Landen Roupp excelled at limiting damage better than every NL starter in 2026

Among NL starting pitchers who completed at least 100 innings, who allowed the softest contact in 2026? You can probably guess from the title that it was Landen Roupp, with an average exit velocity allowed of 86.4 MPH.

As a pitcher, the best outcome is to get strikeouts. It is why front offices chase velocity, stuff, and strikeouts, even if it comes with below-average control.

The next best outcome is to limit the damage, and Roupp did that better than just about every pitcher in the NL. A more traditional way to look at this is by home run rate. Roupp posted a 0.64 HR/9 rate, which was the fourth-best mark among NL starting pitchers with at least 100 innings pitched.

Clay Holmes (0.53 HR/9) and Chris Sale (0.55 HR/9) led the way in that category. The offseason is just beginning, but Holmes has a player option for 2027, and there is a good chance that he will decline it in favor of free agency. The veteran hurler does a lot of things that the Giants like in a pitcher, and they have an obvious void in the rotation.

SF Giants starter Landen Roupp was among the best in home run rate, average exit velocity, and barrel rate

Another way to look at limiting damage is more analytic, but that includes exit velocity and barrel rate. Roupp was near the top in barrel rate as well, allowing a 5.1 percent barrel rate. That was fifth among NL pitchers, using the same criteria as above.

The right-handed hurler does a nice job of keeping the ball in the ground and in the ballpark. In fact, he had a healthy 49.2 percent ground ball rate. He pitches himself into traffic, and the ground ball is an efficient way to get out of a jam. This is also a good reminder that he has good stuff and does not necessarily need to be too fine with his control.

Overall, it was a promising year for the 28-year-old pitcher. He posted a 4.01 ERA, 3.84 FIP, 1.30 WHIP, 8.3 K/9, and a 1.91 SO/W rate in 29 starts. At 155 innings pitched, he also set a new career high in that category.

Over the past couple of years, workload has been a big question mark for Roupp. However, he checked off that box in 2026.

As the front office begins to sketch out the 2027 rotation, they will realize that they have a lot of work to do. However, Roupp, along with Logan Webb, are projected to fill spots. The hard part will be rounding out that unit.

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