Rankings of the SP Streamers for today’s, tomorrow’s, and the day after tomorrow’s games for fantasy baseball.
Every day of the 2026 baseball season, I’ll be looking at today’s and tomorrow’s slate of scheduled starting pitchers and ranking their matchups for your fantasy baseball streams.
There’s a lot that goes into this and you can hang out with me on twitch.tv/pitcherlist to talk about the specific ranks as I make them every weekday morning from 10am – 12pm ET. If you have questions about these ranks, please ask during the morning Twitch AMA. Those are my office hours as I generally don’t answer comments on the site.
There are four tiers to these rankings with 12-teamers in mind:
Auto-Start – Just do it. Don’t overthink this, start the man. This includes “if I have them rostered, I’m starting them” pitchers.
Probably Start – I’m likely starting these arms, though I recognize there is more risk than we’d like there to be. Either it’s a tough matchup for a good-not-elite pitcher or a weak lineup for a volatile arm. These pitchers have a 50% or greater chance of performing well in my view and I’m starting them in the majority of situations.
Questionable Start – Think of this tier as “I don’t want to start these pitchers in a vacuum, but you could do worse.” Streamers found in this tier are not pitchers I’m targeting and are only if you are in dire need of one. To play it safe with streaming, just start the Probably Start streamers.
Do Not Start – The reward is not worth the risk. Don’t do it. Seriously, these pitchers have a very slim chance of success or sometimes none at all.
Obviously, there will be circumstances where pitchers should move between teams for your situation specifically and these new tiers should act as a little more help than the straight table from last year.
Please keep in mind that streaming is far from a perfect play. In fact, if they work out over half the time, I’d consider it a success. These matchup rankings & streamer picks are going to be wildly different than the actual results throughout the year, so please, have sympathy before the scathing comments and tweets. I’m only trying to help!
There is a second table (and now third for PL Pro members) for tomorrow’s starting pitcher matchups as well, helping everyone get a jump on their nightly pickups. Please note that these matchups are subject to change, though, and there will be times when I have the incorrect pitcher going. I thank you for your future understanding.
And of course, there are my streaming picks of the day. Please keep in mind that for my streaming record, I am forced to pick a streamer every day even if they are in the bottom tier. Those highlighted in Green are that day’s streaming pick in the second tier and I’d roll with them everywhere. Those in Yellow are in the third tier and should be okay if you’re searching for something on a given day, but I don’t recommend streaming unless you’re in need. Finally, those are Red are those I really don’t want to start (they are labeled as “Do Not Start,” after all) but have no other choice. Don’t stream Do Not Start pitchers unless you are truly desperate. A streaming pick is defined as “rostered in 20% or fewer leagues” according to Fantasy Pros. This really emphasizes the point that I’d be happy if over 50% of these worked. I could do the whole sub 30/40% rostered, but there’s no fun in that, and it applies to a smaller audience.
As I do my rankings, I thought it would be helpful to showcase a table of how we’re ranking offenses, granted by our PLV-powered Projections (in alphabetical order by tier):
Remember, these offensive rankings are based on each offense’s Process+ so far this year and how we project their lineups moving forward. It means you’re going to see a little different offensive rankings than you may see elsewhere, and there will always be some surprises. This is based on skills, not purely results! If you have questions about these offense rankings, reach out to Kyle Bland (@blandalytics).
To spice up these streaming recommendations, I’ve included our new daily fantasy baseball projections powered by PLV, and I’ll be competing against PL Bot to pick the best streaming option each day.
These projections are different from your typical projections as they incorporate our pitch quantifier PLV, assessing pitcher and hitter skills at a much more granular level than your standard box score.
To get access to PL Bot’s picks each day, sign up for PL Pro here.
The streaming record is determined by “Was this a productive game for 12-teamers if I started them?” Roughly a PQS with a Win and a strikeout per inning with a sub 1.20 WHIP, with a minimum of 5 IP. Close calls are decided by Twitch chat.
Note: If no pitcher under 20% rostered would have qualified for a “Streaming Win,” no loss is granted.
(Opener) – Outlines that a pitcher is being opened for that day & the pitcher listed will follow the opener.
Nick’s 2026 Streamer Record: 31-28
My Pick yesterday: Win – Walbert Ureña vs. TEX (W): 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 6 K
My Pick today: Christian Scott @ MIA
My Pick tomorrow: Zebby Matthews @ CHW
PL Pro Members have access to my 14-Day Sit/Start SP Grid, which ranks all expected starters into four tiers over the next 14 days. Here is an example from last season.
PL Bot’s 2026 Streamer Record: 31-28
PL Bot’s Pick yesterday: Win – Colin Rea vs. HOU (L): 7.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 4 K
Sunday 5/24 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Bryan Woo @ KCR – Aces gonna ace.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto @ MIL – Aces gonna ace.
Dylan Cease vs. PIT – Not an ace due to the ratio teasing, but hot dang, you don’t lift him from your lineup.
Shota Imanaga vs. HOU – IM AN AGA. You can shout it all you want, but you have to come through again to make us feel cool with it.
Michael King vs. ATH – The King has found his crown. Please don’t let it fall off.
Probably Starts
Ryne Nelson vs. COL – It’s Rockie Road for a pitcher with a fantastic fastball floor.
Parker Messick @ PHI – Messick’s command is so dang good.
Sonny Gray vs. MIN – It’s usually more Sonny than Gray.
Ryan Weathers vs. TBR – Weathers is a K-BB% darling, even if the four-seamer is more hittable than we’d like + the changeup isn’t always there.
Drew Rasmussen @ NYY – It’s the Yankees and Rasmussen has been allowing more hits than usual across his last few weeks. I expect things to normalize here.
Robbie Ray vs. CHW – That last start was WILD. Not a chance that’s gonna stick.
Christian Scott @ MIA – Scott hasn’t gone five frames since his second outing, but this is a far easier matchup.
Framber Valdez @ BAL – Valdez’s slider to LHB is an interesting addition, while the curveball is the true gravitational force affecting Valdez’s pendulum. He goes through waves across seasons and he’s worth the start.
Questionable Starts
Troy Melton @ BAL – HE’S BACK! It’s a Still ILL, though he’s dominated in his rehab starts. Grab him and bench if you’d like to play it safe.
Noah Schultz @ SFG – He was much better with his command last time out and it’s a good matchup. I want to see a litt
Peter Lambert @ CHC – It’s the Cubs, though there could be a QS here.
Reid Detmers vs. TEX – His slider command has been worse and I fear it won’t get better soon.
MacKenzie Gore @ LAA – He hasn’t been the guy for a while. The upside is still there, especially against the Angels.
Seth Lugo vs. SEA – I’m still a little worried about his curveball, but the velocity did return last time out
Do Not Starts
Trevor Rogers vs. DET – My heart says start, my brain says HOW DARE YOU CONSIDER THAT. It’s loud at times.
Andrew Painter vs. CLE – We’ve seen a better Painter lately, armed with improved sliders and sweepers + stellar inside four-seamers to LHB. I hope he can showcase that command a second time.
Mitch Keller @ TOR – Super boring without enough upside.
Brandon Young vs. DET – Young’s high four-seamer has good vert, but there’s not much else. There’s a shot for 5-6 frames of 2 ER or fewer.
Martín Pérez vs. WSH – He just struck out ten. It won’t happen again.
Brady Singer vs. STL – Singer hasn’t been solid for a while. At least you’ll get a long leash…in Cincy.
Jacob Lopez (Opener) @ SDP – I have to see more from his arsenal.
Bailey Ober @ BOS – He’s not throwing a CGSHO again.
Foster Griffin @ ATL – Two rough games + Hotlanat.
Jose Quintana @ ARI – At least he’s away from Coors.
Brandon Sproat vs. LAD – It’s the Dodgers.
Brycen Mautz @ CIN – It’s his MLB debut and not only does it come with a PILOT Rule, but his 92/93 mph four-seamer from the left side merged with a weak slider and not much else is far from enticing.
Dax Fulton (Opener) vs. NYM – Nope.
Monday 5/25 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Jacob Misiorowski vs. STL – Aces gonna ace. He is just so dang good.
Nolan McLean vs. CIN – Aces gonna ace. Will this be the first start of 6+ IP and 0 ER of the season?
Jesús Luzardo @ SDP – The Friars are terrible against LHP and Luzardo is a premium Cherry Bomb.
Probably Starts
Trey Yesavage vs. MIA – Yesavage still has a little work to do on the splitter, and fortunately, it’s the Marlins.
Shane McClanahan @ BAL – The Orioles are not a team to fear.
Landen Roupp vs. ARI – Roupp’s command is where we want it to be. It’s a breakout season.
Will Warren @ KCR – Even without extreme whiffs, Warren is a solid play each time.
Nick Lodolo @ NYM – Lodolo’s curve is the missing piece and the Mets will likely help him find it.
Merrill Kelly @ SFG – Kelly is a low-end Holly in a good matchup.
Kyle Bradish vs. TBR – Bradish has gone three straight starts without a hiccup.
Bryce Miller @ ATH – The stuff is far better than we’ve seen before. I’m rolling him out there even in Sacré Verde.
Questionable Starts
Zebby Matthews @ CHW – I’m not as confident in others that Zebby is suddenly a far better pitcher. I’d argue his arsenal has taken a step back, in fact.
Michael Wacha vs. NYY – Wacha is on a heater and I’m inclined to let it ride against the Yankees – he took them down in April, after all.
Eric Lauer vs. COL – The Dodgers are letting him start and it’s Rockie Road. We haven’t seen him look great since his first start of the season and yet…this feels different.
Randy Vásquez vs. PHI – He’s a Toby who could be more if the velocity and whiffs return.
Janson Junk @ TOR – The stuff is A+. The execution is not. He was unlucky against Hotlanta, though he made mistakes pitches at unfortunate times. This could swing the other way.
Ben Brown @ PIT – He breaks the Huascar Rule and I don’t see a pitcher with the depth of arsenal to go six productive.
Tanner Bibee vs. WSH – Flip a coin. Or buy into his 19″+ inches of four-seamer vert from his last start and tell yourself the coin landed tails. It never fails.
Matthew Liberatore @ MIL – Libby’s curveball has been much improved lately and with his long leash, this could be a QS.
Do Not Starts
Tatsuya Imai @ TEX – His last outing came with the best slider he’s had all year, without the splitter at all and a middling four-seamer. I cannot latch onto that after just one game.
Kumar Rocker vs. HOU – 7.2 innings of dominance in Coors was a ridiculous night. The slider + cutter approach is the way to go, and I still question if he can pull it off consistently.
Carmen Mlodzinski vs. CHC – It’s a low ceiling against a strong offense.
Aaron Civale vs. SEA – Civale is a 15-teamer’s HIPSTER.
Anthony Kay vs. MIN – Kay isn’t quite doing enough with the full arsenal to convince me he can always go 5+ frames of production in 12-teamers.
Zack Littell @ CLE – He did fine against the Mets and it’s possible the LHB-crew in Cleveland is a good fit for his slider/splitter. However, the slider is the breadwinner and works better against RHB.
Kyle Freeland @ LAD – Absolutely not.
Tuesday 5/26 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
PL Pro members get an extra day of full SP Streaming rankings for the day after tomorrow.
PL Pro Members have access to my 14-Day Sit/Start SP Grid, which ranks all expected starters into four tiers over the next 14 days. Here is an example from last season.
Photos Courtesy of IconSportswire | Adapted by Aaron Asbury (@aarongifs on Instagram)
