Welcome to the seventh edition of the 2026 two-start pitcher rankings!
Each week, I’ll break down all the projected two-start starters into four tiers: Set and Forget, Most Likely Start, Questionable, and Avoid. Set-and-Forget starters are simply that; get them in your lineup and shift your focus to other positions. The Most Likely tier includes players with a mix of skill and matchups that make them almost certainly two-start plays, though they carry some elevated risk compared to the top tier. Questionable starters are those best suited for daily lineup leagues, where you can bench them against the tougher of their two opponents; they’re more situation-dependent in weekly leagues. Finally, the Avoid tier includes the pitchers who should remain on your bench or the wire.
I will also be highlighting one Two-Start Streamer of the Week. The criteria for a streamer will be a rostered rate under 50% in Yahoo & ESPN leagues. The streamer of the week for this upcoming week is Joey Cantillo, and he will have (STOW) next to his name.
As a friendly reminder, the projected starters are just that, projections, and are subject to change
Set-and-Forget
- This week has a plethora of aces taking the mound for their teams. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Bryan Woo, Paul Skenes, and George Kirby are established aces.
- Zack Wheeler’s picked up where he left off and still appears to be one of the best pitchers in the sport.
- Michael King has had some issues with walks this season, but he’s limited hits (5.5 H/9), and his K% is still in line with his career average as a starter.
- Nathan Eovaldi dominated the Yankees in each of his last two starts, relying heavily on his offspeed stuff, and there’s no reason to believe he’ll change his approach.
- Kevin Gausman has a career-best BB% that’s led to a career-best WHIP. The fastball-splitter combo is still effective
Most Likely
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- Michael Soroka quietly has a 19.1% K-BB% and has been hurt by poor batted-ball luck (.373 BABIP) that’s due to regression. Even with a start at Coors this week, I feel comfortable starting him in weekly leagues.
- Joey Cantillo (STOW) is coming off an uninspiring, but solid, start against the Royals, where he had 3 walks and 1 strikeout over 5 innings. However, he has a 22.6% K% on the season, so I’m willing to count on this start being an anomaly. He’ll be able to work his fastball changeup combo against the Angels and Reds this week, and the favorable matchups are a big driver in why he’s this week’s STOW.
- Freddy Peralta has dropped from the Set-and-Forget tier until we either see the K% (23.2%) jump back up in line with his career rate (29.6%), or he starts going deeper in games. He’s only broken 95 pitches in a start three times this season, but he’s also only completed 6 innings twice in 8 starts.
- Shane McClanahan comes off his third straight scoreless start, this one against the Blue Jays (5.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K). He faces them again this week before getting an easier matchup against the Marlins over the weekend. The Rays haven’t let him throw a ton of pitches, but he’s been efficient in his last two outings, needing 69 pitches to record 17 outs against the Blue Jays and only 73 pitches to complete 6 innings in his prior outing.
- Ryan Weathers is coming off an illness, leaving some room for concern, but he’s been effective for the Yankees this season. He has the best K% (28.5%) and BB% (6.3%) of his career, and faces two underperforming teams this week.
Questionable
- JR Ritchie should be avoided against the red-hot Cubs, but could be worth a flier against the Red Sox if he can control his walks. He’s gone 5+ innings in every start, and the Braves offense should provide him with plenty of run support.
- One of Chad Patrick and Brandon Sproat will be getting two starts for the Brewers this week. If I were the Brewers, I’d let Sproat take both, as he has higher upside. He really struggled with command in his last start, which led to him being pulled after 4 innings. Regardless, for both options, I’d sit them against the Padres but am intrigued against the Twins.
- Andre Pallante in Sacramento is a bad idea. He doesn’t have the swing-and-miss to have faith in that launching pad. However, if it’s the end of the week and you need a flier, there are worse options than Pallante at home against the Royals.
- Colin Rea has had only one really bad start this season, and that was against the Dodgers. Against the Braves, he might have his second, so I’m staying away from him in weekly leagues, but he’s a viable option against the White Sox.
- I understand that Logan Webb cost serious draft capital. However, he hasn’t been himself this season, and while his ERA (5.06) is significantly higher than his FIP (3.60) and xFIP (3.42), he still hasn’t been the pitcher we’ve come to expect. His strikeout rate is back down to his 2024 rate (20.2% this season, 26.2% in 2025, 20.5% in 2024), and his walk rate (7.2%) is the worst it’s been since the COVID season. Couple this with having to face the Dodgers and having to pitch in Sacramento? I’m a little worried what his stat line might look like at the end of the week.
- Eury Pérez is still having issues with his command. He can be all over the place on any given night, and while the stuff is ridiculous and he has an incredible 14.5% SwStr%, he only has a 27.4% CSW%. The strikeouts are slightly down this year, and the walks are up. He’s a little too inconsistent to be a dependable option.
- Trevor Rogers should be returning to the Orioles rotation on Monday…and gets to face the Yankees. Given this is his first start back from the IL, and it’s against the Yankees, I would be hesitant to start him. However, after this start, he faces the Nationals, where he should be started in daily leagues.
- Sonny Gray has two tough matchups this week. He faces a Phillies team that’s looked completely different since Don Mattingly has taken over, and then has to travel to Atlanta to take on the Braves. Sonny doesn’t walk batters, but he doesn’t miss many bats anymore either (7.8% SwStr%), and his K% has plummeted to just 12.6%.
- Stephen Kolek will be replacing the injured Cole Ragans in the Royals’ rotation. He just filled in for his first start of the year on Tuesday, pitching a poor quality start (6 IP, 3 ER), striking out three hitters despite only generating two whiffs. However, he didn’t walk anyone and only allowed four hits over the six innings. Low upside, but high enough floor to be worth consideration.
Avoid
This week’s avoid list is extensive. While some aren’t worth discussing (Erick Fedde, Miles Mikolas, Adrian Houser, Caden Dana, Brady Singer, Michael Lorenzen, Lance McCullers Jr.), there are a few noteworthy pitchers.
- Tatsuya Imai will return from the IL and is slated to face the Mariners and Rangers this week. This is his first start in a month, and in his three starts to kick off the season, he struggled in two and was dominant in one (in Sacramento of all places). I want to see more of him before determining if he’s someone worth trusting.
- Jeffrey Springs has two favorable matchups on paper, but the Cardinals have been surprising, and both of his starts are at home. If either of these starts was on the road, he would be in the questionable tier.
- Brandon Young might be the two-start starter for the Orioles if Trevor Rogers doesn’t return on Monday. That doesn’t mean he’s worth rostering.
- Jack Flaherty has a 16% walk rate on the season. Yes, he just struck out 10 over 5 innings, but he struggled in the three starts prior. Until he gets the walks under control, he can’t be trusted.
- While Velocity isn’t everything, it is extremely helpful. Bailey Ober averages 88.6 mph on his fastball and has a zone rate of 44.4% on all his pitches. His chase rate this season is down to just 28.3%, significantly lower than his career average of 35.4%.
Image made by Doug Carlin (@bdougals)
