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: 20-19
My Pick yesterday: Win – Tyler Mahle @ TBR (ND): 5.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 5 K
My Pick today: Chad Patrick @ STL
My Pick tomorrow: Jameson Taillon vs. CIN
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: 23-16
PL Bot’s Pick yesterday: Win – Tyler Mahle @ TBR (ND): 5.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 5 K
Monday 5/4 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Tarik Skubal vs. BOS – Aces gonna ace.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto @ HOU – Aces gonna ace.
Cam Schlittler vs. BAL – Aces gonna ace.
Logan Gilbert vs. ATL – Aces gonna ace.
Edward Cabrera vs. CIN – A stroll down the Reds Carpet? Don’t mind if I do.
José Soriano vs. CHW – Alright Soriano, prove to us that was just a stiff neck.
Probably Starts
Randy Vásquez @ SFG – He was bumped to Monday with Canning’s return and I don’t see a reason to hold him back.
Aaron Nola @ MIA – Nola hasn’t been a solid play this year as he’s struggled to find his fastballs. At least it’s Miami.
Payton Tolle @ DET – We’ve seen the good and the bad. Here’s to the four-seamer dominance returning.
Davis Martin @ LAA – It’s a true Vargas Rule with Martin nailing the edges beautifully.
Questionable Starts
JR Ritchie @ SEA – I’m curious how Ritchie develops and he could do just fine in Seattle.
Michael Wacha vs. CLE – This should be a solid play given the slew of LHB eager to get overwhelmed by Wacha’s changeup.
Nick Martinez vs. TOR – He’s been on a heater, but the Jays are not one to be trifled with.
Tanner Bibee @ KCR – It’s a toss up.
Chad Patrick @ STL – Patrick was pushed to today with Sproat on Tuesday, and the matchup seems decent enough to let loose. I still question his viable as a hold, though.
Janson Junk vs. PHI – Junk landed high heaters effectively, but his secondaries failed to get whiffs. I want to see the full package.
Shane Baz @ NYY – Baz hasn’t taken the leap forward I was hoping he’d take by now.
Do Not Starts
Kyle Leahy vs. MIL – He’s not there yet, but he did flex some strikeout ability last time out.
Trevor McDonald vs. SDP – It’s not Whisenhunt, but McDonald, who has been stretched out to 70 pitches and just throwing sinkers and sliders for the most part. I’m not interested.
Eric Lauer @ TBR – It’s been too long since the upside came out.
Tomoyuki Sugano vs. NYM – You know, there’s always a chance with Sugano. And the Mets…
David Peterson (Opener) @ COL – Absolutely not.
Chase Petty @ CHC – Oh cool! Please have control.
Steven Okert vs. LAD – Ah yes, another bullpen game you can ignore.
Tuesday 5/5 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Shohei Ohtani @ HOU – Aces gonna ace.
Jacob deGrom @ NYY – Aces gonna ace.
Cristopher Sánchez vs. ATH – Aces gonna ace.
Kevin Gausman @ TBR – Gausman lost his splitty last time out. Please get it back.
Framber Valdez vs. BOS – Valdez isn’t cruising with the curveball, but the change has come through more than expected.
Drew Rasmussen vs. TOR – Rasmussen is killing it and working in a changeup effectively, far more than last year.
George Kirby vs. ATL – I wish it weren’t Atlanta and I can’t put him above the other non-aces. This offense is HOT.
Probably Starts
Logan Webb vs. SDP – Webb finally gave us a start we’ve been waiting for and I want to see one or two more before pushing him into the top tier against a solid lineup.
Gavin Williams @ KCR – We don’t know what version of Williams we’re going to get, and in the end, it’s the same as it’s always been: You’re gonna like it but you’re not gonna like it.
Sandy Alcantara vs. BAL – I’m not convinced he’s prime Sandy, but this seems like a good matchup at home.
Freddy Peralta @ COL – It’s Coors, yes, but it was also the park of his MLB debut where it didn’t matter. That was years ago, obviously, and yet, it represented Peralta’s nature of his opponents mattering less than executing his stuff.
Taj Bradley @ WSH – He rebounded and despite my heavy concerns about the sustainability, I’d look bonkers if I didn’t put him in this tier.
Jameson Taillon vs. CIN – It’s the Reds Carpet. It’s too good to pass up for a pitcher who routinely goes six frames for a winning club.
Questionable Starts
Bryce Elder @ SEA – Maybe he belongs in the tier above given the matchup and yet…it’s Elder. This shouldn’t keep working.
Brandon Sproat @ STL – Sproat. You’re so dang close. This is a great matchup. You. Got. This.
Luis Severino @ PHI – Sevy is away from Sacré Verde, though I don’t know what to make of the Phillies offense.
Noah Cameron vs. CLE – I see Cameron on a trail of redemption, but I’m not going to risk that quite yet.
Bubba Chandler @ ARI – COME. ON. BUBBA. We’ll see it in a start one of these days. I don’t know when, but it’ll arrive and we can finally take off the TIARA.
Cade Cavalli vs. MIN – He’s returned ten strikeouts in each of his last two starts, fueled by an unsustainable 35% putaway rate (usually sub 20%!).
Eduardo Rodriguez vs. PIT – This is the real Erod and he’s trying to be a Toby again.
Elmer Rodríguez vs. TEX – The new hotness Erod will get the Rangers again and I’m still concerned he doesn’t have enough for LHB.
Do Not Starts
Andre Pallante vs. MIL – I like the attack for RHB with sinkers in and sliders away, but the four-seamer is still heavily questionable against LHB. I need to see more first.
Chris Bassitt @ MIA – Bassitt just had his best outing of the year and it’s highly unlikely for him to repeat it. He benefited massively from a nearly exclusive RHB-lineup, and without his old cutter, LHB still give him plenty of trouble.
Erick Fedde @ LAA – Don’t trust it. Maybe he should be higher given the shocking results, but I just can’t.
Peter Lambert vs. LAD – It’s the Dodgers, and I won’t suggest this one after flexing worse command last time out.
Caden Dana vs. CHW – Oh dang, this is kinda cool? We haven’t seen Dana soar yet, and I’d treat this like a PILOT Rule to ensure y’all don’t go stream recklessly against the CrySox.
Andrew Abbott @ CHC – We saw him survive against Rockie Road. Yes. Survive. Force us to love you again, please.
Brayan Bello @ DET – They’re still giving him a chance, eh? I hope he comes through. He may get an opener, elevating his chance for a Win, FWIW.
Walker Buehler @ SFG – Noooope.
Michael Lorenzen vs. NYM – Strong Bad is back in Coors. No thanks.
Wednesday 5/6 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)
