Readers often ask about my own pitching staffs in the various fantasy leagues in which I compete. So, having just recently completed this year's auction in my primary or "home" league, I thought I might take this opportunity to discuss the pitching staff with which I will go to war. I will add that I typically focus very heavily on a few arms, so many of these guys pitch on several of my teams.

A little background:

With 16 teams, this is a mixed league keeper with deep rosters (33 players per team with no minor league or injured list slots). Standard scoring categories, five hitting and five pitching, with a lineup consisting of 13 hitters and nine pitchers (with a minimum of five qualified starting pitchers and two qualified relief pitchers).

So, let's look at my pitching staff, and discuss my thoughts on who and why:

• SP1 Kodai Senga – It's a keeper league, and I am fairly happy with the nucleus of my starting rotation, but I felt I needed to keep one "pricey" top-of-the-rotation starter, and Senga was the guy. He just keeps getting better as he progresses, and by 2023 season's end I felt he was top 10 or at least very close. He missed most of 2024 so I watched his first 2025 start, and although he served up a two-run home run and ended up losing 4-2, he did punch out eight over five innings and looked good doing it. Senga's calling card is a virtually unhittable fork ball, and as long as he stays around the plate, that pitch is always in the arsenal.
• SP2 Dylan Cease– What can I say about Cease? He has a ceiling so high you might need oxygen just watching him. Try 224 strikeouts in just 189 innings last year. Unfortunately, he served up too many hard-hit balls, and too many home runs – many of them at the most inopportune times. It seems like he can be cruising then just seems to lose concentration, leading to a major loss of location. He's my kind of pitcher – huge upside, yet to be fully realized. He's not for the faint of heart, but if he ever puts it all together over a full season, you can stamp "Cy Young Award Winner" in his passport. Is this the year?
• SP3 MacKenzie Gore – Here's yet another Kid's List alumni. I mean it stands to reason. I first saw Gore when he was in high school, and I immediately decided he was destined to pitch for me. I have had to be patient. He was selected in the first round in the 2017 draft out of high school, and he was making good progress before the injuries set in. He can still struggle with command of his off-speed offerings at times, but when he's around the zone, with his stuff, that's all he needs (13 strike outs in six innings in his first 2025 start). His second start was more challenging, but we all know what he's got in the tank.
• SP4 Kevin Gausman– I thought Gausman was being undervalued, so I hopped on board. Hey, what else is new. It's amazing he is now 34-years-old, and I have followed him through thick and thin since he came out of LSU as a highly touted arm in 2012. His auction sell price was more of a tier 3 or tier 4 pitcher, and I see his potential as that of a tier 2. He had some shoulder woes in spring 2024, and maybe that scared off a few people, but he made 31 starts accumulating 181 innings. However, his fastball velocity was all over the place, his strikeout rate plummeted, and his splitter, the pitch he is known for, was a bit inconsistent. I watched his first start against a heavy-hitting Baltimore team, and he looked pretty solid, so I'm hoping he can provide a lot of solid innings.
• SP5 Bryan Woo – Wooo woooooo, jump on this train. Next, I have an SP5 I hope could someday be capable of being a SP1 or SP2. So, mark me down as biased. His stuff is just okay, albeit he throws a little bit of everything at opposing hitters. Woo's calling card is mound presence, coupled with solid command of his entire repertoire. This guy wants to win. He experienced some right forearm soreness last year, but he still managed to post numbers far beyond most expectations (he was 9-3 with a 2.89 ERA and an impressive 0.90 WHIP). His strikeout rate is mediocre, if he has a weakness, but he limits hard contact, doesn't clutter the base paths with walks, and he keeps the ball in the park.
• SP6 Yu Darvish – Darvish is another from my all-disappointment team in 2023, but he bounced back a bit in 2024. He just never seemed to get into a groove in 2023, finishing 8-10 with a 4.56 ERA, and perhaps most disheartening, a 1.30 WHIP. He is so much fun to watch. With different speeds and movement, he has about a dozen pitches in his arsenal. Typically, he will find four or five of those that are working that day. This year, he was shut down in the spring with elbow issues. At age 38 that is scary, but he appears to be rounding into shape, so he just has to build up and get back in sync. Probably early May.
• SP7 Michael Soroka– I loved this guy when he popped onto the scene, and I still feel that way. He was a beast in 2019, but then the injuries set in. Interestingly, the injuries have primarily been to his legs. He missed late 2020-2022 with a torn Achilles (twice), and there have also been hamstring issues. Not surprisingly, leg issues can translate to mechanical problems and arm woes. He already came out of his first 2025 start with a biceps cramp. Will it ever end? You know me, the eternal optimist. I'm banking on a return to good health and great form.
• RP1 Andres Munoz – Have you ever watched a pitcher who looked like every hitter was a potential strikeout? Here's your guy! Munoz has an electric power arm, and his command continues to improve. As long as he stays in or close to the strike zone he is pretty much unhittable, His ascent to almost a full time closer role was slowed by the depth of the Mariners bullpen, most notably Paul Sewald, but he was dealt to Arizona, opening the door for Munoz. I'm buying.
• RP2 Felix Bautista – I was projecting Bautista as a top tier closer a couple years ago, and in 2023 he was a monster. Then, he missed all of 2024 after he blew his arm out. He's working his way back from Tommy John surgery, and the rust is painfully evident. He has successfully closed out game after game for Baltimore, and I feel like he is a top tier closer when healthy and a bullpen anchor for the foreseeable future. He has begun 2025 struggling with command, but his struggles are expected to be short term.
• RP3 Liam Hendriks – I hyped Liam Hendriks as my pick to close in Boston, and I have been off base. Chapman has been closing, while Hendriks has been hurt. Both have good stuff, and while Chapman does tend to struggle a bit more with command, they are competent closers. I tried to get both on draft day to cover myself, and that looks like a good plan so far. Either his manager reads this column, or Hendriks' suitability to closing isn't much of a secret. I still think we could see him step in if Chapman should stumble, so stay tuned.
• FLEX – this could be a SP7/8 or RP3/4 – Miles Mikolas, Tomoyuki Sugano, Cade Povich, Matt Brash, and Aroldis Chapman – This is the "bench strength" of my mound corps, so keeping the regulars on the mound is obviously a big key to my season. By the end of the draft, pitching was a veritable wasteland, and I filled in with who was available. For the most part these aren't bad pitchers, I just don't know how fantasy relevant they will be. I'm kind of counting on both Soroka and Mikolas coming back to form, while Sugano is my super sleeper. And, I like Brash (great arm) and Chapman as bullpen insurance policies. They could figure into the saves mix for their respective teams if all the pieces fall into place. Time will tell.

Some Notable Rotation Ramblings:

• What do Paul Skenes, Jared Jones, and Bubba Chandler all have in common? Well, a few things. They are all well-regarded starting pitchers, and they all pitch in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. But there is one more key factor. All of them list Brent Strom as their pitching coach, and that bumps them up a level.
• The Yankees might be skittish about a season without Gerrit Cole and Luis Gil, but if your team is going to hit nine home runs and score 20 runs, a newcomer like Max Fried may feel pretty relaxed. They won't score like that every day (I don't think), but the offense is explosive so this is a good place to shop for wins.
• Everyone (including me) was tagging Roki Sasaki as this season's Rookie of the Year. Instead, he has been pretty shaky in his first couple starts for the Dodgers. He has walked an ugly nine while recording just 14 outs, and the pitches have generally not been close. He's young and under pressure. Looks like the yips.
• I've been patiently waiting for a former star to return to form after he missed time with a long-term injury. I'm sure not ready to write him off, but Walker Buehler should be ready to show us his former self. It's pretty much all command. The velocity and movement are okay, but he misses his spots too often.

Endgame Odyssey:

This info can be useful if a team's primary closer gets injured. Sometimes things are just baffling, but there is usually an underlying plan. Blake Treinen logged a save for the Dodgers after lefty Tanner Scott had pitched the eighth. I'm already thinking the incredibly deep Dodgers might prefer a committee. In San Diego, Robert Suarez was passed over having saved games the previous two days. Adrian Morejon got the call (he converted), but there were lefties coming up, so it could have been a matchup thing. There does appear to be a pecking order evolving in Toronto. Jeff Hoffman looks like the primary guy, and when he wasn't available, Yimi Garcia got the call. The Pirates David Bednar had a couple pretty good seasons, but last year the wheels kind of fell off, but he still got save chances because they really didn't have anybody better. This year, early on, Bednar has been even worse, but they still don't have many alternatives. Despite that, he bought a ticket to Triple-A. Next up? Maybe it's Justin Lawrence or maybe Colin Holderman? A.J. Puk appears to be emerging as the first choice for closing in Arizona. He's not ideal but deserves the chance. And one more team playing musical chairs in the bullpen, the Tigers, who don't expect regular closer Alex Lange back until June, have given a shot to a couple guys. Beau Brieske blew his save chance, while veteran Tommy Kahnle converted his. That probably makes Kahnle the favorite for saves, at least over the short term.

As I look over my closer notes, it may be time to review some of the bullpen scenarios in depth. We'll plan on looking at the American League next week.