Top 100 Starting Pitchers For 2024 Fantasy Baseball: Week 10 – 6/3

Welcome to The List, where I rank the Top 100 SP for Fantasy Baseball every single Monday of the year.

Want an earlier update to The List? Join me on Mondays at 2:00pm ET as I live-stream its creation each week!

Have questions? My “office hours” are on Playback 10:00 am – 12:00 pm ET Monday – Friday + the aforementioned stream of The List.

For each edition of The List, I have a set of rules to outline my thought process and how to best use these rankings. Please take note:

1. This is 5×5, 12-teamer, H2H format focused. It generally is the same as roto as well, but make sure you adjust accordingly.
2. Before the notes and rankings, an injury table outlines where players would be relatively ranked if they were fully healthy. It’s the best way to tackle how to value players on the IL.
3. If a player is on the IL or not confirmed inside the rotation, they aren’t on the List. That includes injuries and guys in the minors, but there are exceptions for players who are expected to be in the rotation but are being skipped this week.
4. Second is a table of pitchers outside the Top 100 I considered. Please read this if you can’t find your guy.
5. Since this is a 12-teamer, I heavily weigh upside in the back-half of the rankings. The Cherry Bomb players are likely going to underperform those labeled as a Toby across a full season, but it’s in your best interest to chase ceiling vs. floor in many cases. Pick the one that you need most in your situation, of course.
6. I’ve made a decision to limit labels to just one label per player, with few exceptions for a second. It streamlines the process much better and hopefully gives you a more targeted understanding of the player.
7. The notes outline oh-so-much to help your team. Please read the notes if you can instead of just scrolling to the bottom.

 

Let’s get to the tables. First are all of our injured compatriots. Injuries are so strange (especially in spring training) and instead of shoving them at random moments on The List, I’ve elected to throw all of them into one table here for you, the wise fantasy manager, to determine if it’s worthwhile to take the injury discount and when.

(OFS) = Out For Season. They usually went under TJS or a similar procedure.

I made a decision last year: I removed the “Preseason tiers” and changed “tiers” to “Relative Rank” as it’ll be more consistent week-to-week — Tiers change while their relative rank does not.

Please understand that “70-80” does not guarantee the player will be exactly in that range when they return. Rankings are 100% relative to the landscape and while this table reflects where they would sit in a vacuum, it’s a fluid creature. Sometimes there are oh-so-many options, sometimes I want to see them healthy and stretched out again, and others we’re starving for pitchers and they jump higher than “70-80”. It’s a loose reference point and why it’s called “relative ranking.” It’s difficult to update this week-to-week and I apologize if the ranking is different when the player actually returns from the IL. I hope it helps!

One last point about that – pitchers often need an extra week or two to ramp up once they do return to the majors. It’s why Still ILL exists and the “relative rank” you see is when those guys have shaken off their rust. Will they be back to normal in their first start or will they need a few? I have no idea! Those ranks are to show what I’d expect once they are fully back to normal.

I added something new to The List last season. It’s a small table of the prospects I’m personally excited about who would jump up The List quickly if they were confirmed in the rotation. Please don’t read too much into these, there are far better prospect analysts out there than me, and this rank will likely conflict with our weekly SP To Stash article from Rudy Ropp, though we will be conferring each week.. Still, I think this table will help you quickly stay on top of who should be on your radar.

They are ordered by my general preference/focus on those guys right now. If any of these are called up, they should be added to your 12-teamers as spec adds at the very least. Some guys aren’t here and that’s due to my own belief they aren’t as pressing as the ones below. I could be very wrong there.

Colors: Green = Worthy of a stash right now in 12-teamers.

*Note: It’s not a great time to stash SP

Lastly, I heavily recommend you follow my daily SP Roundup that outlines all pitcher performances through the season, as each week’s update will reflect the comments and findings from those daily articles. If you’re unfamiliar with some of the players listed, I highly recommend that you read my 75,000+ word Top 400 Starting Pitchers from February. Many things will have changed, but the root of my perception of these players is outlined there.

Let’s get to it.

 

Ranking Notes

 

• This is your reminder to please read these notes as they’ll tell you plenty about why “someone moved up” or “why is he at #X?!”
• Seriously. Read the notes.

 

• I know there are going to be a ton of comments about I hate how much these rankings change each week and I’m going to get out ahead of them here.
• These rankings mostly change in the back half of The List as that’s your waiver wire. Those aren’t the players you hold onto throughout the year like your SPs 1-4, which means we’re going to be a bit more chaotic and roll with the waves more aggressively. If I see elements that suggest a pitcher could be a Top 40 arm, I’m going to move up a ton from the 80s to the 60s. Shazam, there we go.

 

• Pitchers in the Top 40 (or so) move less drastically than those from 40-100. Yes, I’m reiterating the last bullet point because I get comments about it each week. The back-half of the List has a ton of movement constantly due to the nature of 12-team leagues. It’s in your best interest to get value now vs. holding onto a fringe arm as a stash for 10 days while you sit them against a tough offense. Yes, this means you’ll see dramatic +15/-20 moves a lot. It’s how it works.

 

• As is tradition, I need to tell you about the guys who were removed and added from the Top 60, so you have context for the ranking shifts.
• Added: Nathan Eovaldi (41)
• Removed: Zac Gallen (18), Yu Darvish (37), Clarke Schmidt (48), Joe Musgrove (49), Christian Scott (60), Alek Manoah (61)
• Net Change Inside Top 60:  (+5)
• Please understand how this affects movement across The List.

 

Tier 1 – The Remaining Aces

You know they are aces.

 

1. Zack Wheeler – He’s as consistent as anyone.

2. Tyler Glasnow – Strikeouts are still there with a high Win chance.

3. Tarik Skubal – He’s awfully consistent with his changeup and produces across the board.

4. Chris Sale – He had a clunker over the weekend but nothing to be concerned about.

5. Corbin Burnes – Burnes is consistent but not quite elite to the level of the top guys. His cutter isn’t as overwhelming as it used to be.

6. Luis Castillo – The whiffs are here with his four-seamer and slider, though his WHIP floor is lower than the rest.

7. Shota Imanaga – We finally got a glimpse of the floor from Shōta and it didn’t come with a horrible dip in ability. Nothing to be worried about here.

8. Cole Ragans – He’s going four-seamer/change and while that seems to be working, I hope he can find his other three pitches more often – slider/cutter/curve. He’s not the ultimate pitcher of ultimate destiny unless he has at least two of those also working in tandem, let alone three. It would certainly help him lower his hit H/9 that’s ballooning his WHIP.

9. Yoshinobu Yamamoto – All is well here. Except…EXCEPT FOR FEW ELEVATED FASTBALLS. One day he’ll see the light.

10. Max Fried – Fried is sturdy as anything, even if the strikeout marks aren’t as strong as the others.

 

Tier 2 – AGA With Something To Prove

They have the AGA tag, though they all have a quirk that could mean they lose it by June.

 

11. Joe Ryan – The worry of Ryan has been the home run rate and those came in a flash as he allowed four longballs to the Astros. It happens, nothing to fear. Don’t forget, he sat 95 mph on his heater after last week’s edition of The List, too.

12. Aaron Nola – Nola has been awfully consistent and productive with his curveball down and four-seamers up. And, of course, it’s an even year. Duh.

13. Freddy Peralta – Peralta’s four-seamer has been far better in his last two starts and I’m leaning in favor of his feel returning.

14. Paul Skenes – We all know he’s dope. The splinker is an absolute gamechanger, rating as one of the highest PLV pitches in the majors at 95 mph and legit movement. It’s bonkers.

15. Garrett Crochet – New AGA tag for Crochet as well. He’s fallen into a four-seamer/cutter routine and while I wish the changeup and slider could be in the bigger picture, Crochet has figured out how to separate his main two pitches well, forming a BSB and dominating.

16. Jared Jones – His last few outings haven’t been what we wanted, but the results haven’t matched the skills. A date with the Dodgers may be the final straw for some, though I think his four-seamer and slider are still as elite as any combo in the league.

17. Kyle Bradish – Bradish was a bit unfortunate in his last start and I approve of his lean away from the four-seamer. He’s a legit arm in a fantastic situation, don’t fret.

18. Kevin Gausman – His four-seamer is getting pounced and I worry he’s destined to hold a WHIP flirting with 1.20. That said, he’s been better as of late and I’ll keep his AGA tag for now. I hope he proves himself worthy.

19. Sonny Gray – His cutter and slider are dominating the armside edge and we all feel confident slotting him into our lineups for each start.

20. Logan Webb – Despite facing the Yankees, Webb still survived seven frames, FWIW. There’s a bit of refinement left with his slider and changeup in tandem, but we should trust him to still provide across as much volume as any arm in the bigs.

 

Tier 3 – We Expect Success Every Night

They don’t have the AGA tag and could earn it before June.

 

21. Grayson Rodriguez – His four-seamer has done a great job of staying upstairs as of late and as long as we can feel confident in his slider and changeup, we can feel confident in Grayson as an ace. So close.

22. George Kirby – He finally did the thing! Kirby located sliders down-and-gloveside, used sinkers for strikes, and aimed upstairs with his four-seamer instead of serving them inside the zone for batters to smash. We even got a 73% splitter strike too, and the Astros couldn’t do a thing about it. Now we wait for him to do it again and hope this wasn’t a one-off. That would be so silly.

23. Pablo López – Pablo had a redemption start with a ton of four-seamer whiffs and better sweepers. There’s still work to be done with the slowball as it hung up in the zone far more than usual, but steps, not leaps. Expect the rebound…maybe after the Yankees this week.

24. MacKenzie Gore – Are you a believer yet? Gore has allowed more than 2 ER just once in his last ten starts (it was 3 ER) and tallied 18 strikeouts against the Mariners + Atlanta in his last two outings. The four-seamer is legit, the slider is a whiff machine, and his curve + change are earning strikes. Get on board while you still can.

25. Jack Flaherty – I didn’t love the slider/curve being a touch more unreliable than usual (sub 50% strike rate sliders?!), but the fastball is still effective and we’re holding on for dear life.

26. Tanner Houck – Houck hasn’t had a tough matchup this season to truly prove his ability and we’ll have to wait another week as he gets the White Sox. Woe is me…The main difference this year has been the splitter taking over against LHB for a massive 70%+ strike rate, though I am worried that his sinker has yet to allow a single longball this season – it’s still a high ICR pitch that hasn’t damaged Houck nearly as much as expected.

27. Ranger Suárez – He took a comebacker to the hand and could sit out for the London Games. I am a touch worried this interruption will take Suárez out of his rhythm and become a pumpkin, but that’s just reading tea leaves in a snowstorm.

28. Logan Gilbert – After giving him the AGA tag, Gilbert hasn’t come through with his end of the bargain. The cutter disappeared and his command woes have continued. I think it’ll return, but I don’t have the same confidence on a given night that I used to.

29. Dylan Cease – Am I being too harsh on Cease? It’s possible, but he’s certainly displayed his Cherry Bomb tendencies as of late, failing to showcase a true third pitch to help him navigate games. We want the cutter.

30. Luis Gil – The dude continues to dominate as he earns strikes with all three of his pitches. Some legit tests await him now with an improved Twins roster + Dodgers across the next week. I’m optimistic and this should be a telling week.

31. Ryan Pepiot – This may seem out of place for Pepiot. Given the nature of these tiers, I don’t feel Pepiot belongs in Tier 4, forcing me to place him at the bottom of Tier 3 or the Top of Tier 5. In the end, I see a pitcher with an elite heater and two solid secondaries who was interrupted by an injury and recently had his first true outing in a while, where he dominated. There’s a touch of polish left to add to his four-seamer command, but I believe in what’s ahead for Pepiot.

 

Tier 4 – Hard Rock Café

I don’t think they’ll get the AGA tag this year, but hot dang are they stable 6+ inning arms for all-around production. 

 

32. Framber Valdez – It looks like a weird drop given his strong outing over the weekend, but I think Valdez has showcased who he is at this point – the ultimate Holly. I imagine he, Steele, and Ober will be the guardians of the gate to Tier 3.

33. Justin Steele – This may look like I’m unfairly docking Steele for pitching in poor weather, but in actuality, it’s a re-shuffling of the tiers and Steele fits in as a leader of the Holly tier. Not a true ace with the potential to become that Top 10 stud each week, but always there for you like a theme song from a 90s sitcom.

34. Ronel Blanco – Blanco’s four-seamer holds him back from being a legit ace, but his slider and change are holding steady. Don’t expect the world, just stable production.

35. Jesús Luzardo – The premium Cherry Bomb as his four-seamer shape is horrific. However, like Blanco, the slider and change make it work, though they can be slightly more hittable than Blanco’s.

36. Bailey Ober – HRs are everything with Ober, allowing a trio of them in both his first game of the season and his most recent – the two starts that have accounted for 14 ER this season. I’m not concerned, though I’d consider benching against the stupid hot Yankee offense.

37. Nick Pivetta – Pivetta had his fastball/sweeper working last time out, though I wonder where his cutter has been. I’d feel a little better knowing he still had that offering to earn strikes in the zone instead of relying on getting the curve over the plate.

38. Seth Lugo – How much longer will this go on? I fear his start in Cleveland will signify the start of regression, but we’re starting him regardless and hoping for the best. His fastballs are not this good, and his slider performance is sure to regress.

39. Justin Verlander – They weren’t the toughest of matchups, but Verlander has spotted his arsenal well as of late and produced a ton of punchouts. Maybe he’s capable of a 25% strikeout rate after all?

40. Carlos Rodón – The slider and four-seamer combo are looking as good as they’ve been since 2022, though his last start was a weird one as both pitches were located far lower in the zone (and out of it) than usual. Nothing to actually worry about, of course, and I’m glad the cutter has moved to the shelf.

41. Nathan Eovaldi – He tossed just under 40 pitches in his first “start” back, electing to toss his rehab outings in the bigs. He may not be stretched for another start of two, but should be solid once he is. And who knows, he’s no stranger to an efficient five frames.

42. Michael King – I see King as a stable Holly indefinitely, even if he’s been through a ton of turmoil in the early part of the season. He’s a command arm with a quartet of options and he should rack up QS consistently while hovering a 25% strikeout rate.

43. Reynaldo López – Despite having a lead-leading ERA and pitching front of the Atlanta offense, ReyLó only has three Wins to his name. Expect that to improve as his slider’s near 25% SwStr rate is the perfect complement to his solid heater.

44. Reese Olson – Olson’s changeup and slider are legit and he has all the makings of a Holly. Just stop featuring that dang four-seamer so much.

 

Tier 5 – The Firecrackers

We can all see how these pitchers become aces, though they still have questions to answer before then.

 

45. Walker Buehler – I’m not exactly sure what to do with Buehler. He looks a bit lost on the mound, but his stuff on its own is still fantastic. I personally want him to go full BSB and not rely as much on the cutter over his four-seamer, though whatever the path is, I have to imagine him and the Dodgers will figure out a way to produce. He has too much of a history of production with solid stuff. Yeah, sticky stuff…Okay fair. He still has a legit arsenal without it.

46. Bryce Miller – Miller’s four-seamer is fantastic and while the CSW marks have been decent with his secondaries, I’m still waiting for Miller to take the next step and properly mix them in with his heater. I’ve watched too many at-bats get lost as he tries to execute them, wastes it, and pumps an obvious fastball after. I want to believe he’ll get there and at least his fastballs are feasting against poor lineups in the meantime.

47. Kutter Crawford – I’m a little worried about his four-seamer falling more in the zone this year and getting burned by it. The Kutter and sweeper are solid and things should work out for him, but there’s a level of polish missing from Crawford, preventing him from surgically taking down batters with his strong three-pitch (sometimes four or even five!) mix.

48. Tanner Bibee – Bibee has lowered his arm angle a touch and it’s improved his four-seamer, bringing whiffs with it. I’m not sure if it’ll stick quite yet, and he still has slider & changeup command woes, but we’re moving in the right direction.

49. Hunter Greene – Just when I was getting on board, Greene became a Cherry Bomb again, featuring super low strike rates. Why. WHY.

50. Nestor Cortes – I’m not sure where to settle on Nestor. It may ultimately be in Tier 6 as a second-rate Holly or it could be as a premium Cherry Bomb who can explode for strikeouts on a given night, or locate poor fastballs down for multiple HRs like we saw against the Giants. Or both.

51. Bryan Woo – What do we do with Woo? It’s been reported that he’s had “some arm stuff” during the week and was limited in his last start because of it, while he’s fanned fewer than five batters total across his last two outings. It could one of those things that blows over or it could be the super obvious elephant in the room that I choose to turn my back to. You do Woo.

52. Yusei Kikuchi – Kikuchi had the 11:35am game that featured depressed velocity and we hand-waved that one due to the start time. And while his overall velocity was back up a tick in his latest game, the slider did not. Oh, that slider. It was 88/89 and comfortably inside Kikuchi’s arsenal as the #3 pitch for ages before abruptly losing three ticks and getting displaced by his changeup. He hasn’t been the same since. It could be one of those moments that gets fixed or it could mean that Kikuchi is reverting to his pre-June ’23 self. I’ve lowered him down here for now, but I was tempted to drop him even further given the continued move away from his slider (at 86 mph, not 89 mph) in favor of a far worse changeup. Let’s see what we get this week.

 

Tier 6 – Celebrating The Holly Days

This has stability among arms who are all kinds of fun. Nathan Eovaldi would be in this tier if he were activated at the time of publication.

 

53. Marcus Stroman – Now that he has his secondaries in order, Stroman is cruising as Stroman does. Don’t expect a whole lot and be happy.

54. Cristopher Sánchez – He was up to 96 mph on the sinker and that’s all kinds of bananas. I wonder if that’ll stick.

55. Jordan Hicks – Hicks got the Yankees. So we just ignore that and move on.

56. Brayan Bello – Bello has improved his slider this year, but his changeup has recently fallen out of style. I have to believe the old skill will return shortly, creating the proper three-pitch mix we’ve wanted from Bello for ages.

57. José Berríos – He’s The Great Undulator. You plop him into your lineup and call it a season.

58. Gavin Stone – Stone hasn’t been challenged a whole lot, but he’s come through in what he’s been given, including nine slider whiffs last time out against Rockie Road. I’m curious how he does with a real challenge this week.

59. Chris Bassitt – Bassit could arguably be down in Tier 8, but I see him as the final bastion before you start fishing the waiver wire.

 

Tier 7 – The Wobbly Guardrails

We’re at the edge of the Cliff where it’s heavily in your interest to grab guys who have the potential to lock themselves firmly inside the Top 40/50 SP for the season.

 

60. Mitch Keller – Keller’s command is as good as ever. Sadly, we’ve seen him go through phases like this before and I’m not sure how long it’ll last. It’s a clear Vargas Rule with more upside than most of them.

61. Matt Waldron – Look, I’m all about Don’t Trust A Knuckleballer”, but Waldron’s knuckler looks to be something special. It’s three starts of dominance with the pitch and it’s coming in harder than Dickey’s at the moment. Take a chance and see where this goes.

62. Nick Lodolo – Lodolo is a Cherry Bomb, especially after going 0/19 curveball whiffs in his last otuing. What’s up with that.

63. Ryan Weathers – Weathers now has four starts in a row of exception, including his latest against the Rangers that came with eleven strikeouts. Sure, 4 ER as well, but the changeup was glorious and could continue to propel productive outings.

64. José Soriano – Soriano is all about earning strikes with his sinker and he’ll have it working most of the time. The curveball is a legit #2 (#1?) pitch to back it up as well, making him a solid Cherry Bomb with a greater emphasis on Cherry.

65. Tylor Megill – I’m not including Monday’s start against the Nationals that began just as I typed this blurb. Megill featured 96 mph heaters in his return from the IL and if he can keep that heater alive and upstairs while placing secondaries underneath it, you’ve got yourself the real Tylord Megill.

66. Hunter Brown – Brown just had his best start of the season by going BSB with four-seamers up and all secondaries down or gloveside. With the Angels next, I’m chasing this and hoping the trend continues against an offense that creates a higher floor.

67. Taj Bradley – We saw Bradley’s true colors against the Orioles as he allowed a plethora of homeruns and horrific locations for his pitches. We just don’t know what we’re gonna get…outside of strikeouts. We’ll get strikeouts.

68. Brady Singer – He’s back to his old sinker/sweeper self of days gone by. It’s a gamble each day.

69. Cal Quantrill – I know, I know, but a bad outing against the Dodgers doesn’t change the fact that Quantrill’s splitter has been stupid good across the last six weeks. Don’t overlook it.

70. Andrew Heaney – After a pair of questionable games, Heaney is back to executing the BSB and has a solid matchup ahead. We’re back in for now.

 

Tier 8 – Thin Blankets

It’s a mini-tier of guys who don’t warm you like the soaring upside of Tier 7, but get the job done to go six full frames without devastation moreso than Tier 9.

 

71. Tyler Anderson – He’s been shockingly solid in 12-teamers, though I question if his cutter and four-seamer can do enough to support the changeup. It’s not the highest of ceilings, though he’ll get the chance for six frames often.

72. Jake Irvin – It’s a legit Vargas Rule. After watching Irvin, I felt the same as I did before – he’s competitive around the zone but outside of a decent curveball, he’s much more hittable than the lines would suggest. This will come to end in time, but maybe there are a few starts left.

73. Ben Lively – Lively is another Vargas Rule, but more on the back of facing weak squads. He’s executing his heaters well enough to get through them and should be held until the wheels fall off.

74. Javier Assad – Assad is hanging on by a thread. I’m a bit shocked he’s had as much success as he’s had and I wouldn’t expect it to last much longer. No, his sinker/cutter/curve combo is not elite.

75. Jordan Montgomery – He’s been a Toby for ages. It’s been a rough patch that should be better over the long term and there will be times when he’s locked in, like the playoffs last season.

 

Tier 9 – You Should See The Other Guy

The Waiver Wire is a dark and scary place and while these arms can be worth dropping for good streams, they are generally a step up from the rest of what’s available on your wire.

 

76. Spencer Arrighetti – I’m not joking. In your 12-teamers, you truly shouldn’t feel like you should be holding onto any of these pitchers if they are going to be benched during the week, unless you feel as if they are a spec add and you believe there’s another gear to hit that you’ll see in their next outing. As for Spencer, that gear could be coming with a four-seamer that features excellent shape, but wonky command. His array of secondaries make for a solid foundation if he can locate that fastball appropriately.

77. Patrick Sandoval – Just a trio of starts have brought down the Irish Panda’s numbers dramatically and he could be a decent stream throughout the season, especially in QS leagues.

78. Michael Lorenzen – Ayyy, Lorenzen came through against the Marlins! His kitchen-sink approach in front of a winning team could mean more production comes his way, especially with the Giants up next.

79. Spencer Schwellenbach – He was a spec add for many last week and I’m curious what we get in his second outing. It’s a hard (but mediocre-shaped) four-seamer with a cutter I absolutely dig to LHB and a strong slider to RHB, with a sprinkle of curves to both sides. There’s a legit mix in here that absolutely plays, but the jury is still out if he can command all three effectively enough to survive in the bigs. I’d take the chance this week and go from there.

80. Brandon Pfaadt – It’s sweeper/four-seamer and I’m still waiting for Pfaadt to find a third pitch to become an arm I’d trust regularly.

81. Braxton Garrett – He’s fine. The Rays and Mets are ahead and you could find 12 innings between them, especially if Garrett does more than the sinker/slider approach we’ve seen recently.

82. James Paxton – He’s still around and here in his best effort to steal some Wins.

83. Erick Fedde – I consider Fedde a solid command arm and he’s more Toby than the other streamers around here.

84. Alec Marsh – Marsh is highly dependent on his four-seamer locations to steal whiffs, but he may be granted a gift by the Mariners this week to earn a strikeout per inning.

85. Charlie Morton – The curve has been great lately, the rest has not. Good luck getting the Win you so badly want.

86. Cooper Criswell – He can go five frames of decency with sinker/sweeper/change down in the zone. There’s something to that as he faces the White Sox this week.

87. Jameson Taillon – Here’s a solid QS chance against the White Sox as Taillon has an array of pitches to turn to if he’s not feeling his cutter in this one.

88. Hogan Harris – Harris shocked us with a legit iVB four-seamer out of nowhere and I’m awfully curious if he can replicate it in his second outing against the volatile Jays offense.

89. Luis Medina – Medina excelled against Atlanta, but the command was awfully shifty. It’s possible to attribute it to Still ILL, though it does match the struggles we saw from Medina last season. I wonder what we’ll see in his second outing – if he’s pumping 97 mph cheddar (it was over 100 in the spring!) with curves and sliders for strikes, he’s a legit add. That’s a BIG if, though.

 

Tier 10 – Fine, You Need Some Streams & Other Randos

More streaming options here, but a slight drop from the previous tier.

 

90. Simeon Woods Richardson – He gets the Pirates and while I don’t expect him to go six, it could still be five frames of quality ratios.

91. Joey Estes – He’s a command guy that could find a way against the Mariners, especially with his affinity for the high heater.

92. Albert Suárez – Speaking of high heaters, Suárez’s four-seamer held up in his second outing. He could come through against the Jays and steal a Win with some strikeouts. I wish I had any adoration for his secondaries, though.

93. Dane Dunning – Dunning gets the Tigers, making a decent stream when you’re able to go six frames for the Rangers.

94. Cole Irvin – You need a Win? Consider Irvin against the Rays, especially if he throws more than 10 curveballs this time.  Why did you only throw ten…

95. Mitch Spence – Spence has a 90 mph cutter and 83 mph slider and I kinda dig it. Think lower velocity Rasmussen.

96. Luis Severino – He’s able to go six frames and gets the gift of the Nationals this week.

97. JP Sears – Sears is doing an interesting thing by going breaker heavy after formally being a four-seamer focused arm. I wonder if this will work long term.

98. Andre Pallante – Don’t start him against the Astros, but he could be a sneaky Sunday start against “Rockie Road.” His four-seamer is effectively a 94 mph cutter, and if either breaking ball shows up, Pallante could be an ICR darling, consistently preventing hits.

99. Zack Littell – I hate the matchup this week against the Orioles, but I recognize that Littell’s super low walk rate could make him a worthwhile hold. I don’t like it, though.

100. Adam Mazur – The Padres are calling up Mazur to make his MLB debut on Tuesday and while I wouldn’t spec add him, I’d at least be aware and monitor the outing. Maybe he shows us some electricity that could speak to legitimate fantasy relevenance? It’s a 94/95 mph heater with a cutter and slider, none of which overwhelm with whiffs. He’s more command-focused than whiffs, and I generally avoid those types of arms.

 

Honorable Mentions

You’re getting little blurbs on everyone else with a rotation spot this week. This is in alphabetical team order, not rank. If a pitcher has a rotation spot and is not listed here, it’s an error on my part after crafting The List and forgetting to add them here. Feel free to let me know if someone isn’t listed here and I’ll add them – it’s usually a fringe guy I removed and lapsed when ensuring they had a blurb!

 

Blake Walston (ARI) – He’s a southpaw with Toby potential. He’s not ready yet.

Ryne Nelson (ARI) – I dig his heater and there is a ceiling to hit one day. He’s a Young Gun.

Slade Cecconi (ARI) – I don’t love what Slade is putting down. Far too risky.

Ben Brown (CHC) – I know, he hurled seven no-hit innings and I’m still keeping him off The List. Simply put, he’s two-pitch without both being excellent pitches, breaking the Huascar Rule. Throw in a date in Cin City, and I’d rather not chase this start with limited volume.

Jordan Wicks (CHC) – It’s unclear if he will return this week or next. Keep your eye on Wicks – he has an improved heater and changeup. A proper cutter/slider would complete the arsenal effectively.

Chris Flexen (CHW) – Welp, back to Flexen in front of the mirror and not the beach.

Jake Woodford (CHW) – It should be no surprise that the Amish Mustang has no electricity in his arsenal.

Nick Nastrini (CHW) – He has a chance now and I interpret his horrific four-seamer command as having the yips. Thing is, it’s a really good four-seamer if he could just spot it in the zone. I wonder if we’ll see it this year.

Andrew Abbott (CIN) – He gets Coors this week and I don’t see a clear path to believing in Abbott’s arsenal on a given night.

Frankie Montas (CIN) – He’s awfully pedestrian. You can do better.

Graham Ashcraft (CIN) – I don’t trust his command enough.

Carlos Carrasco (CLE) – He’s only of consideration if you have a dire need for six frames.

Logan Allen (CLE) – He’s an unreliable streamer.

Triston McKenzie (CLE) – His pitch quality has certainly taken a hit as he endures a torn ligament in his arm. The upside isn’t worth the massive explosion that feels around the corner.

Austin Gomber (COL) – He returned from elbow pain against the Dodgers and was expectedly poor for fantasy. Now we wait to see if hints his old Vargas Rule.

Dakota Hudson (COL) – COL story, bro.

Ryan Feltner (COL) – COL story, bro.

Ty Blach (COL) – COL story, bro.

Casey Mize (DET) – I can see the fun in his four-seamer, but he hasn’t commanded it well, nor has his slider turned into the whiff pitch it needs to be. We wait for now.

Kenta Maeda (DET) – Why chase Maeda? The ceiling is too low to justify the floor.

Daniel Lynch IV (KCR) – There’s little to latch onto with Lynch, sadly.

Griffin Canning (LAA) – He gets the Astros up next and I don’t think Canning is worth the hold through the tough matchup.

Trevor Rogers (MIA) – There are hints of success here and there, but the full arsenal hasn’t come together yet.

Bryse Wilson (MIL) – The Brewers are still rolling with Wilson. That doesn’t mean you have to, too.

Colin Rea (MIL) – He’s been surprisingly decent with just one poor start this year. However, it’s a limited ceiling and with just a single start this week, Rea doesn’t push the needle enough.

Joe Ross (MIL) – Ross may be returning this week and it’s a clear wait-and-see.

Robert Gasser (MIL) – He’s not officially on the IL yet, but with his sore elbow, it’s clear he’s going to miss some time.

Chris Paddack (MIN) – I don’t see enough in the arsenal at the moment to go after Paddack in 12-teamers.

David Peterson (NYM) – He made his first start of the year against the Dodgers and I didn’t see enough to consider streaming him against the Nationals.

Jose Quintana (NYM) – I’m not seeing enough to latch onto Quintana.

Cody Poteet (NYY) – I dig Poteet as a potential streaming option, sadly the Dodgers this week make us wait for now.

Sean Manaea (NYM) – He’s next pitching in the London Series against the Phils. Absolutely not worth it.

Bailey Falter (PIT) – I was considering Falter, but he gets the Dodgers this week.

Quinn Priester (PIT) – He needs more than the slider to become relevant.

Spencer Turnbull (PHI) – It’s possible he gets a start with Ranger Suárez on the mend from his comebacker. However, it would be in London and I wouldn’t trust any starter for that series.

Taijuan Walker (PHI) – Just like Turnbull, Walker is expected to throw in the London Series and that’s an absolute pass.

Jhony Brito (SDP) – It looks like Adam Mazur is stepping into the rotation, preventing Brito from getting a potential two-step. Womp womp.

Randy Vasquez (SDP) – I don’t trust the command, nor the overall stuff of the arsenal. He can find his way through 5+ frames at times, but it’s not worthwhile to chase.

Kyle Harrison (SFG) – I’m not seeing gains this year to suggest he’s an impact 12-teamer arm.

Spencer Howard (SFG) – He survived against the Phillies and I don’t think he’ll be so fortunate again.

Kyle Gibson (STL) – He’s too unpredictable and is just a streamer against poor offenses.

Lance Lynn (STL) – He just doesn’t do enough anymore.

Miles Mikolas (STL) – There’s so little to chase here. You can do better.

Aaron Civale (TBR) – It was tough removing Civale, but he hasn’t come through with his arsenal this year. Once the curve begins to be a major factor again, then we can jump back in.

Zach Eflin (TBR) – It looks like he’s returning this week, but without confirmation, rules are he remains off The List. I’d have him somewhere around the middle of Tier 4, near the low 40s. I think Still ILL rules apply against the Marlins on Wednesday if he starts given that he hasn’t had a single rehab start.

Gerson Garabito (TEX) – The Rangers could look to Garabito for a start this week if needed. You can completely ignore him for now.

Jon Gray (TEX) – He could return this week for a start against the Giants and I question how long the Rangers will let him go in a clear Still ILL outing.

José Ureña (TEX) – It’s possible he starts on Wednesday against Detroit and while you could do worse, the floor is far too low for just a Win chance.

Bowden Francis (TOR) – He’s back! And going against the Orioles. I wonder if he’ll show enough to make us trust him against the Athletics later in the week.

Mitchell Parker (WSN) – He hasn’t put it all together yet. The 8/22 slider whiff game followed without the slider. Womp womp.

Patrick Corbin (WSN) – This isn’t working out. Shocking, I know.

Trevor Williams (WSN) – #NeverTrevor. Seriously, his arsenal is not worth your time and from this moment forward, he’ll hurt more than help.

 

SCROLL BACK UP AND READ THE NOTES

 

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Rank	Pitcher	Badges	Change
1	Zack WheelerT1	Aces Gonna Ace Quality Starts	-
2	Tyler Glasnow	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	-
3	Tarik Skubal	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	+3
4	Chris Sale	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	-1
5	Corbin Burnes	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	-1
6	Luis Castillo	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	-1
7	Shota Imanaga	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	-
8	Cole Ragans	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	-
9	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	-
10	Max Fried	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	+1
11	Joe Ryan T2	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	+1
12	Aaron Nola	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	+1
13	Freddy Peralta	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	+7
14	Paul Skenes	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside Playing Time Question	+8
15	Garrett Crochet	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	+10
16	Jared Jones	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside Playing Time Question	-6
17	Kyle Bradish	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	-2
18	Kevin Gausman	Aces Gonna Ace Strikeout Upside	-4
19	Sonny Gray	Aces Gonna Ace Wins Bonus	-2
20	Logan Webb	Aces Gonna Ace Quality Starts	-4
21	Grayson Rodriguez T3	Ace Potential Wins Bonus Injury Risk	-
22	George Kirby	Ace Potential Quality Starts	+5
23	Pablo López	Ace Potential Strikeout Upside	-
24	MacKenzie Gore	Ace Potential Strikeout Upside	+5
25	Jack Flaherty	Ace Potential Quality Starts	+6
26	Tanner Houck	Ace Potential Strikeout Upside	+6
27	Ranger Suárez	Ace Potential Wins Bonus	-3
28	Logan Gilbert	Ace Potential Quality Starts	-9
29	Dylan Cease	Ace Potential Strikeout Upside	-3
30	Luis Gil	Ace Potential Strikeout Upside Playing Time Question	+11
31	Ryan Pepiot	Ace Potential Team Context Effect Playing Time Question	+13
32	Framber Valdez T4	Holly Quality Starts	-4
33	Justin Steele	Holly Quality Starts	-3
34	Ronel Blanco	Holly Ratio Focused Playing Time Question	-1
35	Jesús Luzardo	Holly Strikeout Upside	-
36	Bailey Ober	Holly Quality Starts	-
37	Nick Pivetta	Holly Strikeout Upside	+1
38	Seth Lugo	Holly Quality Starts	+7
39	Justin Verlander	Holly Quality Starts	+13
40	Carlos Rodón	Holly Team Context Effect	+6
41	Nathan Eovaldi	Holly Quality Starts Injury Risk	+UR
42	Michael King	Holly Quality Starts	+14
43	Reynaldo López	Holly Team Context Effect	+8
44	Reese Olson	Holly Quality Starts	+6
45	Walker Buehler T5	Cherry Bomb Wins Bonus Playing Time Question	-3
46	Bryce Miller	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside	+11
47	Kutter Crawford	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside	-8
48	Tanner Bibee	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside	+7
49	Hunter Greene	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside	-6
50	Nestor Cortes	Cherry Bomb Wins Bonus	-3
51	Bryan Woo	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside Injury Risk	-11
52	Yusei Kikuchi	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside	-18
53	Marcus Stroman T6	Toby Quality Starts	-
54	Cristopher Sánchez	Toby Quality Starts	+11
55	Jordan Hicks	Toby Strikeout Upside	-1
56	Brayan Bello	Toby Quality Starts	+7
57	José Berríos	Toby Quality Starts	+5
58	Gavin Stone	Toby Team Context Effect Playing Time Question	+20
59	Chris Bassitt	Toby Quality Starts	+5
60	Mitch Keller T7	Vargas Rule Strikeout Upside	+11
61	Matt Waldron	Vargas Rule Ratio Focused	+26
62	Nick Lodolo	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside Injury Risk	-3
63	Ryan Weathers	Vargas Rule Strikeout Upside	+11
64	José Soriano	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside Playing Time Question	+2
65	Tylor Megill	Spice Girl Quality Starts	+30
66	Hunter Brown	Spice Girl Team Context Effect	+UR
67	Taj Bradley	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside Playing Time Question	-9
68	Brady Singer	Cherry Bomb Quality Starts	-
69	Cal Quantrill	Cherry Bomb Quality Starts	+1
70	Andrew Heaney	Cherry Bomb Strikeout Upside	+23
71	Tyler Anderson T8	Toby Quality Starts	+1
72	Jake Irvin	Toby Quality Starts	+UR
73	Ben Lively	Toby Strikeout Upside	+9
74	Javier Assad	Toby Ratio Focused	-1
75	Jordan Montgomery	Toby Quality Starts	-
76	Spencer Arrighetti T9	Streaming Option Team Context Effect Playing Time Question	+24
77	Patrick Sandoval	Streaming Option Quality Starts	+UR
78	Michael Lorenzen	Streaming Option Quality Starts	+11
79	Spencer Schwellenbach	Streaming Option Team Context Effect	+UR
80	Brandon Pfaadt	Streaming Option Team Context Effect	-
81	Braxton Garrett	Streaming Option Quality Starts	-5
82	James Paxton	Streaming Option Wins Bonus	+9
83	Erick Fedde	Streaming Option Quality Starts	-4
84	Alec Marsh	Streaming Option Strikeout Upside	+1
85	Charlie Morton	Streaming Option Wins Bonus	+1
86	Cooper Criswell	Streaming Option Ratio Focused	+UR
87	Jameson Taillon	Streaming Option Quality Starts	+UR
88	Hogan Harris	Streaming Option Strikeout Upside	+UR
89	Luis Medina	Streaming Option Strikeout Upside	+UR
90	Simeon Woods Richardson T10	Streaming Option Ratio Focused	+UR
91	Joey Estes	Streaming Option Ratio Focused	+UR
92	Albert Suárez	Streaming Option Strikeout Upside	+UR
93	Dane Dunning	Streaming Option Quality Starts	+UR
94	Cole Irvin	Streaming Option Wins Bonus	-10
95	Mitch Spence	Streaming Option Ratio Focused	+UR
96	Luis Severino	Streaming Option Quality Starts	-13
97	JP Sears	Streaming Option Strikeout Upside	+UR
98	Andre Pallante	Streaming Option Ratio Focused	+UR
99	Zack Littell	Streaming Option Team Context Effect	-18
100	Adam Mazur	Streaming Option Rotation Spot Bonus	+UR

 

I’ve updated the tags for 2024, now allowing myself to tag a player in one three groups.

Overall Label
Aces Gonna Ace
Ace Potential
Holly
Toby
Cherry Bomb
Spice Girl
Vargas Rule
Streaming Option

Bonus Stat
QS Bonus
Wins Bonus
Strikeouts Bonus
Ratios Bonus
Rotation Spot Bonus
Team Context Effect

Special Tag
Stash Option
Injury Risk
Playing Time Question

A quick legend for those unfamiliar with our odd terms at Pitcher List:

Holly = Solid ratios, constant 6 IP & a 20-25% strikeout rate
Toby = Borderline arm for your 12-teamers who has a 20% or lower strikeout rate. They barely do enough.
Cherry Bomb = A volatile starting pitcher. Usually with strikeout upside and low ratio floor.
Spice Girl = Young arms who have massive ceilings or could be off your team in a few weeks.
Vargas Rule = A pitcher we’re picking up now given he’s on a roll, but we drop once he stumbles again.
Team Context Effect = Either ranked higher or lower due to team context (Coors, Tampa Bay Rays, Atlanta, Cincy, etc.)

Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X)