Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Flaherty will get you everywhere

Written by

Updated on August 22, 2021 11:20PM EST

We're looking at the quietest week since the break, and one of the quietest of the season. The schedule consists of only 90 games (no doubleheaders) with only Tuesday, Friday and Saturday featuring full slates. In addition, there is a potential hurricane expected to touch down in the Northeast early in the week, though the Yankees will be on the road and the Mets and Red Sox don't play at home until Tuesday.

As for the two-start options, they're sparse. The lack of top options can benefit head-to-head leagues since teams won't get twice the fun from their aces. That said, a couple of changes since the first run have fortified the top-10 as Corbin Burnes picked up a second start, pushing him past Jack Flaherty while Sunday's rainout in Fenway Park give Nathan Eovaldi an extra turn.

As is the custom, the schedule is culled from the Projected Starters grid, so please direct all scheduling inquiries over there. As always, I'll gladly address all rankings questions below.

UPDATED: Sunday August 22 11:20 PM ET

Week of Aug. 23-29

Mixed

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comments
1	Corbin Burnes	MIL	CIN, @MIN
2	Jack Flaherty	STL	DET, @PIT	Pitched well since returning and should continue with a pair of softer matchups
3	Zack Greinke	HOU	KC, @TEX
4	Lance Lynn	CWS	@TOR, CHC	Semi-hot take: Lynn not the clubhouse leader for the AL Cy Young
5	Julio Urias	LAD	@SD, COL
6	Jose Berrios	TOR	CWS, @DET

As is the custom, the schedule is culled from the Projected Starters grid, so please direct all scheduling inquiries over there. As always, I'll gladly address all rankings questions below.

UPDATED: Sunday August 22 11:20 PM ET

Week of Aug. 23-29

Mixed

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comments
1	Corbin Burnes	MIL	CIN, @MIN
2	Jack Flaherty	STL	DET, @PIT	Pitched well since returning and should continue with a pair of softer matchups
3	Zack Greinke	HOU	KC, @TEX
4	Lance Lynn	CWS	@TOR, CHC	Semi-hot take: Lynn not the clubhouse leader for the AL Cy Young
5	Julio Urias	LAD	@SD, COL
6	Jose Berrios	TOR	CWS, @DET
7	Tyler Mahle	CIN	@MIL, @MIA
8	Nathan Eovaldi	BOS	TEX, @CLE
9	Gerrit Cole	NYY	@OAK	Semi hot take No.2: Because Cole is
10	Zack Wheeler	PHI	TB	Pacing to be the only 200+ IP guy this season
11	Marco Gonzales	SEA	@OAK, KC
12	Brandon Woodruff	MIL	CIN
13	Alek Manoah	TOR	CWS, @DET
14	Max Scherzer	LAD	@SD
15	Marcus Stroman	NYM	WAS
16	Walker Buehler	LAD	@SD	OK, Buehler has a 50/50 shot at 200 IP as well
17	Robbie Ray	TOR	CWS	Speaking of AL Cy candidates...
18	Carlos Rodon	CWS	@TOR
19	Adam Wainwright	STL	@PIT	Alright, Wainwright has a puncher's chance at 200 IP
20	Madison Bumgarner	ARI	@PIT, @PHI	2.08 ERA and .92 WHIP last 21.2 IP, but with a tepid 16 K
21	Tylor Megill	NYM	SF, WAS
22	Aaron Nola	PHI	ARI	Can I draft him now for next season?
23	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	CIN	Enough already, Alcantara as a small, albeit plausible pathway to 200 IP
24	Yu Darvish	SD	LAD
25	Lance McCullers Jr.	HOU	KC
26	Charlie Morton	ATL	NYY
27	Dylan Cease	CWS	@TOR, CHC
28	Wade Miley	CIN	@MIA
29	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	@BAL	Imagine Ohtani the pitcher facing Ohtani the batter
30	Kevin Gausman	SF	@ATL
31	Jordan Montgomery	NYY	@ATL, @OAK
32	Chris Sale	BOS	MIN	A pair of 5 IP wins against lesser lineups
33	Zach Plesac	CLE	TEX
34	Tyler Anderson	SEA	KC
35	German Marquez	COL	@CHC
36	Jameson Taillon	NYY	@OAK
37	Lucas Giolito	CWS	@TOR	6 HR last 23 IP - Al Leiter wants to know why he's throwing all those meatballs
38	Alex Wood	SF	@NYM
39	Taijuan Walker	NYM	SF
40	Framber Valdez	HOU	@TEX
41	Luis Garcia	HOU	KC
42	Joe Musgrove	SD	LAD
43	Hyun-Jin Ryu	TOR	CWS
44	Patrick Corbin	WAS	@MIA
45	Max Fried	ATL	SF
46	Triston McKenzie	CLE	BOS	20K with 1 BB over last 21 IP
47	Cole Irvin	OAK	SEA
48	Tarik Skubal	DET	@STL
49	Elieser Hernandez	MIA	WAS
50	Yusei Kikuchi	SEA	KC	Innings adding up? 10 BB in last 12 IP
51	Johnny Cueto	SF	@NYM
52	Cal Quantrill	CLE	BOS
53	Ryan Yarbrough	TB	@PHI
54	Josiah Gray	WAS	@MIA
55	Kyle Gibson	PHI	ARI
56	Logan Gilbert	SEA	KC
57	Anthony DeSclafani	SF	@ATL
58	Nick Pivetta	BOS	MIN
59	Frankie Montas	OAK	NYY
60	Sonny Gray	CIN	@MIL
61	Chris Flexen	SEA	@OAK
62	Sean Manaea	OAK	NYY
63	Tanner Houck	BOS	MIN, @CLE	No more leveraging roster spot, Houck should be up to stay
64	Austin Gomber	COL	@CHC
65	Rich Hill	NYM	WAS
66	Miles Mikolas	STL	@PIT
67	Dallas Keuchel	CWS	CHC
68	Erick Fedde	WAS	@MIA, @NYM
69	David Price	LAD	COL
70	John Means	BAL	TB
71	James Kaprielian	OAK	NYY
72	Logan Webb	SF	@ATL
73	Eli Morgan	CLE	TEX, BOS
74	Kenta Maeda	MIN	MIL
75	Antonio Senzatela	COL	@CHC, @LAD
76	Tyler Gilbert	ARI	@PIT	Johnny Van der Meer's record is still safe
77	Ian Anderson	ATL	SF
78	Huascar Ynoa	ATL	NYY
79	Jon Gray	COL	@LAD
80	Casey Mize	DET	@STL
81	Carlos Hernandez	KC	@SEA
82	Mix 12 Reliever
83	Jake Odorizzi	HOU	@TEX
84	Nestor Cortes	NYY	@OAK
85	Zac Gallen	ARI	@PHI
86	Vladimir Gutierrez	CIN	@MIA
87	Adbert Alzolay	CHC	@CWS
88	JT Brubaker	PIT	ARI, STL	7 HR last 14 IP
89	Mike Minor	KC	@HOU
90	Shane McClanahan	TB	@BAL
91	Mix 15 Reliever
92	Ranger Suarez	PHI	TB, ARI
93	Paul Blackburn	OAK	SEA, NYY	Replacing Chris Bassitt
94	Chris Archer	TB	@BAL
95	Carlos Carrasco	NYM	SF
96	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	@CLE
97	Luis Castillo	CIN	@MIL
98	Blake Snell	SD	LAD
99	Brad Keller	KC	@SEA
100	Daniel Lynch	KC	@HOU, @SEA
101	Mike Foltynewicz	TEX	@CLE
102	Kyle Freeland	COL	@LAD
103	Taylor Hearn	TEX	@CLE
104	Kris Bubic	KC	@SEA
105	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	COL
106	Matthew Boyd	DET	TOR
107	Steven Brault	PIT	STL
108	Zach Thompson	MIA	CIN
109	Sammy Long	SF	@NYM
110	Drew Smyly	ATL	SF
111	Brett Anderson	MIL	CIN
112	Paolo Espino	WAS	@NYM
113	Dylan Bundy	LAA	@BAL
114	Andrew Heaney	NYY	@ATL
115	Mitch White	LAD	COL
116	Adrian Houser	MIL	@MIN
117	Luke Weaver	ARI	@PHI
118	Kolby Allard	TEX	@BOS, HOU
119	Drew Rasmussen	TB	@PHI
120	Daniel Castano	MIA	WAS
121	Ryan Weathers	SD	@LAA
122	Steven Matz	TOR	@DET
123	Griffin Jax	MIN	@BOS, MIL
124	Eric Lauer	MIL	@MIN
125	Jesus Luzardo	MIA	WAS, CIN
126	Reiss Knehr	SD	@LAA
127	J.A. Happ	STL	@PIT
128	Spencer Howard	TEX	@CLE
129	John Gant	MIN	@BOS
130	Spenser Watkins	BAL	LAA, TB
131	Humberto Mejia	ARI	@PIT
132	Keegan Thompson	CHC	@CWS
133	Bailey Ober	MIN	@BOS
134	Taylor Widener	ARI	@PHI
135	Justin Steele	CHC	COL
136	Dane Dunning	TEX	HOU
137	Jon Lester	STL	DET
138	Brady Singer	KC	@HOU
139	Zach Davies	CHC	COL
140	Reid Detmers	LAA	SD
141	Alec Mills	CHC	@CWS
142	Matt Moore	PHI	ARI
143	Jaime Barria	LAA	SD
144	Luis Patino	TB	@BAL
145	Wil Crowe	PIT	ARI, STL
146	Dean Kremer	BAL	LAA
147	Mitch Keller	PIT	ARI
148	Tyler Alexander	DET	TOR
149	Jordan Lyles	TEX	HOU
150	Jose Quintana	LAA	@BAL
151	Matt Harvey	BAL	TB
152	Dillon Peters	PIT	STL
153	Matt Manning	DET	TOR
154	Keegan Akin	BAL	LAA
155	Sam Hentges	CLE	TEX
156	Charlie Barnes	MIN	MIL
157	Sean Nolin	WAS	@NYM

American League

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comment
1	Zack Greinke	HOU	KC, @TEX
2	Lance Lynn	CWS	@TOR, CHC	Semi-hot take: Lynn not the clubhouse leader for the AL Cy Young
3	Jose Berrios	TOR	CWS, @DET
4	Nathan Eovaldi	BOS	TEX, @CLE
5	Gerrit Cole	NYY	@OAK	Semi hot take No.2: Because Cole is
6	Marco Gonzales	SEA	@OAK, KC
7	Alek Manoah	TOR	CWS, @DET
8	Robbie Ray	TOR	CWS	Speaking of AL Cy candidates...
9	Carlos Rodon	CWS	@TOR
10	Lance McCullers Jr.	HOU	KC
11	Dylan Cease	CWS	@TOR, CHC
12	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	@BAL	Imagine Ohtani the pitcher facing Ohtani the batter
13	Jordan Montgomery	NYY	@ATL, @OAK
14	Chris Sale	BOS	MIN	A pair of 5 IP wins against lesser lineups
15	Zach Plesac	CLE	TEX
16	Tyler Anderson	SEA	KC
17	Jameson Taillon	NYY	@OAK
18	Lucas Giolito	CWS	@TOR	6 HR last 23 IP - Al Leiter wants to know why he's throwing all those meatballs
19	Framber Valdez	HOU	@TEX
20	Luis Garcia	HOU	KC
21	Hyun-Jin Ryu	TOR	CWS
22	Triston McKenzie	CLE	BOS	20K with 1 BB over last 21 IP
23	Cole Irvin	OAK	SEA
24	Tarik Skubal	DET	@STL
25	Yusei Kikuchi	SEA	KC	Innings adding up? 10 BB in last 12 IP
26	Cal Quantrill	CLE	BOS
27	Ryan Yarbrough	TB	@PHI
28	Logan Gilbert	SEA	KC
29	Nick Pivetta	BOS	MIN
30	Frankie Montas	OAK	NYY
31	Chris Flexen	SEA	@OAK
32	Sean Manaea	OAK	NYY
33	Tanner Houck	BOS	MIN, @CLE	No more leveraging roster spot, Houck should be up to stay
34	Dallas Keuchel	CWS	CHC
35	John Means	BAL	TB
36	James Kaprielian	OAK	NYY
37	Eli Morgan	CLE	TEX, BOS
38	Kenta Maeda	MIN	MIL
39	Casey Mize	DET	@STL
40	Carlos Hernandez	KC	@SEA
41	Jake Odorizzi	HOU	@TEX
42	Nestor Cortes	NYY	@OAK
43	Mike Minor	KC	@HOU
44	Shane McClanahan	TB	@BAL
45	Paul Blackburn	OAK	SEA, NYY	Replacing Chris Bassitt
46	Chris Archer	TB	@BAL
47	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	@CLE
48	Brad Keller	KC	@SEA
49	Daniel Lynch	KC	@HOU, @SEA
50	Mike Foltynewicz	TEX	@CLE
51	Taylor Hearn	TEX	@CLE
52	Kris Bubic	KC	@SEA
53	Matthew Boyd	DET	TOR
54	AL Reliever
55	Dylan Bundy	LAA	@BAL
56	Andrew Heaney	NYY	@ATL
57	Kolby Allard	TEX	@BOS, HOU
58	Drew Rasmussen	TB	@PHI
59	Steven Matz	TOR	@DET
60	Griffin Jax	MIN	@BOS, MIL
61	Spencer Howard	TEX	@CLE
62	John Gant	MIN	@BOS
63	Spenser Watkins	BAL	LAA, TB
64	Bailey Ober	MIN	@BOS
65	Dane Dunning	TEX	HOU
66	Brady Singer	KC	@HOU
67	Reid Detmers	LAA	SD
68	Jaime Barria	LAA	SD
69	Luis Patino	TB	@BAL
70	Dean Kremer	BAL	LAA
71	Tyler Alexander	DET	TOR
72	Jordan Lyles	TEX	HOU
73	Jose Quintana	LAA	@BAL
74	Matt Harvey	BAL	TB
75	Matt Manning	DET	TOR
76	Keegan Akin	BAL	LAA
77	Sam Hentges	CLE	TEX
78	Charlie Barnes	MIN	MIL

National League

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comment
1	Corbin Burnes	MIL	CIN, @MIN
2	Jack Flaherty	STL	DET, @PIT	Pitched well since returning and should continue with a pair of softer matchups
3	Julio Urias	LAD	@SD, COL
4	Tyler Mahle	CIN	@MIL, @MIA
5	Zack Wheeler	PHI	TB	Pacing to be the only 200+ IP guy this season
6	Brandon Woodruff	MIL	CIN
7	Max Scherzer	LAD	@SD
8	Marcus Stroman	NYM	WAS
9	Walker Buehler	LAD	@SD	OK, Buehler has a 50/50 shot at 200 IP as well
10	Adam Wainwright	STL	@PIT	Alright, Wainwright has a puncher's chance at 200 IP
11	Madison Bumgarner	ARI	@PIT, @PHI	2.08 ERA and .92 WHIP last 21.2 IP, but with a tepid 16 K
12	Tylor Megill	NYM	SF, WAS
13	Aaron Nola	PHI	ARI	Can I draft him now for next season?
14	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	CIN	Enough already, Alcantara as a small, albeit plausible pathway to 200 IP
15	Yu Darvish	SD	LAD
16	Charlie Morton	ATL	NYY
17	Wade Miley	CIN	@MIA
18	Kevin Gausman	SF	@ATL
19	German Marquez	COL	@CHC
20	Alex Wood	SF	@NYM
21	Taijuan Walker	NYM	SF
22	Joe Musgrove	SD	LAD
23	Patrick Corbin	WAS	@MIA
24	Max Fried	ATL	SF
25	Elieser Hernandez	MIA	WAS
26	Johnny Cueto	SF	@NYM
27	Josiah Gray	WAS	@MIA
28	Kyle Gibson	PHI	ARI
29	Anthony DeSclafani	SF	@ATL
30	Sonny Gray	CIN	@MIL
31	Austin Gomber	COL	@CHC
32	Rich Hill	NYM	WAS
33	Miles Mikolas	STL	@PIT
34	Erick Fedde	WAS	@MIA, @NYM
35	David Price	LAD	COL
36	Logan Webb	SF	@ATL
37	Antonio Senzatela	COL	@CHC, @LAD
38	Tyler Gilbert	ARI	@PIT	Johnny Van der Meer's record is still safe
39	Ian Anderson	ATL	SF
40	Huascar Ynoa	ATL	NYY
41	Jon Gray	COL	@LAD
42	Zac Gallen	ARI	@PHI
43	Vladimir Gutierrez	CIN	@MIA
44	Adbert Alzolay	CHC	@CWS
45	JT Brubaker	PIT	ARI, STL	7 HR last 14 IP
46	Ranger Suarez	PHI	TB, ARI
47	Carlos Carrasco	NYM	SF
48	Luis Castillo	CIN	@MIL
49	Blake Snell	SD	LAD
50	Kyle Freeland	COL	@LAD
51	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	COL
52	NL Reliever
53	Steven Brault	PIT	STL
54	Zach Thompson	MIA	CIN
55	Sammy Long	SF	@NYM
56	Drew Smyly	ATL	SF
57	Brett Anderson	MIL	CIN
58	Paolo Espino	WAS	@NYM
59	Mitch White	LAD	COL
60	Adrian Houser	MIL	@MIN
61	Luke Weaver	ARI	@PHI
62	Daniel Castano	MIA	WAS
63	Ryan Weathers	SD	@LAA
64	Eric Lauer	MIL	@MIN
65	Jesus Luzardo	MIA	WAS, CIN
66	Reiss Knehr	SD	@LAA
67	J.A. Happ	STL	@PIT
68	Humberto Mejia	ARI	@PIT
69	Keegan Thompson	CHC	@CWS
70	Taylor Widener	ARI	@PHI
71	Justin Steele	CHC	COL
72	Jon Lester	STL	DET
73	Zach Davies	CHC	COL
74	Alec Mills	CHC	@CWS
75	Matt Moore	PHI	ARI
76	Wil Crowe	PIT	ARI, STL
77	Mitch Keller	PIT	ARI
78	Dillon Peters	PIT	STL
79	Sean Nolin	WAS	@NYM