Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Bauer Spins His Way to the Top

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Updated on April 28, 2019 11:04PM EST

We knew coming into the season there would be weeks with fewer than normal two-start options; this is such a week. Blame it on two-game interleague sets as 11 clubs have a pair of off days. There's some decent double-dippers at the top, the problem is a paucity of candidates to pitch and ditch.

The weekend weather is mostly good, save for possible snow in the Midwest, so there's likely some postponements and shuffling of probable pitchers. Don't worry, we have it covered with the usual Sunday night update, reflecting the updated plans.

For the week of April 29 - May 5

UPDATED: Sunday April 28, 11:00 PM ET

MLB

RANK	PITCHER	TM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Trevor Bauer	CLE	at MIA, vs. SEA	Two six walk games only blemish on early ledger
2	Luis Castillo	CIN	at NYM, vs. SF	Early favorite for fantasy MVP
3	Justin Verlander	HOU	at MIN, at LAA	Back in groove after early April blip
4	Patrick Corbin	WAS	vs. STL, at PHI	Best Nats pitcher so far on a staff with Max and Stras
5	Blake Snell	TB	at KC, at BAL	On the road for two, but cake matchups
6	Mike Soroka	ATL	vs. SD, at MIA	Walks high, but otherwise dominant, great pair to continue roll
7	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIL	A pair of 7 IP efforts calming Nervous Nellies
8	Chris Paddack	SD	at ATL, vs. LAD	Hasn't lost a step from eye-opening spring
9	Kenta Maeda	LAD

For the week of April 29 - May 5

UPDATED: Sunday April 28, 11:00 PM ET

MLB

RANK	PITCHER	TM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Trevor Bauer	CLE	at MIA, vs. SEA	Two six walk games only blemish on early ledger
2	Luis Castillo	CIN	at NYM, vs. SF	Early favorite for fantasy MVP
3	Justin Verlander	HOU	at MIN, at LAA	Back in groove after early April blip
4	Patrick Corbin	WAS	vs. STL, at PHI	Best Nats pitcher so far on a staff with Max and Stras
5	Blake Snell	TB	at KC, at BAL	On the road for two, but cake matchups
6	Mike Soroka	ATL	vs. SD, at MIA	Walks high, but otherwise dominant, great pair to continue roll
7	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIL	A pair of 7 IP efforts calming Nervous Nellies
8	Chris Paddack	SD	at ATL, vs. LAD	Hasn't lost a step from eye-opening spring
9	Kenta Maeda	LAD	at SF, at SD	Walks remain uncharacteristically high
10	Max Scherzer	WAS	vs. STL
11	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. SD, at MIA	If you don't trust Teheran here, drop him
12	Chris Sale	BOS	at CWS
13	Tanner Roark	CIN	at NYM, vs. SF	Big dropoff, but decent setup for a double dip
14	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. CIN	Twitter has begun the countdown until he's put on the IL
15	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	vs. OAK, at CWS	Undefeated since he learned a new pitch from Dustin Pedroia
16	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	vs. CIN
17	James Paxton	NYY	vs. MIN
18	Aaron Nola	PHI	vs. DET	Underlying metrics back where they belong
19	Corey Kluber	CLE	at MIA
20	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	at SD
21	David Price	BOS	at CWS	Safe to say he's fine, seasonal stats back to normal
22	Jose Quintana	CHC	vs. STL
23	Joe Musgrove	PIT	vs. OAK
24	Kevin Gausman	ATL	at MIA
25	Cole Hamels	CHC	at SEA
26	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	vs. SD
27	Madison Bumgarner	SF	vs. LAD
28	Stephen Strasburg	WAS	vs. STL
29	Hyun-Jin Ryu	LAD	at SF
30	Walker Buehler	LAD	at SF	Slow spring resulting in low whiffs, they'll come
31	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	vs. COL, vs. NYM
32	Jeff Samardzija	SF	vs. LAD, at CIN
33	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at MIN	Still dominant, but homers and walks high
34	Rich Hill	LAD	at SD
35	Marco Gonzales	SEA	vs. CHC	Don't be fooled by 5-0 record, 4.40 xFIP and 4.48 SIERA more telling
36	Jose Berrios	MIN	vs. HOU
37	Max Fried	ATL	vs. SD	14 K over last 11.2 IP, a great sign
38	Tyler Glasnow	TB	at BAL
39	Jake Arrieta	PHI	vs. WAS
40	Zack Greinke	ARI	vs. NYY	Recovered from early season homer onslaught
41	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. TB, at DET	3.77 xFIP and 3.99 SIERA suggest actual 5.57 ERA will improve
42	Matthew Boyd	DET	vs. KC
43	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	vs. SEA
44	Caleb Smith	MIA	vs. CLE	Continues to dazzle in obscurity
45	Zach Eflin	PHI	vs. WAS
46	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. TOR
47	German Marquez	COL	at MIL, vs. ARI	5.29/1.71 at home, .41/.55 on the road
48	J.A. Happ	NYY	vs. MIN
49	Trevor Richards	MIA	vs. ATL
50	Clay Buchholz	TOR	at LAA, at TEX
51	Joey Lucchesi	SD	vs. LAD
52	Matt Strahm	SD	at ATL	Getting job done as a starter, big test this week
53	Jon Lester	CHC	at SEA	Good to see strikeouts up
54	Michael Pineda	MIN	vs. HOU, at NYY	Velo still improving, but rough set on the docket
55	Carlos Rodon	CWS	vs. BAL	Continues to be maddeningly inconsistent
56	Trevor Williams	PIT	vs. OAK
57	Nick Margevicius	SD	at ATL, vs. LAD
58	Sonny Gray	CIN	vs. SF
59	John Means	BAL	at CWS, vs. TB	Intriguing but needs to show he can be effective as a starter
60	Pablo Lopez	MIA	vs. ATL
61	Domingo German	NYY	vs. MIN
62	Mike Minor	TEX	vs. TOR
63	Jerad Eickhoff	PHI	vs. WAS	Early returns positive
64	Charlie Morton	TB	at KC
65	Collin McHugh	HOU	at MIN
66	Freddy Peralta	MIL	vs. NYM	5 HR in 17.2 IP
67	Brad Keller	KC	vs. TB, at DET	Nice matchups but low K's temper ranking
68	Jack Flaherty	STL	at CHC	7 HR in 24 IP
69	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. STL
70	Vince Velasquez	PHI	vs. DET
71	Anthony DeSclafani	CIN	at NYM
72	Yu Darvish	CHC	vs. STL
73	Jose Urena	MIA	vs. ATL
74	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	at ARI
75	Kyle Freeland	COL	at MIL, vs. ARI
76	Miles Mikolas	STL	at WAS
77	Rick Porcello	BOS	vs. OAK, at CWS	Lack of control is baffling
78	Michael Wacha	STL	at WAS, at CHC
79	Felix Pena	LAA	vs. TOR
80	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at TEX
81	Ivan Nova	CWS	vs. BAL, vs. BOS
82	Anibal Sanchez	WAS	vs. STL, at PHI
83	Chase Anderson	MIL	vs. COL
84	Spencer Turnbull	DET	at PHI, vs. KC
85	Trevor Cahill	LAA	vs. HOU
86	Tyler Mahle	CIN	at NYM
87	Marcus Stroman	TOR	at LAA
88	Dereck Rodriguez	SF	at CIN
89	Yusei Kikuchi	SEA	at CLE
90	Jordan Lyles	PIT	at TEX, vs. OAK
91	Shane Bieber	CLE	vs. SEA
92	Jon Gray	COL	at MIL
93	Zach Davies	MIL	vs. COL, vs. NYM
94	Drew Pomeranz	SF	vs. LAD
95	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	vs. CLE
96	Brad Peacock	HOU	at MIN
97	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	vs. HOU, at NYY
98	Lucas Giolito	CWS	vs. BOS
99	Danny Duffy	KC	vs. TB
100	Derek Holland	SF	at CIN
101	Antonio Senzatela	COL	at MIL
102	Jeremy Hellickson	WAS	at PHI
103	Jalen Beeks	TB	at KC, at BAL
104	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	vs. BOS
105	Merrill Kelly	ARI	vs. NYY, at COL
106	Wade Miley	HOU	at LAA
107	Aaron Sanchez	TOR	at LAA
108	Griffin Canning	LAA	vs. TOR
109	CC Sabathia	NYY	at ARI
110	Felix Hernandez	SEA	vs. CHC
111	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. TB
112	Ryne Stanek	TB	at KC
113	Brandon Woodruff	MIL	vs. COL
114	Jason Vargas	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIL
115	Frankie Montas	OAK	at BOS, at PIT
116	Steven Matz	NYM	at MIL
117	Erik Swanson	SEA	at CLE
118	Robbie Ray	ARI	at COL
119	Dan Straily	BAL	vs. TB
120	Lance Lynn	TEX	vs. TOR
121	Hector Velazquez	BOS	vs. OAK
122	Dakota Hudson	STL	at WAS
123	Tyson Ross	DET	at PHI
124	Eric Lauer	SD	at ATL
125	Andrew Cashner	BAL	at CWS
126	Daniel Norris	DET	vs. KC
127	Matt Harvey	LAA	vs. HOU
128	Brett Anderson	OAK	at PIT
129	Mike Leake	SEA	at CLE
130	David Hess	BAL	at CWS
131	Mike Fiers	OAK	at BOS
132	Drew Smyly	TEX	vs. TOR
133	Luke Weaver	ARI	at COL
134	Adam Wainwright	STL	at WAS, at CHC
135	Tyler Anderson	COL	vs. ARI
136	Thomas Pannone	TOR	at TEX
137	Kyle Gibson	MIN	at NYY
138	Martin Perez	MIN	vs. HOU
139	Jorge Lopez	KC	vs. TB
140	Homer Bailey	KC	at DET
141	Manny Banuelos	CWS	vs. BAL, vs. BOS
142	Aaron Brooks	OAK	at BOS, at PIT
143	Trent Thornton	TOR	at TEX
144	Adrian Sampson	TEX	vs. PIT
145	Shelby Miller	TEX	vs. PIT

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Trevor Bauer	CLE	at MIA, vs. SEA	Two six walk games only blemish on early ledger
2	Justin Verlander	HOU	at MIN, at LAA	Back in groove after early April blip
3	Blake Snell	TB	at KC, at BAL	On the road for two, but cake matchups
4	Chris Sale	BOS	at CWS
5	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	vs. OAK, at CWS	Undefeated since he learned a new pitch from Dustin Pedroia
6	James Paxton	NYY	vs. MIN
7	Corey Kluber	CLE	at MIA
8	David Price	BOS	at CWS	Safe to say he's fine, seasonal stats back to normal
9	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at MIN	Still dominant, but homers and walks high
10	Marco Gonzales	SEA	vs. CHC	Don't be fooled by 5-0 record, 4.40 xFIP and 4.48 SIERA more telling
11	Jose Berrios	MIN	vs. HOU
12	Tyler Glasnow	TB	at BAL
13	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. TB, at DET	3.77 xFIP and 3.99 SIERA suggest actual 5.57 ERA will improve
14	Matthew Boyd	DET	vs. KC
15	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	vs. SEA
16	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. TOR
17	J.A. Happ	NYY	vs. MIN
18	Clay Buchholz	TOR	at LAA, at TEX
19	Michael Pineda	MIN	vs. HOU, at NYY	Velo still improving, but rough set on the docket
20	Carlos Rodon	CWS	vs. BAL	Continues to be maddeningly inconsistent
21	John Means	BAL	at CWS, vs. TB	Intriguing but needs to show he can be effective as a starter
22	Domingo German	NYY	vs. MIN
23	Mike Minor	TEX	vs. TOR
24	Charlie Morton	TB	at KC
25	Collin McHugh	HOU	at MIN
26	Brad Keller	KC	vs. TB, at DET	Nice matchups but low K's temper ranking
27	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	at ARI
28	Rick Porcello	BOS	vs. OAK, at CWS	Lack of control is baffling
29	Felix Pena	LAA	vs. TOR
30	Ivan Nova	CWS	vs. BAL, vs. BOS
31	Spencer Turnbull	DET	at PHI, vs. KC
32	Trevor Cahill	LAA	vs. HOU
33	Marcus Stroman	TOR	at LAA
34	Yusei Kikuchi	SEA	at CLE
35	Shane Bieber	CLE	vs. SEA
36	Brad Peacock	HOU	at MIN
37	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	vs. HOU, at NYY
38	Lucas Giolito	CWS	vs. BOS
39	Danny Duffy	KC	vs. TB
40	Jalen Beeks	TB	at KC, at BAL
41	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	vs. BOS
42	Wade Miley	HOU	at LAA
43	Aaron Sanchez	TOR	at LAA
44	Griffin Canning	LAA	vs. TOR
45	CC Sabathia	NYY	at ARI
46	Felix Hernandez	SEA	vs. CHC
47	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. TB
48	Ryne Stanek	TB	at KC
49	Frankie Montas	OAK	at BOS, at PIT
50	Erik Swanson	SEA	at CLE
51	Dan Straily	BAL	vs. TB
52	Lance Lynn	TEX	vs. TOR
53	Hector Velazquez	BOS	vs. OAK
54	Tyson Ross	DET	at PHI
55	Andrew Cashner	BAL	at CWS
56	Daniel Norris	DET	vs. KC
57	Matt Harvey	LAA	vs. HOU
58	Brett Anderson	OAK	at PIT
59	Mike Leake	SEA	at CLE
60	David Hess	BAL	at CWS
61	Mike Fiers	OAK	at BOS
62	Drew Smyly	TEX	vs. TOR
63	Thomas Pannone	TOR	at TEX
64	Kyle Gibson	MIN	at NYY
65	Martin Perez	MIN	vs. HOU
66	Jorge Lopez	KC	vs. TB
67	Homer Bailey	KC	at DET
68	Manny Banuelos	CWS	vs. BAL, vs. BOS
69	Aaron Brooks	OAK	at BOS, at PIT
70	Trent Thornton	TOR	at TEX
71	Adrian Sampson	TEX	vs. PIT
72	Shelby Miller	TEX	vs. PIT

NATIONAL LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Luis Castillo	CIN	at NYM, vs. SF	Early favorite for fantasy MVP
2	Patrick Corbin	WAS	vs. STL, at PHI	Best Nats pitcher so far on a staff with Max and Stras
3	Mike Soroka	ATL	vs. SD, at MIA	Walks high, but otherwise dominant, great pair to continue roll
4	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIL	A pair of 7 IP efforts calming Nervous Nellies
5	Chris Paddack	SD	at ATL, vs. LAD	Hasn't lost a step from eye-opening spring
6	Kenta Maeda	LAD	at SF, at SD	Walks remain uncharacteristically high
7	Max Scherzer	WAS	vs. STL
8	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. SD, at MIA	If you don't trust Teheran here, drop him
9	Tanner Roark	CIN	at NYM, vs. SF	Big dropoff, but decent setup for a double dip
10	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. CIN	Twitter has begun the countdown until he's put on the IL
11	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	vs. CIN
12	Aaron Nola	PHI	vs. DET	Underlying metrics back where they belong
13	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	at SD
14	Jose Quintana	CHC	vs. STL
15	Joe Musgrove	PIT	vs. OAK
16	Kevin Gausman	ATL	at MIA
17	Cole Hamels	CHC	at SEA
18	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	vs. SD
19	Madison Bumgarner	SF	vs. LAD
20	Stephen Strasburg	WAS	vs. STL
21	Hyun-Jin Ryu	LAD	at SF
22	Walker Buehler	LAD	at SF	Slow spring resulting in low whiffs, they'll come
23	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	vs. COL, vs. NYM
24	Jeff Samardzija	SF	vs. LAD, at CIN
25	Rich Hill	LAD	at SD
26	Max Fried	ATL	vs. SD	14 K over last 11.2 IP, a great sign
27	Jake Arrieta	PHI	vs. WAS
28	Zack Greinke	ARI	vs. NYY	Recovered from early season homer onslaught
29	Caleb Smith	MIA	vs. CLE	Continues to dazzle in obscurity
30	Zach Eflin	PHI	vs. WAS
31	German Marquez	COL	at MIL, vs. ARI	5.29/1.71 at home, .41/.55 on the road
32	Trevor Richards	MIA	vs. ATL
33	Joey Lucchesi	SD	vs. LAD
34	Matt Strahm	SD	at ATL	Getting job done as a starter, big test this week
35	Jon Lester	CHC	at SEA	Good to see strikeouts up
36	Trevor Williams	PIT	vs. OAK
37	Nick Margevicius	SD	at ATL, vs. LAD
38	Sonny Gray	CIN	vs. SF
39	Pablo Lopez	MIA	vs. ATL
40	Jerad Eickhoff	PHI	vs. WAS	Early returns positive
41	Freddy Peralta	MIL	vs. NYM	5 HR in 17.2 IP
42	Jack Flaherty	STL	at CHC	7 HR in 24 IP
43	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. STL
44	Vince Velasquez	PHI	vs. DET
45	Anthony DeSclafani	CIN	at NYM
46	Yu Darvish	CHC	vs. STL
47	Jose Urena	MIA	vs. ATL
48	Kyle Freeland	COL	at MIL, vs. ARI
49	Miles Mikolas	STL	at WAS
50	Michael Wacha	STL	at WAS, at CHC
51	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at TEX
52	Anibal Sanchez	WAS	vs. STL, at PHI
53	Chase Anderson	MIL	vs. COL
54	Tyler Mahle	CIN	at NYM
55	Dereck Rodriguez	SF	at CIN
56	Jordan Lyles	PIT	at TEX, vs. OAK
57	Jon Gray	COL	at MIL
58	Zach Davies	MIL	vs. COL, vs. NYM
59	Drew Pomeranz	SF	vs. LAD
60	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	vs. CLE
61	Derek Holland	SF	at CIN
62	Antonio Senzatela	COL	at MIL
63	Jeremy Hellickson	WAS	at PHI
64	Merrill Kelly	ARI	vs. NYY, at COL
65	Brandon Woodruff	MIL	vs. COL
66	Jason Vargas	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIL
67	Steven Matz	NYM	at MIL
68	Robbie Ray	ARI	at COL
69	Dakota Hudson	STL	at WAS
70	Eric Lauer	SD	at ATL
71	Luke Weaver	ARI	at COL
72	Adam Wainwright	STL	at WAS, at CHC
73	Tyler Anderson	COL	vs. ARI