Weekly Pitcher Rankings: To the Max

Written by

Updated on September 24, 2016 9:31AM EST

As always, remember that rotations are subject to change, so if you see something that looks incorrect, assume that it was a change that occurred since this was written and feel free to politely bring it up in the comments. I'll let you know where the new arm slots.

For the week Sept. 26 - Oct. 2

AMERICAN LEAGUE

START

RANK	PITCHER	OPPONENT	COMMENT
1	Justin Verlander	CLE, at ATL	Making a real run at the wide-open AL Cy Young; hard to find those JV haters these days
2	Chris Sale	TB, MIN
3	Corey Kluber	at DET, at KC	Had a 3.94 ERA thru 14 starts; 2.45 ERA in L17 with a 1.04 WHIP and 130 Ks in 117.3 IP
4	Danny Duffy	MIN
5	Jose Quintana	TB
6	Rick Porcello	TOR	Has 4.50 ERA in 26 IP vs. TOR this year, but 1.00 WHIP, 9.3 K/9 and 6.8 K:BB
7	Yu Darvish	TB
8	Chris Archer	at CWS	Just 12 ER in L6 (2.77 ERA, 0.95 WHIP) with 44 Ks and 5.5 K:BB
9	Aaron Sanchez	BAL, at BOS
10	David Price	at NYY, TOR	After 4.74 ERA thru June, he has a 3.10 ERA in 16 starts since 7/1; 7+ Ks in 6 of L7
11	J.A. Happ	NYY, at BOS
12	Marcus Stroman	BAL
13	Kevin Gausman	at TOR
14	Cole Hamels	TB	Looked sharp in Friday's clincher, but TB has best OPS vs. LHP in second half
15	Carlos Rodon	MIN
16	Michael Fulmer	CLE

For the week Sept. 26 - Oct. 2

AMERICAN LEAGUE

START

RANK	PITCHER	OPPONENT	COMMENT
1	Justin Verlander	CLE, at ATL	Making a real run at the wide-open AL Cy Young; hard to find those JV haters these days
2	Chris Sale	TB, MIN
3	Corey Kluber	at DET, at KC	Had a 3.94 ERA thru 14 starts; 2.45 ERA in L17 with a 1.04 WHIP and 130 Ks in 117.3 IP
4	Danny Duffy	MIN
5	Jose Quintana	TB
6	Rick Porcello	TOR	Has 4.50 ERA in 26 IP vs. TOR this year, but 1.00 WHIP, 9.3 K/9 and 6.8 K:BB
7	Yu Darvish	TB
8	Chris Archer	at CWS	Just 12 ER in L6 (2.77 ERA, 0.95 WHIP) with 44 Ks and 5.5 K:BB
9	Aaron Sanchez	BAL, at BOS
10	David Price	at NYY, TOR	After 4.74 ERA thru June, he has a 3.10 ERA in 16 starts since 7/1; 7+ Ks in 6 of L7
11	J.A. Happ	NYY, at BOS
12	Marcus Stroman	BAL
13	Kevin Gausman	at TOR
14	Cole Hamels	TB	Looked sharp in Friday's clincher, but TB has best OPS vs. LHP in second half
15	Carlos Rodon	MIN
16	Michael Fulmer	CLE	Fantastic start on Friday (7 IP/1 ER/9 K), but CLE has blasted him 2x including 5 IP/6 ER on 9/16
17	Matt Boyd	at ATL
18	Drew Pomeranz	at NYY
19	Ian Kennedy	MIN, CLE	ERA approached mid-4.00s in late-July before this 2.36 ERA over his last 68.7 IP
20	Ervin Santana	at KC
21	Hisashi Iwakuma	at HOU, OAK
22	Marco Estrada	at BOS
23	Sean Manaea	at LAA	Just 1 ER in his last 21.3 IP w/24 Ks and 3.4 K:BB
24	Felix Hernandez	at HOU, OAK
25	Chris Tillman	at TOR
26	Masahiro Tanaka	BAL	A potential 2-start week pushed to one and could be done altogether if his flexor mass strain doesn't improve
27	Jharel Cotton	at SEA
28	James Paxton	at HOU
29	Jake Odorizzi	at TEX
30	Joe Musgrove	at LAA	I'm not drawing a straight line here, but: 5.20 ERA in first 5 w/3 BB; 3.62 ERA in last 5 w/13 BB
31	Daniel Norris	CLE
32	Eduardo Rodriguez	TOR
33	Drew Smyly	at CWS	Couple solid starts last 2x out, but still so volatile and especially worrisome in HR-friendly park (1.7 HR/9)
34	Alex Cobb	at CWS, at TEX	I could just feel a TJ coming: 1.3 IP/7 ER vs. NYY last time out; it never fails
35	Michael Pineda	BAL
36	Blake Snell	at TEX
37	Mike Fiers	SEA
38	Dylan Bundy	at NYY
39	Taijuan Walker	OAK
40	Kendall Graveman	at SEA	Went from perfect thru 5 to a hard-luck 7 IP/3 ER loss; life comes at you fast as a pitcher
41	Colby Lewis	TB
42	Daniel Mengden	at LAA
43	Trevor Bauer	at DET
44	Doug Fister	SEA
45	Luis Cessa	BOS, BOS
46	Collin McHugh	SEA, at LAA
47	Martin Perez	MIL
48	Francisco Liriano	BAL	Has a 3.20 ERA with 27 Ks in last 25.3 IP
49	Ricky Nolasco	OAK
50	Jordan Zimmermann	at ATL
51	CC Sabathia	BOS
52	A.J. Griffin	MIL
53	Yordano Ventura	CLE	Really volatile and not nearly enough Ks to justify the risk in most cases
54	Ariel Miranda	OAK
55	Raul Alcantara	at SEA
56	Jhoulys Chacin	HOU
57	Cody Anderson	at DET
58	Brad Peacock	at LAA
59	Hector Santiago	at CWS
60	Derek Holland	MIL
61	Kyle Gibson	at KC
62	Buck Farmer	CLE
63	Clay Buchholz	at NYY
64	Josh Tomlin	at KC
65	James Shields	TB, MIN
66	Luis Severino	at TOR
67	Mike Clevinger	at DET, at KC
68	Miguel Gonzalez	TB
69	Matt Andriese	at CWS
70	Jason Vargas	MIN
71	Tyler Duffey	at CWS
72	Jose Berrios	at KC, at CWS
73	Bryan Mitchell	BOS
73	Edinson Volquez	CLE
74	Yovani Gallardo	at NYY
75	Ubaldo Jimenez	at TOR
76	Ross Detwiler	at LAA, at SEA
77	Jered Weaver	OAK, HOU
78	Alex Meyer	OAK
79	Daniel Wright	HOU
80	Wade Miley	at NYY

NATIONAL LEAGUE

START

Rank	Pitcher	Opponent(s)	Comments
1	Max Scherzer	ARI, MIA	Finishing brilliantly w/a 1.87 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 50 Ks and just 3 HR allowed in his L6 starts (43.3 IP)
2	Noah Syndergaard	at MIA, at PHI	Scratched from last start, but w/strep throat
3	Johnny Cueto	COL, LAD
4	Clayton Kershaw	at SF	Yeah, even with one start he's over some really good 2-start guys
5	Kenta Maeda	at SD, at SF
6	Jose Fernandez	at WAS
7	Madison Bumgarner	LAD
8	Kyle Hendricks	at PIT, at CIN	His 2.90 ERA and 1.08 WHIP on the road are good, but not close to his 1.32/0.86 home combo
9	Rich Hill	at SF
10	Jon Lester	at CIN
11	Jake Arrieta	at PIT
12	Tanner Roark	ARI, MIA	At home this year: 2.45 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 8.0 Ks and 2.5 K:BB ratio
13	John Lackey	at PIT, at CIN	More Ks and markedly lower WHIP makes this year better than last even w/that 2.77 ERA in '15
14	Jerad Eickhoff	at ATL, NYM	ATL has been better offensively in 2H, but Eick has a 2.36 ERA vs. these two teams in 42 IP this year
15	Bartolo Colon	at MIA, at PHI
16	Ivan Nova	CHC
17	Carlos Martinez	PIT
18	Julio Teheran	DET	Averaging a 58 Game Score over his L5 w/just 1 under 57
19	Tyler Anderson	MIL	In 78 home IP: 3.00 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 7.8 K and 3.8 K:BB; Coors is always risky, but he's been sharp there
20	Seth Lugo	at MIA	Hasn't allowed more than 3 ER in seven starts (2.59 ERA as SP)
21	Jon Gray	at SF	Just couldn't command his stuff consistently on Fri, but still notched 10 Ks in 4 IP
22	Matt Moore	COL
23	Robbie Ray	at WAS
24	Jason Hammel	at PIT	Some insane volatility down the stretch, Game Scores in L8: 73, 77, 8, 36, 65, 12, 48 and 66
25	Jameson Taillon	CHC
26	Jeff Samardzija	COL	Has posted a 2.40 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over his L9 thanks in large part to just 3 HR allowed
27	Anthony DeSclafani	at STL
28	Robert Gsellman	at PHI	Hasn't topped 6 IP in any of his 5 starts
29	Dan Straily	at STL
30	Jeremy Hellickson	at ATL
31	Zack Greinke	SD	Similar to Tanaka in that he's not going to make his 2-start week and could be done altogether
32	Matt Wisler	PHI
33	Tyler Chatwood	at SF
34	Brandon Finnegan	CHC
35	Andrew Cashner	NYM
36	Tom Koehler	NYM, at WAS	Maybe just use the home start if you can (3.87 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 8.1 Ks at home)
37	Adam Wainwright	CIN, PIT
38	Chad Kuhl	CHC, at STL
39	Alex Reyes	CIN	Last 5 appearances (3 starts, 2 long reliefs totaling 8 IP): 1.40 ERA, 1.13 WHIP (lotta BB) and 27 Ks in 25.7 IP
40	Brett Anderson	at SD
41	Gio Gonzalez	ARI	3 QS in his last 5, but he allowed 6 ER in each of the other 2
42	A.J. Cole	MIA
43	Jaime Garcia	CIN, PIT
44	Wei-Yin Chen	at WAS	Shaky return from the DL, but keep an eye on his Saturday start to see if he improves
45	Mike Leake	CIN
46	Jose Urena	NYM
47	Joe Ross	ARI
48	Zach Davies	at COL
49	Chase Anderson	at TEX
50	Wily Peralta	at COL	He's quietly been really sharp off the DL w/a 3.26 ERA in 49.7 IP, but not sure it's enough to test Coors
51	Clayton Richard	at ARI
52	Shelby Miller	at WAS	Dropped 6 shutout in BAL after three straight 4 ER outings
53	Luis Perdomo	LAD
54	German Marquez	at SF, MIL
55	Mike Foltynewicz	PHI, DET
56	Zack Godley	at WAS
57	Jake Thompson	NYM
58	Jimmy Nelson	at TEX
59	Braden Shipley	SD
60	Edwin Jackson	at ARI	ER in L7 starts: 8, 5, 5, 0, 2, 8, 2 ... feeling lucky?
61	Ryan Vogelsong	CHC, at STL
62	Archie Bradley	at WAS, SD
63	Robert Stephenson	at STL, CHC
64	Albert Suarez	LAD
65	Ross Stripling?	at SD	Originally Scott Kazmir, but he left his Friday start after an inning; could be Strip or maybe Jose De Leon
66	Taylor Jungmann	at COL
67	Steven Brault	at STL	Tyler Glasnow is taking his Saturday start so stay tuned to see if Glas or Brault goes next week
68	Alec Asher	NYM
69	Aaron Blair	DET
70	Jarred Cosart	at ARI
71	Adam Morgan	at ATL
72	Chad Bettis	MIL
73	Christian Friedrich	LAD
74	Tim Adleman	at STL, CHC
75	Matt Garza	at TEX
76	Paul Clemens	LAD

MLB TOP 100

RANK	PITCHER	OPPONENT	COMMENT
1	Max Scherzer	ARI, MIA	Finishing brilliantly w/a 1.87 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 50 Ks and just 3 HR allowed in his L6 starts (43.3 IP)
2	Noah Syndergaard	at MIA, at PHI	Scratched from last start, but w/strep throat
3	Justin Verlander	CLE, at ATL	Making a real run at the wide-open AL Cy Young; hard to find those JV haters these days
4	Chris Sale	TB, MIN
5	Corey Kluber	at DET, at KC	Had a 3.94 ERA thru 14 starts; 2.45 ERA in L17 with a 1.04 WHIP and 130 Ks in 117.3 IP
6	Johnny Cueto	COL, LAD
7	Clayton Kershaw	at SF	Yeah, even with one start he's over some really good 2-start guys
8	Kenta Maeda	at SD, at SF
9	Jose Fernandez	at WAS
10	Madison Bumgarner	LAD
11	Kyle Hendricks	at PIT, at CIN	His 2.90 ERA and 1.08 WHIP on the road are good, but not close to his 1.32/0.86 home combo
12	Rich Hill	at SF
13	Danny Duffy	MIN
14	Jose Quintana	TB
15	Jon Lester	at CIN
16	Jake Arrieta	at PIT
17	Tanner Roark	ARI, MIA	At home this year: 2.45 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 8.0 Ks and 2.5 K:BB ratio
18	John Lackey	at PIT, at CIN	More Ks and markedly lower WHIP makes this year better than last even w/that 2.77 ERA in '15
19	Jerad Eickhoff	at ATL, NYM	ATL has been better offensively in 2H, but Eick has a 2.36 ERA vs. these two teams in 42 IP this year
20	Rick Porcello	TOR	Has 4.50 ERA in 26 IP vs. TOR this year, but 1.00 WHIP, 9.3 K/9 and 6.8 K:BB
21	Yu Darvish	TB
22	Chris Archer	at CWS	Just 12 ER in L6 (2.77 ERA, 0.95 WHIP) with 44 Ks and 5.5 K:BB
23	Aaron Sanchez	BAL, at BOS
24	David Price	at NYY, TOR	After 4.74 ERA thru June, he has a 3.10 ERA in 16 starts since 7/1; 7+ Ks in 6 of L7
25	J.A. Happ	NYY, at BOS
26	Marcus Stroman	BAL
27	Kevin Gausman	at TOR
28	Bartolo Colon	at MIA, at PHI
29	Cole Hamels	TB	Looked sharp in Friday's clincher, but TB has best OPS vs. LHP in second half
30	Ivan Nova	CHC
31	Carlos Martinez	PIT
32	Julio Teheran	DET	Averaging a 58 Game Score over his L5 w/just 1 under 57
33	Carlos Rodon	MIN
34	Michael Fulmer	CLE	Fantastic start on Friday (7 IP/1 ER/9 K), but CLE has blasted him 2x including 5 IP/6 ER on 9/16
35	Tyler Anderson	MIL	In 78 home IP: 3.00 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 7.8 K and 3.8 K:BB; Coors is always risky, but he's been sharp there
36	Seth Lugo	at MIA	Hasn't allowed more than 3 ER in seven starts (2.59 ERA as SP)
37	Jon Gray	at SF	Just couldn't command his stuff consistently on Fri, but still notched 10 Ks in 4 IP
38	Matt Moore	COL
39	Matt Boyd	at ATL
40	Robbie Ray	at WAS
41	Jason Hammel	at PIT	Some insane volatility down the stretch, Game Scores in L8: 73, 77, 8, 36, 65, 12, 48 and 66
42	Jameson Taillon	CHC
43	Jeff Samardzija	COL	Has posted a 2.40 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over his L9 thanks in large part to just 3 HR allowed
44	Anthony DeSclafani	at STL
45	Robert Gsellman	at PHI	Hasn't topped 6 IP in any of his 5 starts
46	Drew Pomeranz	at NYY
47	Ian Kennedy	MIN, CLE	ERA approached mid-4.00s in late-July before this 2.36 ERA over his last 68.7 IP
48	Dan Straily	at STL
49	Jeremy Hellickson	at ATL
50	Ervin Santana	at KC
51	Zack Greinke	SD	Similar to Tanaka in that he's not going to make his 2-start week and could be done altogether
52	Matt Wisler	PHI
53	Hisashi Iwakuma	at HOU, OAK
54	Marco Estrada	at BOS
55	Sean Manaea	at LAA	Just 1 ER in his last 21.3 IP w/24 Ks and 3.4 K:BB
56	Felix Hernandez	at HOU, OAK
57	Chris Tillman	at TOR
58	Masahiro Tanaka	BAL	A potential 2-start week pushed to one and could be done altogether if his flexor mass strain doesn't improve
59	Jharel Cotton	at SEA
60	James Paxton	at HOU
61	Jake Odorizzi	at TEX
62	Joe Musgrove	at LAA	I'm not drawing a straight line here, but: 5.20 ERA in first 5 w/3 BB; 3.62 ERA in last 5 w/13 BB
63	Daniel Norris	CLE
64	Tyler Chatwood	at SF
65	Brandon Finnegan	CHC
66	Eduardo Rodriguez	TOR
67	Andrew Cashner	NYM
68	Drew Smyly	at CWS	Couple solid starts last 2x out, but still so volatile and especially worrisome in HR-friendly park (1.7 HR/9)
69	Alex Cobb	at CWS, at TEX	I could just feel a TJ coming: 1.3 IP/7 ER vs. NYY last time out; it never fails
70	Tom Koehler	NYM, at WAS	Maybe just use the home start if you can (3.87 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 8.1 Ks at home)
71	Adam Wainwright	CIN, PIT
72	Chad Kuhl	CHC, at STL
73	Michael Pineda	BAL
74	Blake Snell	at TEX
75	Alex Reyes	CIN	Last 5 appearances (3 starts, 2 long reliefs totaling 8 IP): 1.40 ERA, 1.13 WHIP (lotta BB) and 27 Ks in 25.7 IP
76	Dylan Bundy	at NYY
77	Brett Anderson	at SD
78	Mike Fiers	SEA
79	Taijuan Walker	OAK
80	Kendall Graveman	at SEA	Went from perfect thru 5 to a hard-luck 7 IP/3 ER loss; life comes at you fast as a pitcher
81	Gio Gonzalez	ARI	3 QS in his last 5, but he allowed 6 ER in each of the other 2
82	A.J. Cole	MIA
83	Jaime Garcia	CIN, PIT
84	Colby Lewis	TB
85	Daniel Mengden	at LAA
85	Trevor Bauer	at DET
86	Wei-Yin Chen	at WAS	Shaky return from the DL, but keep an eye on his Saturday start to see if he improves
87	Mike Leake	CIN
88	Doug Fister	SEA
89	Luis Cessa	BOS, BOS
90	Jose Urena	NYM
91	Joe Ross	ARI
92	Zach Davies	at COL
93	Chase Anderson	at TEX
94	Collin McHugh	SEA, at LAA
96	Martin Perez	MIL
97	Francisco Liriano	BAL	Has a 3.20 ERA with 27 Ks in last 25.3 IP
98	Wily Peralta	at COL	He's quietly been really sharp off the DL w/a 3.26 ERA in 49.7 IP, but not sure it's enough to test Coors
99	Clayton Richard	at ARI
100	Shelby Miller	at WAS	Dropped 6 shutout in BAL after three straight 4 ER outings