Weekly Pitcher Rankings: To the Max

Weekly Pitcher Rankings: To the Max

This article is part of our Weekly Pitcher Rankings series.

It's a rather bland week for two-start pitchers with only a handful of aces with a double-dip. The slate features Jameson Taillon making his return much earlier than expected along with the long-awaited debut of Tyson Ross. Other highlights include the first two-start week for Dinelson Lamet along with the possible recall of Jose De Leon and Jake Junis.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK PITCHER TEAM OPPONENT COMMENT
1 James Paxton SEA vs. MIN, vs. TOR Hasn't allowed a home run yet this season
2 Sean Manaea OAK vs. TOR, at TB Helped by pitcher friendly venues
3 Jose Quintana CWS at TB, at CLE Inconsistent, but facing twi clubs below average vs. LHP
4 J.A. Happ TOR at OAK, at SEA Boosted by huge park upgrades
5 Marco Estrada TOR at OAK
6 Jharel Cotton OAK vs. TOR, at TB
7 Carlos Carrasco CLE vs. CWS
8 Chris Sale BOS vs. DET
9 Drew Pomeranz BOS at NYY, vs. DET Gaining confidence but still homer-prone
10 Alex Cobb TB vs. OAK
11 Ian Kennedy KC vs. HOU, at SD
12 Marcus Stroman TOR at SEA
13 Lance McCullers HOU at KC
14 Corey Kluber CLE vs. CWS Looked sharp coming off DL
15 Chris Archer TB vs. CWS
16 Dallas Keuchel HOU at KC Back to being low-end ace
17 Yu Darvish TEX vs. NYM
18 Sonny Gray OAK at TB
19 Andrew Triggs OAK vs. TOR
20 Jose De Leon TB vs. CWS, vs. OAK Home field advantage
It's a rather bland week for two-start pitchers with only a handful of aces with a double-dip. The slate features Jameson Taillon making his return much earlier than expected along with the long-awaited debut of Tyson Ross. Other highlights include the first two-start week for Dinelson Lamet along with the possible recall of Jose De Leon and Jake Junis.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK PITCHER TEAM OPPONENT COMMENT
1 James Paxton SEA vs. MIN, vs. TOR Hasn't allowed a home run yet this season
2 Sean Manaea OAK vs. TOR, at TB Helped by pitcher friendly venues
3 Jose Quintana CWS at TB, at CLE Inconsistent, but facing twi clubs below average vs. LHP
4 J.A. Happ TOR at OAK, at SEA Boosted by huge park upgrades
5 Marco Estrada TOR at OAK
6 Jharel Cotton OAK vs. TOR, at TB
7 Carlos Carrasco CLE vs. CWS
8 Chris Sale BOS vs. DET
9 Drew Pomeranz BOS at NYY, vs. DET Gaining confidence but still homer-prone
10 Alex Cobb TB vs. OAK
11 Ian Kennedy KC vs. HOU, at SD
12 Marcus Stroman TOR at SEA
13 Lance McCullers HOU at KC
14 Corey Kluber CLE vs. CWS Looked sharp coming off DL
15 Chris Archer TB vs. CWS
16 Dallas Keuchel HOU at KC Back to being low-end ace
17 Yu Darvish TEX vs. NYM
18 Sonny Gray OAK at TB
19 Andrew Triggs OAK vs. TOR
20 Jose De Leon TB vs. CWS, vs. OAK Home field advantage agaisnt weak lineups
21 Luis Severino NYY vs. BAL Repeat after me: A .143 BABIP is not sustainable
22 Ervin Santana MIN at SF
23 Michael Fulmer DET vs. LAA
24 Erasmo Ramirez TB vs. OAK
25 Jose Berrios MIN at SF
26 David Price BOS at NYY
27 Francisco Liriano TOR at OAK
28 Blake Snell TB vs. OAK
29 Masahiro Tanaka NYY vs. BOS, vs. BAL Surrendered 14 homers in just 61 innings
30 Joe Biagini TOR at SEA
31 Hector Santiago MIN at SEA, at SF
32 Dylan Bundy BAL at NYY
33 Derek Holland CWS at TB Pitching poorly but boosted by park and offense weak vs. LHP
34 Jake Odorizzi TB vs. CWS
35 Rick Porcello BOS at NYY
36 Adalberto Mejia MIN at SEA
37 Jason Vargas KC vs. HOU I crunched the numbers, only explanation is he sold his soul to the devil
38 Joe Musgrove HOU at KC, vs. LAA One step forward, two steps back
39 Charlie Morton HOU vs. LAA
40 Michael Pineda NYY vs. BOS
41 Jordan Montgomery NYY vs. BAL
42 Eric Skoglund KC at SD
43 Tyson Ross TEX at WAS
44 Jake Junis KC vs. HOU, at SD
45 Ariel Miranda SEA vs. TOR
46 Jesse Hahn OAK at TB
47 Mike Fiers HOU at KC
48 Alec Asher BAL at WAS
49 Trevor Bauer CLE vs. CWS
50 Justin Verlander DET at BOS
51 Matt Shoemaker LAA at HOU
52 Brad Peacock HOU vs. LAA
53 JC Ramirez LAA at DET
54 Wade Miley BAL vs. PIT
55 Chris Tillman BAL at NYY
56 Mike Pelfrey CWS at TB
57 Kevin Gausman BAL vs. PIT, at NYY
58 Jesse Chavez LAA at DET, at HOU
59 Sam Gaviglio SEA vs. TOR
60 Christian Bergman SEA vs. MIN
61 Kyle Gibson MIN at SEA
62 Yovani Gallardo SEA vs. MIN
63 Martin Perez TEX at WAS
64 Ricky Nolasco LAA at HOU
65 Brian Johnson BOS vs. DET
66 Daniel Norris DET vs. LAA, at BOS
67 Jason Hammel KC vs. HOU
68 CC Sabathia NYY vs. BOS
69 Miguel Gonzalez CWS at CLE
70 Nick Martinez TEX vs. NYM
71 Matt Boyd DET vs. LAA
72 Andrew Cashner TEX at WAS
73 Danny Salazar CLE at COL
74 Alex Meyer LAA at DET
75 Mike Clevinger CLE at COL
76 Jordan Zimmermann DET at BOS
77 Dylan Covey CWS at CLE

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Rank Pitcher TEAM Opponent(s) Comments
1 Max Scherzer WAS at LAD, vs. TEX Keeping homers in check
2 Zack Greinke ARI vs. SD, vs. MIL Rewarding owners that took chance last season was the fluke
3 Carlos Martinez STL at CIN, vs. PHI Deserves ace/SP1 status
4 Jake Arrieta CHC vs. MIA, vs. COL Peripherals have stabilized, look for ERA to drop
5 Jeff Samardzija SF at MIL, vs. MIN Remaining obstinate, there will be a big ERA correction
6 Clayton Kershaw LAD vs. WAS Best pitcher facing best offense
7 Rich Hill LAD vs. CIN Still shaking off rust, but getting there
8 Jaime Garcia ATL vs. PHI, vs. NYM Quietly rebounding from last season's disaster
9 Ivan Nova PIT at BAL, vs. MIA Stud ratios, pedestrian strikeouts
10 Gio Gonzalez WAS at LAD, vs. TEX
11 Stephen Strasburg WAS at LAD
12 Jon Lester CHC vs. COL
13 Alex Wood LAD vs. CIN
14 Jacob deGrom NYM at TEX, at ATL
15 Michael Wacha STL vs. PHI
16 Kenta Maeda LAD vs. CIN
17 Gerrit Cole PIT vs. MIA
18 Jimmy Nelson MIL vs. SF 21 punch outs, no walks in last two games, covering 15 innings
19 Dan Straily MIA at CHC, at PIT
20 John Lackey CHC vs. MIA
21 Jameson Taillon PIT vs. MIA Rank irrelevant. So good just to see him back.
22 Joe Ross WAS vs. BAL
23 Mike Foltynewicz ATL vs. PHI
24 Tanner Roark WAS vs. TEX
25 Julio Teheran ATL vs. NYM
26 Johnny Cueto SF at MIL
27 Junior Guerra MIL vs. SF, at ARI
28 Kyle Hendricks CHC vs. COL
29 Randall Delgado ARI vs. SD
30 Aaron Nola PHI at ATL, at STL
31 Dinelson Lamet SD at ARI, vs. KC Expect some speed bumps, but the rookie looks like real deal
32 Adam Wainwright STL at CIN, vs. PHI
33 Vance Worley MIA at PIT
34 Tim Adleman CIN vs. STL, at LAD
35 Chase Anderson MIL vs. SF, at ARI
36 German Marquez COL at CHC
37 R.A. Dickey ATL vs. PHI
38 Patrick Corbin ARI vs. SD
39 Bartolo Colon ATL vs. PHI, vs. NYM Has age finally caught up?
40 Amir Garrett CIN vs. STL, at LAD
41 Robbie Ray ARI vs. MIL
42 Hyun-Jin Ryu LAD vs. WAS
43 Tyler Chatwood COL at CHC
44 Mike Leake STL at CIN
45 Matt Garza MIL vs. SF
46 Steven Matz NYM at ATL
47 Lance Lynn STL at CIN
48 Tyler Anderson COL at CHC
49 Brandon McCarthy LAD vs. WAS
50 Jeremy Hellickson PHI at STL
51 Scott Feldman CIN vs. STL
52 Matt Moore SF vs. MIN
53 Taijuan Walker ARI vs. MIL
54 Edinson Volquez MIA at PIT
55 Antonio Senzatela COL vs. CLE, at CHC
56 Matt Wisler ATL vs. NYM
57 Jerad Eickhoff PHI at ATL
58 Tyler Glasnow PIT vs. MIA
59 Jhoulys Chacin SD vs. KC
60 Ben Lively PHI at ATL
61 Chad Kuhl PIT at BAL
62 Eddie Butler CHC vs. MIA, vs. COL
63 Matt Cain SF at MIL, vs. MIN
64 Lisalverto Bonilla CIN at LAD
65 Bronson Arroyo CIN vs. STL
66 Jose Urena MIA at CHC
67 Jeff Locke MIA at CHC, at PIT
68 Seth Lugo NYM at ATL
69 Nick Pivetta PHI at ATL, at STL
70 Zach Davies MIL at ARI
71 Zack Wheeler NYM at TEX
72 Ty Blach SF at MIL
73 Luis Perdomo SD at ARI
74 Matt Harvey NYM at ATL
75 Jarred Cosart SD vs. KC
76 Clayton Richard SD at ARI
77 Kyle Freeland COL vs. CLE
78 Asher Wojciechowski CIN at TOR


MLB

RANK PITCHER TEAM OPPONENT COMMENT
1 Max Scherzer WAS at LAD, vs. TEX Keeping homers in check
2 Zack Greinke ARI vs. SD, vs. MIL Rewarding owners that took chance last season was the fluke
3 James Paxton SEA vs. MIN, vs. TOR Hasn't allowed a home run yet this season
4 Carlos Martinez STL at CIN, vs. PHI Deserves ace/SP1 status
5 Jake Arrieta CHC vs. MIA, vs. COL Peripherals have stabilized, look for ERA to drop
6 Jeff Samardzija SF at MIL, vs. MIN Remaining obstinate, there will be a big ERA correction
7 Sean Manaea OAK vs. TOR, at TB Helped by pitcher friendly venues
8 Jose Quintana CWS at TB, at CLE Inconsistent, but facing twi clubs below average vs. LHP
9 J.A. Happ TOR at OAK, at SEA Boosted by huge park upgrades
10 Clayton Kershaw LAD vs. WAS Best pitcher facing best offense
11 Rich Hill LAD vs. CIN Still shaking off rust, but getting there
12 Marco Estrada TOR at OAK
13 Jaime Garcia ATL vs. PHI, vs. NYM Quietly rebounding from last season's disaster
14 Ivan Nova PIT at BAL, vs. MIA Stud ratios, pedestrian strikeouts
15 Gio Gonzalez WAS at LAD, vs. TEX
16 Stephen Strasburg WAS at LAD
17 Jharel Cotton OAK vs. TOR, at TB
18 Jon Lester CHC vs. COL
19 Carlos Carrasco CLE vs. CWS
20 Alex Wood LAD vs. CIN
21 Chris Sale BOS vs. DET
22 Jacob deGrom NYM at TEX, at ATL
23 Michael Wacha STL vs. PHI
24 Drew Pomeranz BOS at NYY, vs. DET Gaining confidence but still homer-prone
25 Alex Cobb TB vs. OAK
26 Ian Kennedy KC vs. HOU, at SD
27 Marcus Stroman TOR at SEA
28 Kenta Maeda LAD vs. CIN
29 Lance McCullers HOU at KC
30 Corey Kluber CLE vs. CWS Looked sharp coming off DL
31 Chris Archer TB vs. CWS
32 Gerrit Cole PIT vs. MIA
33 Dallas Keuchel HOU at KC Back to being low-end ace
34 Yu Darvish TEX vs. NYM
35 Jimmy Nelson MIL vs. SF 21 punch outs, no walks in last two games, covering 15 innings
36 Sonny Gray OAK at TB
37 Dan Straily MIA at CHC, at PIT
38 John Lackey CHC vs. MIA
39 Andrew Triggs OAK vs. TOR
40 Jose De Leon TB vs. CWS, vs. OAK Home field advantage agaisnt weak lineups
41 Luis Severino NYY vs. BAL Repeat after me: A .143 BABIP is not sustainable
42 Ervin Santana MIN at SF
43 Jameson Taillon PIT vs. MIA Rank irrelevant. So good just to see him back.
44 Michael Fulmer DET vs. LAA
45 Joe Ross WAS vs. BAL
46 Mike Foltynewicz ATL vs. PHI
47 Erasmo Ramirez TB vs. OAK
48 Jose Berrios MIN at SF
49 Tanner Roark WAS vs. TEX
50 Julio Teheran ATL vs. NYM
51 Johnny Cueto SF at MIL
52 Junior Guerra MIL vs. SF, at ARI
53 David Price BOS at NYY
54 Kyle Hendricks CHC vs. COL
55 Francisco Liriano TOR at OAK
56 Blake Snell TB vs. OAK
57 Randall Delgado ARI vs. SD
58 Masahiro Tanaka NYY vs. BOS, vs. BAL Surrendered 14 homers in just 61 innings
59 Aaron Nola PHI at ATL, at STL
60 Joe Biagini TOR at SEA
61 Dinelson Lamet SD at ARI, vs. KC Expect some speed bumps, but the rookie looks like real deal
62 Hector Santiago MIN at SEA, at SF
63 Dylan Bundy BAL at NYY
64 Derek Holland CWS at TB Pitching poorly but boosted by park and offense weak vs. LHP
65 Jake Odorizzi TB vs. CWS
66 Adam Wainwright STL at CIN, vs. PHI
67 Vance Worley MIA at PIT
68 Rick Porcello BOS at NYY
69 Tim Adleman CIN vs. STL, at LAD
70 Adalberto Mejia MIN at SEA
71 Chase Anderson MIL vs. SF, at ARI
72 Jason Vargas KC vs. HOU I crunched the numbers, only explanation is he sold his soul to the devil
73 German Marquez COL at CHC
74 R.A. Dickey ATL vs. PHI
75 Joe Musgrove HOU at KC, vs. LAA One step forward, two steps back
76 Charlie Morton HOU vs. LAA
77 Michael Pineda NYY vs. BOS
78 Patrick Corbin ARI vs. SD
79 Bartolo Colon ATL vs. PHI, vs. NYM Has age finally caught up?
80 Jordan Montgomery NYY vs. BAL
81 Amir Garrett CIN vs. STL, at LAD
82 Robbie Ray ARI vs. MIL
83 Eric Skoglund KC at SD
84 Tyson Ross TEX at WAS
85 Hyun-Jin Ryu LAD vs. WAS
86 Tyler Chatwood COL at CHC
87 Jake Junis KC vs. HOU, at SD
88 Mike Leake STL at CIN
89 Matt Garza MIL vs. SF
90 Steven Matz NYM at ATL
91 Lance Lynn STL at CIN
92 Tyler Anderson COL at CHC
93 Ariel Miranda SEA vs. TOR
94 Brandon McCarthy LAD vs. WAS
95 Jeremy Hellickson PHI at STL
96 Jesse Hahn OAK at TB
97 Scott Feldman CIN vs. STL
98 Mike Fiers HOU at KC
99 Alec Asher BAL at WAS
100 Matt Moore SF vs. MIN
101 Taijuan Walker ARI vs. MIL
102 Trevor Bauer CLE vs. CWS
103 Edinson Volquez MIA at PIT
104 Antonio Senzatela COL vs. CLE, at CHC
105 Justin Verlander DET at BOS
106 Matt Shoemaker LAA at HOU
107 Brad Peacock HOU vs. LAA
108 Matt Wisler ATL vs. NYM
109 Jerad Eickhoff PHI at ATL
110 JC Ramirez LAA at DET
111 Wade Miley BAL vs. PIT
112 Tyler Glasnow PIT vs. MIA
113 Chris Tillman BAL at NYY
114 Mike Pelfrey CWS at TB
115 Jhoulys Chacin SD vs. KC
116 Kevin Gausman BAL vs. PIT, at NYY
117 Jesse Chavez LAA at DET, at HOU
118 Ben Lively PHI at ATL
119 Sam Gaviglio SEA vs. TOR
120 Chad Kuhl PIT at BAL
121 Christian Bergman SEA vs. MIN
122 Eddie Butler CHC vs. MIA, vs. COL
123 Kyle Gibson MIN at SEA
124 Matt Cain SF at MIL, vs. MIN
125 Lisalverto Bonilla CIN at LAD
126 Bronson Arroyo CIN vs. STL
127 Yovani Gallardo SEA vs. MIN
128 Jose Urena MIA at CHC
129 Martin Perez TEX at WAS
130 Jeff Locke MIA at CHC, at PIT
131 Seth Lugo NYM at ATL
132 Nick Pivetta PHI at ATL, at STL
133 Ricky Nolasco LAA at HOU
134 Brian Johnson BOS vs. DET
135 Daniel Norris DET vs. LAA, at BOS
136 Jason Hammel KC vs. HOU
137 Zach Davies MIL at ARI
138 Zack Wheeler NYM at TEX
139 CC Sabathia NYY vs. BOS
140 Miguel Gonzalez CWS at CLE
141 Nick Martinez TEX vs. NYM
142 Ty Blach SF at MIL
143 Matt Boyd DET vs. LAA
144 Luis Perdomo SD at ARI
145 Matt Harvey NYM at ATL
146 Andrew Cashner TEX at WAS
147 Danny Salazar CLE at COL
148 Jarred Cosart SD vs. KC
149 Alex Meyer LAA at DET
150 Clayton Richard SD at ARI
151 Mike Clevinger CLE at COL
152 Jordan Zimmermann DET at BOS
153 Kyle Freeland COL vs. CLE
154 Dylan Covey CWS at CLE
155 Mike Pelfrey CWS vs. BOS
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Todd Zola
Todd has been writing about fantasy baseball since 1997. He won NL Tout Wars and Mixed LABR in 2016 as well as a multi-time league winner in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship. Todd is now setting his sights even higher: The Rotowire Staff League. Lord Zola, as he's known in the industry, won the 2013 FSWA Fantasy Baseball Article of the Year award and was named the 2017 FSWA Fantasy Baseball Writer of the Year. Todd is a five-time FSWA awards finalist.
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