This article is part of our Weekly Pitcher Rankings series.
As always, remember that rotations are subject to change, so if you see something that isn't correct, assume that it was a change that has occurred since this was written and feel free to politely bring it up in the comments, and I'll let you know where the new arm slots.
For the week Aug. 11-17
AMERICAN LEAGUE
For the week Aug. 11-17
AMERICAN LEAGUE
START
1. Felix Hernandez - TOR, at DET Note: Even with tougher matchups, I have to slot him over Lester |
2. Jon Lester - at KC, at ATL Note: In the midst of his best season ever, he has the good fortune of getting traded to the league's best team |
3. David Price - SEA |
4. Yu Darvish - TB |
5. Chris Sale - at SF Note: A second team finally got more than 3 ER off of him on Aug. 1; Bumgarner has nine such outings |
6. Corey Kluber - BAL Note: Since start of 2013 - 3.16 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 9.0 K/9 and 4.6 K:BB ratio in 313 IP |
7. Max Scherzer - PIT |
8. Garrett Richards - at TEX |
9. Sonny Gray - at KC, at ATL Note: 8.4 K/9 since June 1 (7.8 for the season) |
10. Collin McHugh - MIN, at BOS Note: 3.94 ERA in his last five, but also 34 Ks and just 8 BBs in 29.7 IP |
11. Yordano Ventura - OAK, at MIN |
12. Justin Verlander - at PIT, SEA Note: 3.14 ERA in his last four with a 1.11 WHIP in 28.7 |
As always, remember that rotations are subject to change, so if you see something that isn't correct, assume that it was a change that has occurred since this was written and feel free to politely bring it up in the comments, and I'll let you know where the new arm slots.
For the week Aug. 11-17
AMERICAN LEAGUE
SIT
NATIONAL LEAGUE
CONSIDER
SIT
MLB TOP 100
For the week Aug. 11-17
AMERICAN LEAGUE
START
1. Felix Hernandez - TOR, at DET Note: Even with tougher matchups, I have to slot him over Lester |
2. Jon Lester - at KC, at ATL Note: In the midst of his best season ever, he has the good fortune of getting traded to the league's best team |
3. David Price - SEA |
4. Yu Darvish - TB |
5. Chris Sale - at SF Note: A second team finally got more than 3 ER off of him on Aug. 1; Bumgarner has nine such outings |
6. Corey Kluber - BAL Note: Since start of 2013 - 3.16 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 9.0 K/9 and 4.6 K:BB ratio in 313 IP |
7. Max Scherzer - PIT |
8. Garrett Richards - at TEX |
9. Sonny Gray - at KC, at ATL Note: 8.4 K/9 since June 1 (7.8 for the season) |
10. Collin McHugh - MIN, at BOS Note: 3.94 ERA in his last five, but also 34 Ks and just 8 BBs in 29.7 IP |
11. Yordano Ventura - OAK, at MIN |
12. Justin Verlander - at PIT, SEA Note: 3.14 ERA in his last four with a 1.11 WHIP in 28.7 IP |
13. Hisashi Iwakuma - TOR |
14. Jose Quintana - TOR |
15. Dallas Keuchel - at BOS Note: Fully back from wrist with 1.61 ERA in last four with 21 Ks and 3.5 K:BB ratio in 28 IP |
16. Marcus Stroman - at CWS |
17. Jeff Samardzija - at KC Note: Ks light with OAK, but you can't knock 3.09 ERA, 0.82 WHIP, and 6.0 K:BB in 43.7 IP |
18. Alex Cobb - NYY |
19. Scott Kazmir - at KC |
20. James Shields - OAK Note: Every time you wanna count him out, he goes on a 1.99 ERA in 40.7 IP roll |
21. Chris Archer - at TEX |
22. Jake Odorizzi - at TEX |
23. Rick Porcello - at PIT, SEA Note: K rate surging with a 24 percent rate in his last four (26 K, 2 BB in 29 IP; 1.86 ERA as well) |
24. Phil Hughes - KC Note: 5.57 ERA in his last nine, but also an 8.2 K:BB ratio; something doesn't add up |
25. Brandon McCarthy - at TB Note: As a Yankee threw 5 IP last Saturday - 2.29 ERA, 8.9 K/9, and 5.8 K:BB ratio in 35.3 IP |
26. Shane Greene - at BAL Note: I buy this more than Chase Whitley because Greene's stuff is legit |
27. Hiroki Kuroda - at TB |
28. Michael Pineda - at BAL |
29. Matt Shoemaker - PHI |
30. Drew Smyly - at TEX, NYY Note: 5.54 ERA in his last seven starts, but 3.7 K:BB ratio offers hope |
31. Anibal Sanchez - PIT Note: Left last start with a pec strain, stay tuned for news on if he even makes this start |
32. J.A. Happ - at SEA Note: Dominant in three of his last four and now gets MLB's 29th-lowest OPS vs. LHP (.639) |
33. R.A Dickey - at SEA |
34. Danny Duffy - at MIN |
35. Jason Hammel - at ATL Note: He's just not this bad. He might need to call Chris Bosio for a chat, but he's not this bad |
36. Jeremy Hellickson - at TEX, NYY |
37. Drew Hutchison - at SEA, at CWS Note: He's starting to veer from that home/road split, instead just suffering the inconsistency of youngsters |
38. Chris Capuano - at BAL, at TB |
39. Chris Young - TOR, at DET Note: I'm reluctantly starting to buy a bit because the component numbers have sharply improved |
40. Jason Vargas - OAK |
41. Brett Oberholtzer - MIN Note: First seven starts - 5.68 ERA, last nine - 3.02 ERA |
42. Chris Tillman - at CLE |
43. Trevor Bauer - ARI |
44. Kevin Gausman - at CLE |
45. James Paxton - at DET Note: Keep an eye on Saturday's start |
46. Wei-Yin Chen - NYY |
47. Miguel Gonzalez - NYY Note: 2.43 ERA in his last six starts (40.7 IP) |
48. Hector Santiago - at TEX |
49. Mark Buehrle - at CWS Note: 6.16 ERA in his last six starts, but can't ignore the 2.50 from his first 17 |
50. Scott Feldman - at BOS Note: Spot-starting a hot hand (unless he's bombed on Saturday) against a terrible opponent |
SIT
51. Jered Weaver - at TEX Note: Can't be trusted on the road |
52. C.J. Wilson - PHI Note: Has looked horrible since returning from the DL |
53. Rubby de la Rosa - HOU |
54. John Danks - TOR |
55. Jeremy Guthrie - OAK, at MIN Note: I'd maybe spot him at MIN, but I don't really want to commit to both starts |
56. Danny Salazar - BAL Note: Just when you start to trust him ... |
57. Joe Kelly - at CIN, HOU |
58. Bud Norris - NYY, at CLE |
59. Colby Lewis - TB, LAA |
60. Ubaldo Jimenez - at CLE |
61. Kyle Gibson - at HOU |
62. Brad Peacock - MIN, at BOS |
63. Nick Tepesch - TB, LAA |
64. Kevin Correia - at HOU, KC |
65. Trevor May - KC Note: Keep an eye on his MLB debut on Saturday |
66. Nick Martinez - LAA |
67. Allen Webster - HOU |
68. Yohan Pino - at HOU |
69. Hector Noesi -TOR |
70. Carlos Carrasco - BAL |
71. T.J. House - ARI |
72. Brandon Workman - at CIN |
73. Scott Carroll - at SF |
74. Miles Mikolas - TB |
75. Clay Buchholz - HOU Note: Heh, this freakin' guy |
NATIONAL LEAGUE
START
1. Adam Wainwright - at MIA, SD Note: Both teams are bottom five in OPS vs. RHP since May 1 |
2. Clayton Kershaw - MIL Note: I love Teheran, but Kershaw could out-do him in one start |
3. Julio Teheran - LAD, OAK |
4. Cole Hamels - at SF |
5. Madison Bumgarner - PHI |
6. Hyun-Jin Ryu - at ATL, MIL Note: Since DET popped him for 7 ER - 1.91 ERA, 0.85 WHIP in 33 IP |
7. Jake Arrieta - MIL, at NYM Note: Can't really hold a disaster in Coors against him |
8. Zack Greinke - at ATL |
9. Jordan Zimmermann - at NYM Note: Since June 1 - 2.29 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 76 Ks in 78.7 IP |
10. Stephen Strasburg - at NYM Note: Had a 2.70 ERA in seven starts run the last time he gave up 7 ER |
11. Homer Bailey - BOS |
12. Lance Lynn - SD Note: Last 15 starts - 2.42 ERA in 93 IP |
13. John Lackey - SD |
14. Tyson Ross - at STL Note: Has not allowed more than 2 ER in any of his last nine (1.62 ERA in 61 IP) |
15. Johnny Cueto - at COL Note: Playing it cautiously with the overall ranking, but obviously still starting him in all leagues |
16. Zack Wheeler - CHC |
17. Ian Kennedy - COL Note: Pushed his ERA up to 4.01 with a rough June, but since - 2.30 ERA in 43 IP (7 GS) |
18. Jacob deGrom - WAS, CHC |
19. Doug Fister - at NYM, PIT Note: Solid 7.0 K/9 in his last four starts |
20. Mat Latos - BOS, at COL |
21. Jesse Hahn - COL, at STL Note: Bumping up near IP cap, will they shorten some of his outings to maybe milk another 1-2 out of him? |
22. Wily Peralta - at CHC, at LAD |
23. Kyle Hendricks - MIL, at NYM Note: Emerged from Coors with an 8 IP/2 ER outing to his name |
24. Yovani Gallardo - at CHC, at LAD |
25. Kyle Lohse - at CHC Note: Bounced back nicely from disaster at STL (6 IP/1 ER vs. LAD) |
26. Wade Miley - at MIA |
27. Tanner Roark - PIT Note: First really rough outing since May 3 (2.20 ERA in 15 starts between the two) |
28. Alex Wood - OAK |
29. Ervin Santana - LAD Note: Should probably chisel another 0.20 or so off of that composite ERA by season's end |
30. Gio Gonzalez - PIT Note: A tough read of late, but it's not so dire that I'm avoiding him at all costs |
31. Nathan Eovaldi - STL Note: Hey, good Eovaldi is back (0.60 ERA in 15 IP vs. CIN in back-to-back outings) |
32. Bartolo Colon - WAS |
33. Tim Hudson - PHI |
34. Chase Anderson - at MIA Note: 2.34 ERA in his last six starts with 35 Ks in 34.7 IP |
35. Jimmy Nelson - at LAD Note: Still just the one bad start in his first five as an MLBer (2.80 ERA in the other four) |
36. Charlie Morton - at WAS |
37. Aaron Harang - LAD |
38. Tsuyoshi Wada - MIL Note: Been hit just once in five starts (vs. SD of all teams); 6 Ks in each of last three |
39. Jon Niese - at PHI, CHC Note: These two teams should help him break his funk (6.04 ERA in last five starts) |
40. Jeff Locke - DET, at WAS |
41. Tom Koehler - STL, ARI Note: He's been reliable of late with a 3.19 ERA in his last five starts |
42. Dillon Gee - WAS |
43. Ryan Vogelsong - CWS |
44. Vance Worley - at DET Note: 0.96 ERA in his last four starts, all against the NL West (sans COL) |
45. Mike Fiers - at CHC Note: Dominated Triple-A with a 2.55 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 7.6 K:BB ratio in 102.3 IP; can it translate again? |
46. Tim Lincecum - PHI |
47. Jake Peavy - CWS |
48. Francisco Liriano - at DET Note: 1.44 ERA in last four starts with 29 Ks and 4.1 K:BB ratio in 25 IP |
49. Roberto Hernandez - at ATL |
50. Shelby Miller - at MIA, SD Note: 2.41 ERA in last three, all vs. bad teams (CHC, SD, BOS); don't buy long-term, but two more duds here |
CONSIDER
51. Mike Leake - at COL Note: Neither of these Reds is above being reserved for a trip to Coors; let your standings dictate decision |
52. Alfredo Simon - at COL |
53. Edinson Volquez - DET, at WAS Note: Both matchups are tough, but has a 2.22 ERA in his last eight starts |
54. Mike Minor - LAD, OAK |
55. David Buchanan - NYM, at SF Note: 3.43 ERA in his last seven starts (6.08 in his first four) |
56. Jordan Lyles - at SD, CIN Note: How much do you need pitching? All three Rockies are likely available on your waiver wire |
57. Yohan Flande - at SD, CIN |
58. Tyler Matzek - at SD |
SIT
59. A.J. Burnett - at LAA |
60. Jarred Cosart - STL, ARI |
61. Trevor Cahill - at MIA |
62. Vidal Nuno - at CLE |
63. Dan Haren - at ATL, MIL Note: Love Haren, but he can't be trusted (5.62 ERA, 2.1 HR/9 in his last 15 starts) |
64. Justin Masterson - at MIA Note: Wait, you're not even going to get righties out now? |
65. Travis Wood - at NYM |
66. Jorge de la Rosa - CIN |
67. Franklin Morales - CIN |
68. Josh Collmenter - at CLE, at MIA |
69. Odrisamer Despaigne - COL, at STL |
70. Brad Hand - ARI |
71. Eric Stults - at STL |
72. Edwin Jackson - MIL |
73. Kyle Kendrick - at SF |
74. Brad Penny - ARI |
75. Sean O'Sullivan - at LAA |
MLB TOP 100
1. Felix Hernandez - TOR, at DET Note: Even with tougher matchups, I have to slot him over Lester |
2. Adam Wainwright - at MIA, SD Note: Both teams are bottom five in OPS vs. RHP since May 1 |
3. Clayton Kershaw - MIL Note: I love Teheran, but Kershaw could out-do him in one start |
4. Julio Teheran - LAD, OAK |
5. Jon Lester - at KC, at ATL Note: In the midst of his best season ever, he has the good fortune of getting traded to the league's best team |
6. David Price - SEA |
7. Yu Darvish - TB |
8. Chris Sale - at SF Note: A second team finally got more than 3 ER off of him on Aug. 1; Bumgarner has nine such outings |
9. Corey Kluber - BAL Note: Since start of 2013 - 3.16 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 9.0 K/9, and 4.6 K:BB ratio in 313 IP |
10. Max Scherzer - PIT |
11. Cole Hamels - at SF |
12. Madison Bumgarner - PHI |
13. Hyun-Jin Ryu - at ATL, MIL Note: Since DET popped him for 7 ER - 1.91 ERA, 0.85 WHIP in 33 IP |
14. Jake Arrieta - MIL, at NYM Note: Can't really hold a disaster in Coors against him |
15. Zack Greinke - at ATL |
16. Garrett Richards - at TEX |
17. Sonny Gray - at KC, at ATL Note: 8.4 K/9 since June 1 (7.8 for the season) |
18. Collin McHugh - MIN, at BOS Note: 3.94 ERA in his last five, but also 34 Ks and just 8 BBs in 29.7 IP |
19. Yordano Ventura - OAK, at MIN |
20. Justin Verlander - at PIT, SEA Note: 3.14 ERA in his last four with a 1.11 WHIP in 28.7 IP |
21. Hisashi Iwakuma - TOR |
22. Jordan Zimmermann - at NYM Note: Since June 1 - 2.29 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 76 Ks in 78.7 IP |
23. Stephen Strasburg - at NYM Note: Had a 2.70 ERA in seven starts run the last time he gave up 7 ER |
24. Homer Bailey - BOS |
25. Lance Lynn - SD Note: Last 15 starts - 2.42 ERA in 93 IP |
26. Jose Quintana - TOR |
27. Dallas Keuchel - at BOS Note: Fully back from wrist with 1.61 ERA in last four with 21 Ks and 3.5 K:BB ratio in 28 IP |
28. Marcus Stroman - at CWS |
29. John Lackey - SD |
30. Tyson Ross - at STL Note: Has not allowed more than 2 ER in any of his last nine (1.62 ERA in 61 IP) |
31. Johnny Cueto - at COL Note: Playing it cautiously with the overall ranking, but obviously still starting him in all leagues |
32. Zack Wheeler - CHC |
33. Ian Kennedy - COL Note: Pushed his ERA up to 4.01 with a rough June, but since - 2.30 ERA in 43 IP (7 GS) |
34. Jacob deGrom - WAS, CHC |
35. Doug Fister - at NYM, PIT Note: Solid 7.0 K/9 in his last four starts |
36. Mat Latos - BOS, at COL |
37. Jesse Hahn - COL, at STL Note: Bumping up near IP cap, will they shorten some of his outings to maybe milk another 1-2 out of him? |
38. Wily Peralta - at CHC, at LAD |
39. Kyle Hendricks - MIL, at NYM Note: Emerged from Coors with an 8 IP/2 ER outing to his name |
40. Yovani Gallardo - at CHC, at LAD |
41. Jeff Samardzija - at KC Note: Ks light with OAK, but you can't knock 3.09 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 6.0 K:BB in 43.7 IP |
42. Alex Cobb - NYY |
43. Scott Kazmir - at KC |
44. James Shields - OAK Note: Every time you wanna count him out, he goes on a 1.99 ERA in 40.7 IP roll |
45. Chris Archer - at TEX |
46. Jake Odorizzi - at TEX |
47. Rick Porcello - at PIT, SEA Note: K rate surging with a 24-percent rate in his last four (26 Ks, 2 BBs in 29 IP; 1.86 ERA as well) |
48. Phil Hughes - KC Note: 5.57 ERA in his last nine, but also an 8.2 K:BB ratio; something doesn't add up |
49. Brandon McCarthy - at TB Note: As a Yankee threw 5 IP last Saturday - 2.29 ERA, 8.9 K/9, and 5.8 K:BB ratio in 35.3 IP |
50. Kyle Lohse - at CHC Note: Bounced back nicely from disaster at STL (6 IP/1 ER vs. LAD) |
51. Wade Miley - at MIA |
52. Tanner Roark - PIT Note: First really rough outing since May 3 (2.20 ERA in 15 starts between the two) |
53. Shane Greene - at BAL Note: I buy this more than Chase Whitley because Greene's stuff is legit |
54. Hiroki Kuroda - at TB |
55. Michael Pineda - at BAL |
56. Matt Shoemaker - PHI |
57. Drew Smyly - at TEX, NYY Note: 5.54 ERA in his last seven starts, but 3.7 K:BB ratio offers hope |
58. Alex Wood - OAK |
59. Ervin Santana - LAD Note: Should probably chisel another 0.20 or so off of that composite ERA by season's end |
60. Gio Gonzalez - PIT Note: A tough read of late, but it's not so dire that I'm avoiding him at all costs |
61. Nathan Eovaldi - STL Note: Hey, good Eovaldi is back (0.60 ERA in 15 IP vs. CIN in back-to-back outings) |
62. Bartolo Colon - WAS |
63. Tim Hudson - PHI |
64. Anibal Sanchez - PIT Note: Left last start with a pec strain, stay tuned for news on if he even makes this start |
65. J.A. Happ - at SEA Note: Dominant in three of his last four and now gets MLB's 29th-lowest OPS vs. LHP (.639) |
66. Chase Anderson - at MIA Note: 2.34 ERA in his last six starts with 35 Ks in 34.7 IP |
67. Jimmy Nelson - at LAD Note: Still just the one bad start in his first five as an MLBer (2.80 ERA in the other four) |
68. Charlie Morton - at WAS |
69. Aaron Harang - LAD |
70. Tsuyoshi Wada - MIL Note: Been hit just once in five starts (vs. SD of all teams); 6 Ks in each of last three |
71. R.A Dickey - at SEA |
72. Danny Duffy - at MIN |
73. Jason Hammel - at ATL Note: He's just not this bad. He might need to call Chris Bosio for a chat, but he's not this bad |
74. Jeremy Hellickson - at TEX, NYY |
75. Drew Hutchison - at SEA, at CWS Note: He's starting to veer from that home/road split, instead just suffering the inconsistency of youngsters |
76. Chris Capuano - at BAL, at TB |
77. Chris Young - TOR, at DET Note: I'm reluctantly starting to buy a bit because the component numbers have sharply improved |
78. Jon Niese - at PHI, CHC Note: These two teams should help him break his funk (6.04 ERA in last five starts) |
79. Jeff Locke - DET, at WAS |
80. Tom Koehler - STL, ARI Note: He's been reliable of late with a 3.19 ERA in his last five starts |
81. Dillon Gee - WAS |
82. Ryan Vogelsong - CWS |
83. Jason Vargas - OAK |
84. Brett Oberholtzer - MIN Note: First seven starts - 5.68 ERA, last nine - 3.02 ERA |
85. Chris Tillman - at CLE |
86. Trevor Bauer - ARI |
87. Kevin Gausman - at CLE |
88. James Paxton - at DET Note: Keep an eye on Saturday's start |
89. Wei-Yin Chen - NYY |
90. Vance Worley - at DET Note: 0.96 ERA in his last four starts, all against the NL West (sans COL) |
91. Mike Fiers - at CHC Note: Dominated Triple-A with a 2.55 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 7.6 K:BB ratio in 102.3 IP; can it translate again? |
92. Tim Lincecum - PHI |
93. Jake Peavy - CWS |
94. Francisco Liriano - at DET Note: 1.44 ERA in his last four starts with 29 Ks and 4.1 K:BB ratio in 25 IP |
95. Roberto Hernandez - at ATL |
96. Shelby Miller - at MIA, SD Note: 2.41 ERA in his last three, all vs. bad teams (CHC, SD, BOS); don't buy long-term, but two more duds here |
97. Miguel Gonzalez - NYY Note: 2.43 ERA in his last six starts (40.7 IP) |
98. Hector Santiago - at TEX |
99. Mark Buehrle - at CWS Note: 6.16 ERA in his last six starts, but can't ignore the 2.50 from his first 17 |
100. Scott Feldman - at BOS Note: Spot-starting a hot hand (unless he's bombed on Saturday) against a terrible opponent |