Weekly Pitcher Rankings: The Week of Oh-two-ni

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Updated on May 15, 2023 1:30AM EST

With the Angels protecting Shohei Ohtani for most of his pitching career, seeing him twice in a week has been a rare treat. One of the changes new Halos manager Phil Nevin made was going with a more conventional five-man rotation, availing the chance to start Ohtani twice in a week.

Nevin's decision, along with how well Ohtani has pitched (especially relative to the field), makes this the first year it is legitimate to use the two-way phenom as a pitcher in leagues with the choice of one or the other. As well as Ohtani has pitched in the past, his contributions with the bat, at least in a vacuum, merited the batter being active. Of course, the ultimate decision comes down to team needs, but in 2023, it can be argued Ohtani is more useful as a pitcher.

Please direct specific rotation questions to the Probable Pitchers page. I'm happy to address all rankings queries below.

Quick note about the update: Some of the inputs were refined since the initial rankings, so there is more movement than usual.

UPDATED Monday May 15 1:30 AM ET

Week of May 15-21

Mixed

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comments
1	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	@BAL, MIN	Rare double dip
2	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	MIN, @STL	Tempting to increase innings expectations
3	Kevin Gausman	TOR	NYY, BAL
4	Framber Valdez	HOU	CHC, OAK
5	Justin Verlander	NYM	TB, CLE
6

Please direct specific rotation questions to the Probable Pitchers page. I'm happy to address all rankings queries below.

Quick note about the update: Some of the inputs were refined since the initial rankings, so there is more movement than usual.

UPDATED Monday May 15 1:30 AM ET

Week of May 15-21

Mixed

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comments	MIX12	MIX15
1	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	@BAL, MIN	Rare double dip
2	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	MIN, @STL	Tempting to increase innings expectations
3	Kevin Gausman	TOR	NYY, BAL
4	Framber Valdez	HOU	CHC, OAK
5	Justin Verlander	NYM	TB, CLE
6	Merrill Kelly	ARI	@OAK, @PIT	More than just matchups: 21 K with 3 BB over last 19 IP
7	Shane McClanahan	TB	MIL	Coming off his first subpar effort
8	Jesus Luzardo	MIA	WAS, @SF
9	Zac Gallen	ARI	@PIT
10	Shane Bieber	CLE	@CWS, @NYM
11	Yu Darvish	SD	KC
12	Zack Wheeler	PHI	@SF
13	Patrick Sandoval	LAA	MIN
14	Freddy Peralta	MIL	@STL, @TB
15	Spencer Strider	ATL	@TEX
16	Jordan Montgomery	STL	MIL, LAD
17	Julio Urias	LAD	@STL
18	Logan Webb	SF	MIA
19	Lucas Giolito	CWS	KC	Last feels like the outlier
20	Corbin Burnes	MIL	@STL
21	Chris Sale	BOS	@SD
22	Joe Ryan	MIN	@LAA
23	Cristian Javier	HOU	CHC
24	Charlie Morton	ATL	@TEX, SEA
25	Max Scherzer	NYM	CLE
26	Domingo German	NYY	@TOR, @CIN
27	Nathan Eovaldi	TEX	ATL
28	Aaron Nola	PHI	CHC	Still a top-five SP for the rest of the season
29	Pablo Lopez	MIN	@LAD, @LAA
30	Eduardo Rodriguez	DET	PIT
31	Anthony DeSclafani	SF	MIA
32	Andrew Heaney	TEX	COL
33	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	@SF
34	Lance Lynn	CWS	CLE, KC
35	Dustin May	LAD	MIN	Swinging strike rate is 5.8%. Yes, it really is.
36	Tanner Houck	BOS	SEA		41%
37	Jon Gray	TEX	COL
38	Chris Bassitt	TOR	NYY
39	Josiah Gray	WAS	@MIA, DET
40	Gerrit Cole	NYY	@TOR	Could be his lowest rank ever
41	Mitch Keller	PIT	ARI	So much to like here
42	Zach Eflin	TB	MIL
43	Seth Lugo	SD	KC
44	Justin Steele	CHC	@HOU
45	Corey Kluber	BOS	@SD		4%	45%
46	James Paxton	BOS	@SD		5%
47	Dylan Cease	CWS	KC
48	Tyler Wells	BAL	LAA
49	Reid Detmers	LAA	MIN
50	Tanner Bibee	CLE	@NYM
51	Sonny Gray	MIN	@LAD
52	Michael Wacha	SD	KC		37%
53	Logan Gilbert	SEA	@ATL
54	Tony Gonsolin	LAD	@STL
55	Alex Wood	SF	PHI, MIA		17%
56	Alek Manoah	TOR	NYY, BAL
57	Hunter Brown	HOU	OAK
58	Blake Snell	SD	BOS
59	Bryce Miller	SEA	@ATL
60	Cal Quantrill	CLE	@NYM		43%
61	Michael Lorenzen	DET	PIT		2%	38%
62	Brady Singer	KC	@SD
63	Bryce Elder	ATL	SEA
64	Eury Perez	MIA	WAS		1%	2%
65	George Kirby	SEA	@BOS, @ATL	Strikeouts should increase
66	Jake Irvin	WAS	DET		1%	0%
67	Alex Cobb	SF	PHI
68	Brayan Bello	BOS	SEA
69	Luis Ortiz	PIT	@DET		1%	8%
70	Edward Cabrera	MIA	WAS
71	Michael Kopech	CWS	CLE
72	Noah Syndergaard	LAD	MIN, @STL		41%
73	Yonny Chirinos	TB	@NYM, MIL		7%
74	Mix 12 Reliever
75	Alex Faedo	DET	@WAS		0%	0%
76	Wade Miley	MIL	@STL
77	Hunter Greene	CIN	@COL, NYY
78	Mike Clevinger	CWS	CLE		50%
79	Bailey Ober	MIN	@LAD
80	Dane Dunning	TEX	ATL		28%
81	Kyle Freeland	COL	@TEX		15%	40%
82	Braxton Garrett	MIA	@SF
83	Marcus Stroman	CHC	@PHI
84	Jameson Taillon	CHC	@HOU, @PHI
85	Jose Berrios	TOR	NYY
86	Carlos Carrasco	NYM	CLE		10%
87	Trevor Williams	WAS	@MIA		2%	13%
88	Kyle Bradish	BAL	LAA
89	Taj Bradley	TB	@NYM
90	Mix 15 Reliever
91	Drew Smyly	CHC	@HOU
92	Ryne Nelson	ARI	@OAK		5%	40%
93	Nick Pivetta	BOS	SEA		17%
94	Austin Gomber	COL	CIN		0%	2%
95	Luis Castillo	SEA	@BOS
96	Taijuan Walker	PHI	@SF
97	Steven Matz	STL	LAD		37%
98	Sean Manaea	SF	PHI		36%
99	Zack Greinke	KC	@CWS		2%	21%
100	Josh Fleming	TB	@NYM		0%	8%
101	Rich Hill	PIT	@DET		6%
102	Patrick Corbin	WAS	NYM, DET		1%	6%
103	Joe Musgrove	SD	BOS
104	Martin Perez	TEX	COL
105	Brandon Pfaadt	ARI	@PIT
106	Ranger Suarez	PHI	CHC		24%
107	Bailey Falter	PHI	@SF, CHC		4%	47%
108	Peyton Battenfield	CLE	@CWS		14%
109	Nestor Cortes	NYY	@TOR
110	Connor Seabold	COL	CIN, @TEX		0%	0%
111	Chase Silseth	LAA	@BAL		10%
112	Kodai Senga	NYM	TB
113	MacKenzie Gore	WAS	@MIA
114	Tyler Anderson	LAA	@BAL
115	Logan Allen	CLE	@CWS
116	Kyle Gibson	BAL	@TOR
117	Miles Mikolas	STL	LAD
118	Brandon Bielak	HOU	OAK		2%
119	Jared Shuster	ATL	@TEX, SEA		1%	8%
120	Grayson Rodriguez	BAL	LAA, @TOR
121	Griffin Canning	LAA	@BAL
122	Adam Wainwright	STL	MIL		14%
123	Jack Flaherty	STL	MIL, LAD
124	Brad Keller	KC	@SD, @CWS		11%	36%
125	Louie Varland	MIN	@LAA
126	Luke Weaver	CIN	NYY		4%	42%
127	Yusei Kikuchi	TOR	BAL
128	Jhony Brito	NYY	@TOR, @CIN		14%	43%
129	Dean Kremer	BAL	LAA, @TOR		2%	40%
130	Tommy Henry	ARI	@OAK		0%	6%
131	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	@PHI		0%	0%
132	JP Sears	OAK	@HOU		25%
133	Matthew Boyd	DET	@WAS		31%
134	Joey Wentz	DET	@WAS		0%	15%
135	Colin Rea	MIL	@TB		8%
136	Clarke Schmidt	NYY	@CIN
137	David Peterson	NYM	@WAS		8%	8%
138	Jordan Lyles	KC	@CWS		1%	4%
139	Daniel Lynch	KC	@SD		0%	0%
140	Graham Ashcraft	CIN	@COL
141	Ryan Weathers	SD	BOS		1%	8%
142	Chase Anderson	COL	CIN, @TEX		0%	0%
143	Roansy Contreras	PIT	ARI
144	Ben Lively	CIN	@COL, NYY		0%	0%
145	Tylor Megill	NYM	TB
146	Adrian Houser	MIL	@TB		0%	0%
147	Kyle Muller	OAK	ARI		0%	8%
148	J.P. France	HOU	CHC
149	Marco Gonzales	SEA	@BOS		8%
150	Cody Bradford	TEX	ATL		0%	0%
151	Luis Medina	OAK	ARI		0%	0%
152	Ken Waldichuk	OAK	@HOU		2%	17%
153	Johan Oviedo	PIT	ARI
154	Drew Rucinski	OAK	ARI, @HOU		0%	2%

American League

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comment
1	Shohei Ohtani	LAA	@BAL, MIN	Rare double dip
2	Kevin Gausman	TOR	NYY, BAL
3	Framber Valdez	HOU	CHC, OAK
4	Shane McClanahan	TB	MIL	Coming off his first subpar effort
5	Shane Bieber	CLE	@CWS, @NYM
6	Patrick Sandoval	LAA	MIN
7	Lucas Giolito	CWS	KC	Last feels like the outlier
8	Chris Sale	BOS	@SD
9	Joe Ryan	MIN	@LAA
10	Cristian Javier	HOU	CHC
11	Domingo German	NYY	@TOR, @CIN
12	Nathan Eovaldi	TEX	ATL
13	Pablo Lopez	MIN	@LAD, @LAA
14	Eduardo Rodriguez	DET	PIT
15	Andrew Heaney	TEX	COL
16	Lance Lynn	CWS	CLE, KC
17	Tanner Houck	BOS	SEA
18	Jon Gray	TEX	COL
19	Chris Bassitt	TOR	NYY
20	Gerrit Cole	NYY	@TOR	Could be his lowest rank ever
21	Zach Eflin	TB	MIL
22	Corey Kluber	BOS	@SD
23	James Paxton	BOS	@SD
24	Dylan Cease	CWS	KC
25	Tyler Wells	BAL	LAA
26	Reid Detmers	LAA	MIN
27	Tanner Bibee	CLE	@NYM
28	Sonny Gray	MIN	@LAD
29	Logan Gilbert	SEA	@ATL
30	Alek Manoah	TOR	NYY, BAL
31	Hunter Brown	HOU	OAK
32	Bryce Miller	SEA	@ATL
33	Cal Quantrill	CLE	@NYM
34	Michael Lorenzen	DET	PIT
35	Brady Singer	KC	@SD
36	George Kirby	SEA	@BOS, @ATL	Strikeouts should increase
37	Brayan Bello	BOS	SEA
38	Michael Kopech	CWS	CLE
39	Yonny Chirinos	TB	@NYM, MIL
40	Alex Faedo	DET	@WAS
41	Mike Clevinger	CWS	CLE
42	Bailey Ober	MIN	@LAD
43	Dane Dunning	TEX	ATL
44	Jose Berrios	TOR	NYY
45	Kyle Bradish	BAL	LAA
46	Taj Bradley	TB	@NYM
47	Nick Pivetta	BOS	SEA
48	Luis Castillo	SEA	@BOS
49	Zack Greinke	KC	@CWS
50	Josh Fleming	TB	@NYM
51	Martin Perez	TEX	COL
52	AL Reliever
53	Peyton Battenfield	CLE	@CWS
54	Nestor Cortes	NYY	@TOR
55	Chase Silseth	LAA	@BAL
56	Tyler Anderson	LAA	@BAL
57	Logan Allen	CLE	@CWS
58	Kyle Gibson	BAL	@TOR
59	Brandon Bielak	HOU	OAK
60	Grayson Rodriguez	BAL	LAA, @TOR
61	Griffin Canning	LAA	@BAL
62	Brad Keller	KC	@SD, @CWS
63	Louie Varland	MIN	@LAA
64	Yusei Kikuchi	TOR	BAL
65	Jhony Brito	NYY	@TOR, @CIN
66	Dean Kremer	BAL	LAA, @TOR
67	JP Sears	OAK	@HOU
68	Matthew Boyd	DET	@WAS
69	Joey Wentz	DET	@WAS
70	Clarke Schmidt	NYY	@CIN
71	Jordan Lyles	KC	@CWS
72	Daniel Lynch	KC	@SD
73	Kyle Muller	OAK	ARI
74	J.P. France	HOU	CHC
75	Marco Gonzales	SEA	@BOS
76	Cody Bradford	TEX	ATL
77	Luis Medina	OAK	ARI
78	Ken Waldichuk	OAK	@HOU
79	Drew Rucinski	OAK	ARI, @HOU

National League

Rank	Pitcher	TM	OPP	Comment
1	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	MIN, @STL	Tempting to increase innings expectations
2	Justin Verlander	NYM	TB, CLE
3	Merrill Kelly	ARI	@OAK, @PIT	More than just matchups: 21 K with 3 BB over last 19 IP
4	Jesus Luzardo	MIA	WAS, @SF
5	Zac Gallen	ARI	@PIT
6	Yu Darvish	SD	KC
7	Zack Wheeler	PHI	@SF
8	Freddy Peralta	MIL	@STL, @TB
9	Spencer Strider	ATL	@TEX
10	Jordan Montgomery	STL	MIL, LAD
11	Julio Urias	LAD	@STL
12	Logan Webb	SF	MIA
13	Corbin Burnes	MIL	@STL
14	Charlie Morton	ATL	@TEX, SEA
15	Max Scherzer	NYM	CLE
16	Aaron Nola	PHI	CHC	Still a top-five SP for the rest of the season
17	Anthony DeSclafani	SF	MIA
18	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	@SF
19	Dustin May	LAD	MIN	Swinging strike rate is 5.8%. Yes, it really is.
20	Josiah Gray	WAS	@MIA, DET
21	Mitch Keller	PIT	ARI	So much to like here
22	Seth Lugo	SD	KC
23	Justin Steele	CHC	@HOU
24	Michael Wacha	SD	KC
25	Tony Gonsolin	LAD	@STL
26	Alex Wood	SF	PHI, MIA
27	Blake Snell	SD	BOS
28	Bryce Elder	ATL	SEA
29	Eury Perez	MIA	WAS
30	Jake Irvin	WAS	DET
31	Alex Cobb	SF	PHI
32	Luis Ortiz	PIT	@DET
33	Edward Cabrera	MIA	WAS
34	Noah Syndergaard	LAD	MIN, @STL
35	Wade Miley	MIL	@STL
36	Hunter Greene	CIN	@COL, NYY
37	Kyle Freeland	COL	@TEX
38	Braxton Garrett	MIA	@SF
39	Marcus Stroman	CHC	@PHI
40	Jameson Taillon	CHC	@HOU, @PHI
41	Carlos Carrasco	NYM	CLE
42	Trevor Williams	WAS	@MIA
43	Drew Smyly	CHC	@HOU
44	Ryne Nelson	ARI	@OAK
45	Austin Gomber	COL	CIN
46	Taijuan Walker	PHI	@SF
47	Steven Matz	STL	LAD
48	Sean Manaea	SF	PHI
49	Rich Hill	PIT	@DET
50	Patrick Corbin	WAS	NYM, DET
51	Joe Musgrove	SD	BOS
52	NL Reliever
53	Brandon Pfaadt	ARI	@PIT
54	Ranger Suarez	PHI	CHC
55	Bailey Falter	PHI	@SF, CHC
56	Connor Seabold	COL	CIN, @TEX
57	Kodai Senga	NYM	TB
58	MacKenzie Gore	WAS	@MIA
59	Miles Mikolas	STL	LAD
60	Jared Shuster	ATL	@TEX, SEA
61	Adam Wainwright	STL	MIL
62	Jack Flaherty	STL	MIL, LAD
63	Luke Weaver	CIN	NYY
64	Tommy Henry	ARI	@OAK
65	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	@PHI
66	Colin Rea	MIL	@TB
67	David Peterson	NYM	@WAS
68	Graham Ashcraft	CIN	@COL
69	Ryan Weathers	SD	BOS
70	Chase Anderson	COL	CIN, @TEX
71	Roansy Contreras	PIT	ARI
72	Ben Lively	CIN	@COL, NYY
73	Tylor Megill	NYM	TB
74	Adrian Houser	MIL	@TB
75	Johan Oviedo	PIT	ARI