Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Corbin Checks All the Boxes

Todd Zola ranks the coming week's starting pitchers, and Arizona's Patrick Corbin looks to be in a good spot with two starts at home against weak-hitting teams.

Updated on April 14, 2018 8:57AM EST

Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Corbin Checks All the Boxes

By:

Todd Zola

Updated on April 14, 2018 8:57AM EST

Weekly Pitcher Rankings

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In a few weeks, rotations will be more staggered, but we're still early enough where the front and back end of staffs align. Last week, the aces dominated the two-start options. Now it's everyone else's turn.

Note the two-game series between the Indians and Twins will be played in Puerto Rico. Also, the Royals and Tigers play a doubleheader Friday.

Beware, with the inclement weather in the Midwest, there likely will be a few changes to rotations, so be sure to check Sunday's night update.

For the week, April 16-22

UPDATED: Sunday April 15, 10:30 PM ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Luis Severino	NYY	vs. MIA, vs. TOR	Last week's washouts gave Severino two this week
2	David Price	BOS	at LAA, at OAK	Appears OK after leaving last outing with nerve sensation, on the road but great parks
3	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	at SEA, at CWS	Control uncharacteristically spotty
4	Lance McCullers Jr.	HOU	at SEA, at CWS	Look for rebound after Twins rocked McCullers last time out
5	Corey Kluber	CLE	at MIN	Klubot doing Klubot things
6	Chris Sale	BOS	at OAK	Red Sox making good on their effort to temper workload
7	James Paxton	SEA	vs. HOU, at TEX	Expect homers to come down, bringing ERA along with it
8	Justin Verlander	HOU	at CWS	Throwing like a 25-year old, not ten years older
9	Blake Snell	TB	vs. TEX, vs. MIN	Strikeouts promising, but needs to reduce walks
10	Gerrit Cole

Note the two-game series between the Indians and Twins will be played in Puerto Rico. Also, the Royals and Tigers play a doubleheader Friday.

Beware, with the inclement weather in the Midwest, there likely will be a few changes to rotations, so be sure to check Sunday's night update.

For the week, April 16-22

UPDATED: Sunday April 15, 10:30 PM ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Luis Severino	NYY	vs. MIA, vs. TOR	Last week's washouts gave Severino two this week
2	David Price	BOS	at LAA, at OAK	Appears OK after leaving last outing with nerve sensation, on the road but great parks
3	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	at SEA, at CWS	Control uncharacteristically spotty
4	Lance McCullers Jr.	HOU	at SEA, at CWS	Look for rebound after Twins rocked McCullers last time out
5	Corey Kluber	CLE	at MIN	Klubot doing Klubot things
6	Chris Sale	BOS	at OAK	Red Sox making good on their effort to temper workload
7	James Paxton	SEA	vs. HOU, at TEX	Expect homers to come down, bringing ERA along with it
8	Justin Verlander	HOU	at CWS	Throwing like a 25-year old, not ten years older
9	Blake Snell	TB	vs. TEX, vs. MIN	Strikeouts promising, but needs to reduce walks
10	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at SEA	As expected, Astros having Cole use hook more with great results
11	Yonny Chirinos	TB	vs. TEX, vs. MIN	Looks like he's locked down a regular rotation spot and not part of bullpen day
12	Garrett Richards	LAA	vs. SF	Mixed bag so far, 19 K in 15 IP, with unsightly 12 BB and 3 HR
13	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	at BAL	Don't worry, the strikeouts will pick up
14	Danny Duffy	KC	at TOR, at DET	Walks and homers high, catching Blue Jays at a good time
15	Aaron Sanchez	TOR	vs. KC, vs. NYM	No issues with blisters, but control needs work
16	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	vs. BOS	Never questioned talent, still concerned about workload as season wears on
17	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	at LAA	Early returns encouraging after knee surgery
18	Cole Hamels	TEX	at TB	30 K in 22 IP great to see after last season, 7 HR allowed… not so much
19	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	vs. MIA	Homers high, otherwise off to solid start
20	Jose Berrios	MIN	vs. CLE	Big test against primary division rival, back home in Puerto Rico
21	Sonny Gray	NYY	vs. TOR
22	Drew Pomeranz	BOS	at OAK	Set to make 2018 debut
23	J.A. Happ	TOR	vs. KC, at NYY
24	Jordan Montgomery	NYY	vs. TOR
25	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	vs. CLE, at TB
26	CC Sabathia	NYY	vs. TOR	On target to return Tuesday from sore hip
27	Trevor Bauer	CLE	at BAL
28	Charlie Morton	HOU	at SEA
29	Rick Porcello	BOS	at LAA
30	Daniel Mengden	OAK	vs. CWS, vs. BOS
31	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. CLE	Strong effort vs. Boston on Sunday aided ranking
32	Jaime Garcia	TOR	vs. KC, at NYY
33	Chris Archer	TB	vs. MIN
34	Andrew Triggs	OAK	vs. CWS	Swinging strike rate in line with career mark, but K/9 much higher, expect K's to fall
35	Lance Lynn	MIN	at TB
36	Jake Faria	TB	vs. TEX
37	Sean Manaea	OAK	vs. BOS
38	Jaime Barria	LAA	vs. SF	Could be back after requisite 10-day stay in minors
39	Mike Clevinger	CLE	at BAL
40	Michael Fulmer	DET	vs. KC
41	Ian Kennedy	KC	at TOR	7.4% swinging strike rate portends regression
42	Kevin Gausman	BAL	at DET
43	Mike Minor	TEX	vs. SEA	Conversion back to starter going well, but jury still out
44	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. BOS
45	Jakob Junis	KC	at DET	Low strikeouts temper ranking
46	Matt Boyd	DET	vs. BAL
47	Francisco Liriano	DET	vs. BAL, vs. KC
48	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	at OAK, vs. HOU
49	Martin Perez	TEX	at TB, vs. SEA
50	Matt Moore	TEX	at TB
51	Alex Cobb	BAL	at DET
52	Andrew Cashner	BAL	at DET, vs. CLE
53	Andrew Heaney	LAA	vs. SF
54	Lucas Giolito	CWS	vs. HOU
55	Kyle Gibson	MIN	at TB
56	Trevor Cahill	OAK	vs. CWS
57	Mike Leake	SEA	vs. HOU
58	Marco Estrada	TOR	at NYY
59	Marcus Stroman	TOR	at NYY
60	Jason Hammel	KC	at DET
61	Ariel Miranda	SEA	vs. HOU
62	Josh Tomlin	CLE	at MIN
63	Erasmo Ramirez	SEA	at TEX
64	Miguel Gonzalez	CWS	at OAK
65	Eric Skoglund	KC	at TOR, at DET
66	Daniel Norris	DET	vs. KC
67	Jordan Zimmermann	DET	vs. BAL
68	Kendall Graveman	OAK	vs. BOS
69	Nick Tropeano	LAA	vs. BOS
70	Mike Fiers	DET	vs. KC
71	Felix Hernandez	SEA	at TEX
72	Carson Fulmer	CWS	at OAK
73	Marco Gonzales	SEA	vs. HOU
74	James Shields	CWS	vs. HOU
75	Doug Fister	TEX	vs. SEA
76	Chris Tillman	BAL	vs. CLE

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Rank	Pitcher	TEAM	OPP	Comments
1	Patrick Corbin	ARI	vs. SF, vs. SD	Checks all the boxes, pair at home, weak opponents and in a groove
2	Aaron Nola	PHI	at ATL, vs. PIT	Outpitching skills, buoyed by .188 BABIP and 85% LOB rate
3	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. WAS, at ATL	Very sharp early on, but draws a couple of tough matchups
4	Luis Castillo	CIN	at MIL, at STL	Let's see if warmer weather helps after disappointing opening to season
5	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	vs. WAS	Allowed HR to LHB Joe Panik, Daniel Descalso and David Peralta. Baseball is funny.
6	Max Scherzer	WAS	at LAD	Mad max pitching like he wants another Cy
7	Zack Greinke	ARI	vs. SF	Anyone still worried about spring woes?
8	Hyun-Jin Ryu	LAD	at SD, vs. WAS	Continues to pitch well between DL stints
9	Zack Godley	ARI	vs. SD	Building on last year's break out
10	Alex Wood	LAD	at SD
11	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	vs. PHI, vs. NYM	Drop in walks a great sign
12	Robbie Ray	ARI	vs. SF	Control issues a concern, but don't panic yet
13	Stephen Strasburg	WAS	at LAD
14	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	at ATL
15	Nick Pivetta	PHI	at ATL, vs. PIT	Strikeout potential driving ranking
16	Kenta Maeda	LAD	at SD
17	Jake Arrieta	PHI	vs. PIT
18	Gio Gonzalez	WAS	at NYM
19	Johnny Cueto	SF	at ARI, at LAA	Getting job done (for now) despite anemic strikeout rate
20	Carlos Martinez	STL	vs. CIN
21	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at PHI	Break out in progress
22	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. STL
23	Rich Hill	LAD	vs. WAS
24	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. PHI, vs. NYM
25	Chase Anderson	MIL	vs. MIA	4 HR in 16 IP after only 14 in 141 IP last season
26	Jon Lester	CHC	vs. STL	Veteran deserves benefit of the doubt, but Coors affair risky
27	Tanner Roark	WAS	at NYM
28	Tyler Mahle	CIN	at MIL	Homers bug issue early on
29	Trevor Williams	PIT	vs. COL, at PHI
30	Brandon McCarthy	ATL	vs. PHI	Says he's OK after left shoulder subluxation
31	Miles Mikolas	STL	vs. CIN	10 K with 2 BB in 12 IP, ERA should drop
32	Jeremy Hellickson	WAS	at NYM, at LAD	Expected to bump A.J. Cole out of the rotation
33	Ben Lively	PHI	vs. PIT
34	German Marquez	COL	at PIT, vs. CHC
35	Tyler Chatwood	CHC	vs. STL, at COL
36	Chad Bettis	COL	at PIT
37	Luke Weaver	STL	at CHC
38	Caleb Smith	MIA	at NYY, at MIL
39	Sean Newcomb	ATL	vs. NYM
40	Ivan Nova	PIT	at PHI
41	Steven Brault	PIT	vs. COL, at PHI
42	Yu Darvish	CHC	at COL
43	Zach Davies	MIL	vs. CIN
44	Brent Suter	MIL	vs. CIN, vs. MIA
45	Steven Matz	NYM	vs. WAS
46	Trevor Richards	MIA	at MIL
47	Junior Guerra	MIL	vs. CIN, vs. MIA
48	Dillon Peters	MIA	at MIL
49	Chad Kuhl	PIT	vs. COL
50	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. WAS, at ATL
51	Derek Holland	SF	at LAA
52	Adam Wainwright	STL	at CHC, vs. CIN
53	Chris Stratton	SF	at ARI
54	Joey Lucchesi	SD	at ARI
55	Clayton Richard	SD	at ARI
56	Bryan Mitchell	SD	vs. LAD, at ARI	14 K with 3 BB in 13.2 IP… oh wait, that's 3 K with 14 BB
57	Homer Bailey	CIN	at STL
58	Michael Wacha	STL	at CHC	Early season disappointment
59	Jose Urena	MIA	at MIL
60	Kyle Freeland	COL	at PIT
61	Sal Romano	CIN	at MIL
62	Vince Velasquez	PHI	at ATL
63	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	vs. MIA
64	Tyson Ross	SD	vs. LAD
65	Albert Suarez	ARI	at LAA
66	Brandon Finnegan	CIN	at STL
67	Jon Gray	COL	vs. CHC
68	Jose Quintana	CHC	at COL	He's better than this, but hasn't displayed ability to get by in Coors
69	Matt Harvey	NYM	at ATL
70	Tyler Anderson	COL	vs. CHC
71	Jarlin Garcia	MIA	at NYY
72	Ty Blach	SF	at ARI
73	Robbie Erlin	SD	vs. LAD
74	Matt Koch	ARI	vs. SD

MLB

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Luis Severino	NYY	vs. MIA, vs. TOR	Last week's washouts gave Severino two this week
2	Patrick Corbin	ARI	vs. SF, vs. SD	Checks all the boxes, pair at home, weak opponents and in a groove
3	David Price	BOS	at LAA, at OAK	Appears OK after leaving last outing with nerve sensation, on the road but great parks
4	Aaron Nola	PHI	at ATL, vs. PIT	Outpitching skills, buoyed by .188 BABIP and 85% LOB rate
5	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. WAS, at ATL	Very sharp early on, but draws a couple of tough matchups
6	Luis Castillo	CIN	at MIL, at STL	Let's see if warmer weather helps after disappointing opening to season
7	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	vs. WAS	Allowed HR to LHB Joe Panik, Daniel Descalso and David Peralta. Baseball is funny.
8	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	at SEA, at CWS	Control uncharacteristically spotty
9	Max Scherzer	WAS	at LAD	Mad max pitching like he wants another Cy
10	Lance McCullers Jr.	HOU	at SEA, at CWS	Look for rebound after Twins rocked McCullers last time out
11	Corey Kluber	CLE	at MIN	Klubot doing Klubot things
12	Chris Sale	BOS	at OAK	Red Sox making good on their effort to temper workload
13	James Paxton	SEA	vs. HOU, at TEX	Expect homers to come down, bringing ERA along with it
14	Justin Verlander	HOU	at CWS	Throwing like a 25-year old, not ten years older
15	Blake Snell	TB	vs. TEX, vs. MIN	Strikeouts promising, but needs to reduce walks
16	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at SEA	As expected, Astros having Cole use hook more with great results
17	Zack Greinke	ARI	vs. SF	Anyone still worried about spring woes?
18	Hyun-Jin Ryu	LAD	at SD, vs. WAS	Continues to pitch well between DL stints
19	Yonny Chirinos	TB	vs. TEX, vs. MIN	Looks like he's locked down a regular rotation spot and not part of bullpen day
20	Zack Godley	ARI	vs. SD	Building on last year's break out
21	Alex Wood	LAD	at SD
22	Garrett Richards	LAA	vs. SF	Mixed bag so far, 19 K in 15 IP, with unsightly 12 BB and 3 HR
23	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	vs. PHI, vs. NYM	Drop in walks a great sign
24	Robbie Ray	ARI	vs. SF	Control issues a concern, but don't panic yet
25	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	at BAL	Don't worry, the strikeouts will pick up
26	Stephen Strasburg	WAS	at LAD
27	Danny Duffy	KC	at TOR, at DET	Walks and homers high, catching Blue Jays at a good time
28	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	at ATL
29	Aaron Sanchez	TOR	vs. KC, vs. NYM	No issues with blisters, but control needs work
30	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	vs. BOS	Never questioned talent, still concerned about workload as season wears on
31	Nick Pivetta	PHI	at ATL, vs. PIT	Strikeout potential driving ranking
32	Kenta Maeda	LAD	at SD
33	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	at LAA	Early returns encouraging after knee surgery
34	Cole Hamels	TEX	at TB	30 K in 22 IP great to see after last season, 7 HR allowed… not so much
35	Jake Arrieta	PHI	vs. PIT
36	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	vs. MIA	Homers high, otherwise off to solid start
37	Gio Gonzalez	WAS	at NYM
38	Jose Berrios	MIN	vs. CLE	Big test against primary division rival, back home in Puerto Rico
39	Sonny Gray	NYY	vs. TOR
40	Johnny Cueto	SF	at ARI, at LAA	Getting job done (for now) despite anemic strikeout rate
41	Carlos Martinez	STL	vs. CIN
42	Drew Pomeranz	BOS	at OAK	Set to make 2018 debut
43	J.A. Happ	TOR	vs. KC, at NYY
44	Jordan Montgomery	NYY	vs. TOR
45	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at PHI	Break out in progress
46	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	vs. CLE, at TB
47	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. STL
48	Rich Hill	LAD	vs. WAS
49	CC Sabathia	NYY	vs. TOR	On target to return Tuesday from sore hip
50	Trevor Bauer	CLE	at BAL
51	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. PHI, vs. NYM
52	Charlie Morton	HOU	at SEA
53	Chase Anderson	MIL	vs. MIA	4 HR in 16 IP after only 14 in 141 IP last season
54	Rick Porcello	BOS	at LAA
55	Daniel Mengden	OAK	vs. CWS, vs. BOS
56	Jon Lester	CHC	vs. STL	Veteran deserves benefit of the doubt, but Coors affair risky
57	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. CLE	Strong effort vs. Boston on Sunday aided ranking
58	Jaime Garcia	TOR	vs. KC, at NYY
59	Chris Archer	TB	vs. MIN
60	Andrew Triggs	OAK	vs. CWS	Swinging strike rate in line with career mark, but K/9 much higher, expect K's to fall
61	Lance Lynn	MIN	at TB
62	Tanner Roark	WAS	at NYM
63	Tyler Mahle	CIN	at MIL	Homers bug issue early on
64	Jake Faria	TB	vs. TEX
65	Trevor Williams	PIT	vs. COL, at PHI
66	Sean Manaea	OAK	vs. BOS
67	Brandon McCarthy	ATL	vs. PHI	Says he's OK after left shoulder subluxation
68	Jaime Barria	LAA	vs. SF	Could be back after requisite 10-day stay in minors
69	Miles Mikolas	STL	vs. CIN	10 K with 2 BB in 12 IP, ERA should drop
70	Mike Clevinger	CLE	at BAL
71	Michael Fulmer	DET	vs. KC
72	Jeremy Hellickson	WAS	at NYM, at LAD	Expected to bump A.J. Cole out of the rotation
73	Ben Lively	PHI	vs. PIT
74	German Marquez	COL	at PIT, vs. CHC
75	Tyler Chatwood	CHC	vs. STL, at COL
76	Ian Kennedy	KC	at TOR	7.4% swinging strike rate portends regression
77	Chad Bettis	COL	at PIT
78	Luke Weaver	STL	at CHC
79	Caleb Smith	MIA	at NYY, at MIL
80	Sean Newcomb	ATL	vs. NYM
81	Kevin Gausman	BAL	at DET
82	Ivan Nova	PIT	at PHI
83	Mike Minor	TEX	vs. SEA	Conversion back to starter going well, but jury still out
84	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. BOS
85	Steven Brault	PIT	vs. COL, at PHI
86	Yu Darvish	CHC	at COL
87	Jakob Junis	KC	at DET	Low strikeouts temper ranking
88	Zach Davies	MIL	vs. CIN
89	Brent Suter	MIL	vs. CIN, vs. MIA
90	Matt Boyd	DET	vs. BAL
91	Francisco Liriano	DET	vs. BAL, vs. KC
92	Steven Matz	NYM	vs. WAS
93	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	at OAK, vs. HOU
94	Trevor Richards	MIA	at MIL
95	Martin Perez	TEX	at TB, vs. SEA
96	Matt Moore	TEX	at TB
97	Alex Cobb	BAL	at DET
98	Andrew Cashner	BAL	at DET, vs. CLE
99	Junior Guerra	MIL	vs. CIN, vs. MIA
100	Andrew Heaney	LAA	vs. SF
101	Dillon Peters	MIA	at MIL
102	Chad Kuhl	PIT	vs. COL
103	Lucas Giolito	CWS	vs. HOU
104	Kyle Gibson	MIN	at TB
105	Trevor Cahill	OAK	vs. CWS
106	Mike Leake	SEA	vs. HOU
107	Marco Estrada	TOR	at NYY
108	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. WAS, at ATL
109	Marcus Stroman	TOR	at NYY
110	Jason Hammel	KC	at DET
111	Derek Holland	SF	at LAA
112	Adam Wainwright	STL	at CHC, vs. CIN
113	Ariel Miranda	SEA	vs. HOU
114	Chris Stratton	SF	at ARI
115	Joey Lucchesi	SD	at ARI
116	Josh Tomlin	CLE	at MIN
117	Erasmo Ramirez	SEA	at TEX
118	Clayton Richard	SD	at ARI
119	Bryan Mitchell	SD	vs. LAD, at ARI	14 K with 3 BB in 13.2 IP… oh wait, that's 3 K with 14 BB
120	Homer Bailey	CIN	at STL
121	Michael Wacha	STL	at CHC	Early season disappointment
122	Jose Urena	MIA	at MIL
123	Kyle Freeland	COL	at PIT
124	Sal Romano	CIN	at MIL
125	Vince Velasquez	PHI	at ATL
126	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	vs. MIA
127	Miguel Gonzalez	CWS	at OAK
128	Eric Skoglund	KC	at TOR, at DET
129	Daniel Norris	DET	vs. KC
130	Tyson Ross	SD	vs. LAD
131	Jordan Zimmermann	DET	vs. BAL
132	Kendall Graveman	OAK	vs. BOS
133	Albert Suarez	ARI	at LAA
134	Brandon Finnegan	CIN	at STL
135	Nick Tropeano	LAA	vs. BOS
136	Jon Gray	COL	vs. CHC
137	Mike Fiers	DET	vs. KC
138	Felix Hernandez	SEA	at TEX
139	Jose Quintana	CHC	at COL	He's better than this, but hasn't displayed ability to get by in Coors
140	Matt Harvey	NYM	at ATL
141	Tyler Anderson	COL	vs. CHC
142	Jarlin Garcia	MIA	at NYY
143	Ty Blach	SF	at ARI
144	Carson Fulmer	CWS	at OAK
145	Marco Gonzales	SEA	vs. HOU
146	Robbie Erlin	SD	vs. LAD
147	James Shields	CWS	vs. HOU
148	Doug Fister	TEX	vs. SEA
149	Matt Koch	ARI	vs. SD
150	Chris Tillman	BAL	vs. CLE