 men, Kowar slotted back into the team's rotation. He delivered a quality start Sept. 1 in a no-decision versus Cleveland, striking out six over six innings while giving up two runs on five hits and three walks. The Royals will reward Kowar with another start as a result, and he should hold down a spot in the team's six-man rotation until one of Brad Keller (lat) or Jakob Junis (shoulder) returns from the injured list.
