[pitcher_list_new list_id=”31533″]
Fringe Starters
| Pitcher | Why They Missed The Cut |
| Jimmy Nelson | Nelson will be around the 50s when he’s back from the IL |
| Corey Kluber | On the IL with a forearm injury – Top 10 arm |
| James Paxton | On the IL with a sore knee – Top 15 SP |
| Jameson Taillon | On the IL with an elbow injury – Top 25 SP |
| Tyler Glasnow | On the IL with forearm strain – “4-6 weeks” |
| Kenta Maeda | He’ll be back around the 40s/50s when he returns from his “IL Stint” |
| Trevor Williams | He’ll be back around the 50s/60s when back from the IL with a side strain |
| Clay Buchholz | Isn’t cutting it as a Toby |
| Drew Pomeranz | The last one off. K upside is interesting, but low IPS and too low of a ceiling. |
| Dereck Rodriguez | A Toby who hasn’t helped enough to justify his ranking |
| Nick Margevicius | Looks more like a Cup of Schmo than a rosterable arm |
| Luis Severino | The recent injury news sets him back to July 1st, hopefully. He’ll be Top 15 then. |
| Mike Clevinger | His injury has Clev out until June/July. He’ll be Top 20 then. |
| Nathan Eovaldi | Hit the IL with an elbow injury. When starting again, he’ll be 40/50s |
| Touki Toussaint | Touki has been demoted to Triple-A |
| Nick Pivetta | Pivetta has been demoted to Triple-A |
| Alex Wood | I’m just going to wait until he’s back to properly rank him. Most likely in the 50s. |
| Jhoulys Chacin | Even his recent stretch isn’t worth the floor |
| Corbin Burnes | Demoted to Triple-A |
| Justus Sheffield | Good stash option, but I want to focus on guys in the majors now this week. |
| Dallas Keuchel | He won’t be starting until May at the earliest and he’s not worth the stash on your roster. |
| Andrew Heaney | Shut down again with elbow trouble. That’s scary and makes his expected return even later. |
| Trevor Cahill | He may improve as April continues, for now, I’d wait and see. |
| Ivan Nova | Just not enough upside and while he’s a decent streamer, it’s never for a high ceiling. |
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 categories leagues.
Player Notes
- It’s time to bring both Bauer and deGrom down The List as we elevate Blake Snell and give Chris Sale the praise he deserves for a 46% strikeout rate across his last six starts. Stupid.
- Not a whole lot happened otherwise inside the Top 30 outside of German Marquez and Zack Wheeler each taking hits for not acting like the consistent arms we need them to be. David Price’s return from injury dictates a slot into the Top 25, and it’s about time I rewarded Hyun-Jin Ryu, those his days are numbered given his injury history.
- The fourth tier is often the most fun and I elected to thrust plenty of intriguing upside places at the backend. Brandon Woodruff, Chris Bassitt, Tyler Mahle, and Jordan Lyles each showcase strikeout ability, though I wonder if any will be consistent with their repertoire through May and beyond. Given the warts of arms in tier 5, it makes sense to favor them as possible impact plays for 12-teamers. Jerad Eickhoff is sandwiched among these names as he still sports a pair of strong breakers despite his poor heater.
- Staying in Tier 5, I’m favoring Martin Perez and Spencer Turnbull a little more. Each play in a weak division and while Perez is fighting Cole Hamels to be Spider-Man, Turnbull is close to making a Top 35 run if he refines his breaking balls and continues to steer clear of sinkers.
- Speaking of Spider-Man, I had to force Marco Gonzales down considerably as he’s fanned just 11 batters in his last four games. Yikes.
- With Kenta Maeda hitting the IL, Ross Stripling benefits and becomes an instant add among leagues. He may not make a proper start – possibly one shortened inning start – before Maeda returns, but if you’re looking for something to take a chance on, he’s the best you’ll find on the wire.
- Join The List this week are Steven Matz (return from injury), Jose Urena (streaming option), John Means (streaming option), and Sandy Alcantara (maaaaaaaybe his recent CGSHO shifts gears for the future).
(Photo by Mark LoMoglio/Icon Sportswire)
