SP Streamers rankings for today’s final games for fantasy baseball.
Every day of the 2025 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 Playback.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 Playback 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 Playback 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 2025 Streamer Record: 115-65
My Pick yesterday: Win – Jacob Latz @ CLE
My Pick today: Charlie Morton vs. PIT
PL Bot’s 2025 Streamer Record: 116-64
PL Bot’s Pick yesterday: Loss – Jake Irvin vs. CHW
PL Bot’s Pick today (Free this weekend!): Charlie Morton vs. PIT
NOTE: It’s the final weekend and I’ve elected to remove the PL Pro lock for Sunday’s streamer rankings. GOOD LUCK! Thanks for a fantastic season, I’m not going anywhere for the off-season with the Top 200 Starting Pitchers For 2026 releasing next week.
Sunday 9/28 Starting Pitcher Streamer Rankings
Auto-Starts
Freddy Peralta vs. CIN – The Brewers are getting a bye, setting the stage for a tune-up outing of four or five innings.
Cristopher Sánchez vs. MIN – The Phillies have a bye and they’re letting Sánchez start this one. It shouldn’t be for long, though.
Logan Webb vs. COL – I hope it’s not actually Webb. Wait, I HAVE WEBB! Okay, fine. Sorry. I don’t think he’ll go long if he starts, and he shouldn’t. Why waste more bullets?
Cole Ragans @ ATH – PEW PEW PEW. He’ll be stretched out around 80 pitches here and I’d imagine the Royals want him to get comfortable back on the mound before ending the year. It really does mean a lot for a pitcher to get those few starts returning from injury instead of waiting until April next year.
Kyle Bradish @ NYY – I know he just took them down. He also pitched his best game since returning, which doesn’t have enough of a track record to expect exact replication. Then again, the Yankees may not be slotting in their starters… Okay, you’re likely just going for it.
Kevin Gausman vs. TBR – Gausman has been rolling. If the Jays have a bye, this will likely be a short tune-up. If they are the #3/4 seed, there’s no way Gausman goes.
Probably Starts
Lucas Giolito vs. DET – The Sox are playing for their seed today. Personally, I wouldn’t have Giolito starting for the Sawx, or push him at all.
Luis Gil vs. BAL – Gil’s command is in question, but he’ll have a standard workload given his limited starts this year. They need him to get all the reps he can.
Questionable Starts
Charlie Morton vs. PIT – He’s back in Atlanta after the Tigers released him and this could be the final start of his career. Part of me wants to rank him higher as he could go all-out for a last hurrah (and Atlanta would let him!) against a weak club. At the same time, he failed to do well against the Marlins or other easy matchups… Nah, I’m in. This just has all the makings of That Moment for Morton.
Sean Manaea @ MIA – The Mets elected to save Manaea and start him over David Peterson in Miami. I’m okay with starting him, but they are sure to give him a quick hook if he gets into a major jam early. Peterson could come in relief before the fifth inning if you’re trying to find a Win anywhere.
Shane Smith @ WSN – Smith was a great option in the first half and slowed down a bit in the second. His kick-change could sing against a slew of LHB, though the White Sox may elect to cut his season short after adding a ton of innings to his career.
Bryce Miller vs. LAD – I don’t expect the Mariners to push Miller, though he hasn’t gotten a ton of reps this year. He’ll be their option out of the pen for the playoffs (likely with a bye!) + the back-up for Bryan Woo if he’s not healthy. Throw in the Dodgers (even with a likely limited lineup) and I’m not thrilled about this one if I’m searching for production, even if it’s @TEA.
Brady Singer @ MIL – The Reds are still in the thick of playoff race and Singer should have the freedom to go six. That said, he’s a bit of a HIPSTER and quality isn’t guaranteed.
Brad Lord vs. CHW – Lord has shocked us a bit in the last month and even gave some production to trusting managers against Atlanta. Maybe the sinker jams effectively and the secondaries come through. Who knows, IT’S SUNDAY CHAOS.
Johan Oviedo @ ATL – He has fun stuff, but he’s a bit of a PEAS at the moment. Maybe this is the start that gets us hyped for next year?
Edward Cabrera vs. NYM – I wonder what his pitch count will be. He tossed 50 last week and gets the Phillies on Tuesday. That’ll give us a better idea of this one, which could push him into the third tier.
Ian Seymour @ TOR – At least this isn’t in Tampa. I may be overrating the Jays’ offense in general (especially at home), though Seymour’s ceiling isn’t absurdly high, either.
Brandon Pfaadt @ SDP – Pfaadt had a phenomenal start a week ago, but I don’t expect him to replicate it against a good offense.
Javier Assad vs. STL – It makes sense for the Cubs to let Assad go as long as possible to rest the rest of their arms before the playoffs. He can do just fine against the Cardinals, however boring it may be.
Logan Allen vs. TEX – Gavin gets the rest we expected and Allen receives the pearl. They’ll let him go for the most part and he’s okay if you’re chasing a QS. I don’t love what he does enough to raise him higher.
JP Sears vs. ARI – The Padres had no reason to start Pivetta, turning to Sears as an audition. He’ll be able to go as long as he proves successful, which is far from a given.
Lance McCullers Jr. @ LAA – The Astros elected to give McCullers the start over Javier now that they are eliminated from the playoffs. There’s some strikeout upside here if that’s what you need, but you won’t find a ton of innings.
Do Not Starts
Clayton Kershaw @ SEA – He pitched in relief for the Dodgers on Thursday as an “audtion” for a playoff spot from the pen, but let’s be honest. Kershaw will get this start on Sunday and the Dodgers will let him go until his arm falls off. That said, he sure had all the reasons to be his best in his last outing against the Giants in front of the Dodger faithful and that didn’t go so well. Even @TEA, I’m not banking on greatness here.
Patrick Corbin @ CLE – Maybe he’s deserving of a spot in the third tier. Cleveland is worse against LHP and Corbin has been far better featuring just 10% fastballs in his last two starts. Sneaky, sneaky.
Chris Paddack @ BOS – You really can’t trust Paddack.
Jeffrey Springs vs. KCR – It’s hard to find sunshine and rainbows in Sacré Verde.
Simeon Woods Richardson @ PHI – Maybe SWR belongs in the tier above, but I’m scared of the Phillies and he was far more blegh over the weekend than his prior two outings. Stupid splitters…
Sam Aldegheri vs. HOU – You shouldn’t expect much of anything from Aldegheri.
McCade Brown @ SFG – It’s the Colorado SP.
Kyle Leahy @ CHC – He’ll likely go a few innings as the Cardinals quietly conclude their season and come up with ways to convince their fans not to spend money across the next six months.
Photos Courtesy of IconSportswire | Adapted by Aaron Asbury (@aarongifs on Instagram)
