The List 5/13 – Ranking The Top 100 Starting Pitchers Every Monday

[pitcher_list_new list_id=”31259″]

 

Fringe Starters

 

 

What is happening!

It’s a new season and the weekly updates to The List have returned. I’ll be ranking the Top 100 Starting Pitchers every Monday from now until the end of the season.

Before I dive into the player notes, here are the new List features from last year’s editions:

• Previous/Best/Worst columns removed
  • These took a heavy chunk of loading time and ultimately provided very little value. The change arrows themselves are all that’s needed
• Tiers added
  • As much as I hate making tiers (When do they start and end? How big are the cliffs?), ya’ll have been asking for them and I’m here for all of you. Please understand how hard it is to accurately place them and don’t get too worked up about it.
• Labels added
  • There’s often confusion as to why a pitcher is a spot or two above or below another. These labels should help understand what each pitcher brings to the table, showing that some pitchers may be better or worse for what you need.
  • Hover over them (or tap on mobile) to see each label’s name next to the pitcher.
  • Ratio Focused = Their value lies in you chasing their ERA/WHIP more than strikeouts and Wins.
  • Toby = Boring arm that doesn’t excite you, but you stare at the waiver wire and accept that he just okay enough. You don’t like that he’s around the office, but he gets his work done.
  • Cherry Bomb = Volatile pitchers who are either “super sweet” or “blow up in your face.” Heed warning.
  • Ace Potential = I define an ace as: 3.40 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 24% K rate, 6.0 IPS. It’s why you see some surprising names as having the upside of an ace.
• Fringe Starters added
  • There are always a handful of starters I badly want to add to The List but I don’t have enough room. I’ll always have this table at the end for a collection of starters – in no order – that I also heavily considered, as well as why they could be relevant
  • This will be where IL Players will land. I’ll mention where they would slot when healthy.

Please let me know how you feel about these changes and I’m looking forward to another fun year assessing the wonderful entity that is the SP Landscape.

On to the notes! Remember, these ranks are for 12-teamers in H2H leagues.

 

Player Notes

 

• Remember, it’s the number relative to the field. Guys like Tyler Glasnow and Carlos Rodon were removed due to injury, granting innate positive bumps to everyone outside the Top 20.
• You wanted some changes in the Top 20, you got them. Chris Sale and Luis Castillo are Top 10 arms now, with the former entering the mega-top tier as these arms are all carrying teams week-by-week. Castillo has been doing the same, though his track record pulls him back into the second tier, where Zack Greinke gets a jump with a sub 2.20 ERA following his first start of the season.
• A major congrats to Caleb Smith for his first entry into the Top 20 SP. What a time to be alive.
• The landscape of SP keeps shifting and it’s time to give more praise to Luke Weaver and Jerad Eickhoff who keep passing tests against strong opponents.
• Jon Lester hosts the lowest ERA in the majors, demanding a boost despite obvious regression incoming, though it means all five Cubs starters are currently sitting in the fourth tier. Wild.
• After the past two disasters from Joe Musgrove, he took a reasonable drop, though I expect the production to return shortly.
• The fifth tier is the fun tier. Lucas Giolito leads the way, which I didn’t expect but given how all of these names could fall outside the Top 60 or farther in a heartbeat, I’d prefer to chase the arm that still has room to grow (i.e. his curveball) with a solid schedule ahead.
• Corbin Martin had an incredible debut on Sunday and impressed with a phenomenal fastball and two strong secondary pitches. It could fizzle quickly, but he’s a must-add in all formats, forcing his way above the trio of Twins arms – Martin Perez, Kyle Gibson, and Jake Odorizzi who don’t have the same ceiling.
• With two poor outings returning from the IL, we have to be skeptical that Tyler Skaggs can return to the formidable arm he was in most of 2018. Still worth a roster spot, but his decline is warranted.
• Tier 6 is a long one as I began to shrug with a ton of names. I didn’t want to punish Pablo Lopez so much for his cataclysmic outing and nine spots seemed right given the arms around him. Chris Bassitt is a clear standout with his recent strikeout ability, but he’s still at #70 given its likely regression. Sonny Gray has been lost recently, Anthony DeSclafani has a tough schedule ahead, and Kyle Freeland’s command is a far cry from last year’s exhibition.
• Names joining The List this week are Felix Pena (not a bad False Starter for strikeout upside), Gio Gonzalez (could be a Toby), Nick Kingham (could he find the magic we saw last year?), Lance Lynn (a complete Cherry Bomb with K upside), Wilmer Font (A decent add in deeper leagues), Jefry Rodriguez (Vargas Rule?), and Dylan Cease (replaces Forrest Whitley as Cease is the better stash).

(Photo by Jimmy Simmons/Icon Sportswire)