Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Few Elite Two-Start Options

Todd Zola ranks the week's starting pitchers as the Indians' Corey Kluber is one of the few top arms with two starts.

Updated on September 8, 2018 12:59PM EST

Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Few Elite Two-Start Options

By:

Todd Zola

Updated on September 8, 2018 12:59PM EST

Weekly Pitcher Rankings

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The rankings might look curious this week as the majority of the two-start options are mid-pack arms with favorable matchups while most of the elite have only one start in a tough draw.

For the week, Sept. 10-16.

UPDATED: Sunday September 9, 10:15 PM ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Corey Kluber	CLE	at TB, vs. DET	Strikeouts back up, 45 in last 42 IP
2	Justin Verlander	HOU	at DET, vs. ARI	3.93 ERA, 1.23 WHIP since the break but with 76 K, 10 BB in those 50.1 IP, damage has been 11 HR
3	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at DET
4	Mike Minor	TEX	at LAA, at SD	Great matchups, great pitching venues, whiffs up lately
5	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	at TB
6	James Paxton	SEA	at LAA
7	Mike Clevinger	CLE	vs. DET
8	Blake Snell	TB	vs. CLE
9	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. CWS, vs. MIN	Grab if available, 1.89 ERA, .92 WHIP with 39 K, 5 BB last 6 GS, covering 38 IP
10	Charlie Morton	HOU	vs. ARI
11	Mike Fiers	OAK	at BAL, at TB
12	David Price	BOS	vs. TOR	Adjustments since being blasted by Yankees really paying off
13	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	vs. ARI
14	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	vs. TOR	Pitching like he wants to be in the playoff rotation
15	Rick Porcello	BOS	vs. NYM
16	Luis Severino	NYY	at MIN	6.83 ERA since July 7, but with 10.4 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 in that span. Issue is 13

The rankings might look curious this week as the majority of the two-start options are mid-pack arms with favorable matchups while most of the elite have only one start in a tough draw.

For the week, Sept. 10-16.

UPDATED: Sunday September 9, 10:15 PM ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Corey Kluber	CLE	at TB, vs. DET	Strikeouts back up, 45 in last 42 IP
2	Justin Verlander	HOU	at DET, vs. ARI	3.93 ERA, 1.23 WHIP since the break but with 76 K, 10 BB in those 50.1 IP, damage has been 11 HR
3	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at DET
4	Mike Minor	TEX	at LAA, at SD	Great matchups, great pitching venues, whiffs up lately
5	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	at TB
6	James Paxton	SEA	at LAA
7	Mike Clevinger	CLE	vs. DET
8	Blake Snell	TB	vs. CLE
9	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. CWS, vs. MIN	Grab if available, 1.89 ERA, .92 WHIP with 39 K, 5 BB last 6 GS, covering 38 IP
10	Charlie Morton	HOU	vs. ARI
11	Mike Fiers	OAK	at BAL, at TB
12	David Price	BOS	vs. TOR	Adjustments since being blasted by Yankees really paying off
13	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	vs. ARI
14	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	vs. TOR	Pitching like he wants to be in the playoff rotation
15	Rick Porcello	BOS	vs. NYM
16	Luis Severino	NYY	at MIN	6.83 ERA since July 7, but with 10.4 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 in that span. Issue is 13 HR in those 55.1 IP
17	Jaime Barria	LAA	vs. TEX, vs. SEA
18	Jose Berrios	MIN	at KC	7 HR last 21.2 IP
19	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	vs. TOR
20	Carlos Rodon	CWS	at KC
21	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. SEA
22	CC Sabathia	NYY	vs. TOR
23	Wade LeBlanc	SEA	vs. SD
24	Kyle Gibson	MIN	vs. NYY, at KC
25	Tyler Glasnow	TB	vs. CLE, vs. OAK
26	Trevor Cahill	OAK	at TB
27	Shane Bieber	CLE	at TB
28	Chris Sale	BOS	vs. TOR, vs. NYM	Only expected to work 2 innings in first start, maybe more in second
29	Andrew Heaney	LAA	vs. SEA
30	Marco Gonzales	SEA	vs. SD, at LAA	Great matchups but likely on pitch limit
31	Lucas Giolito	CWS	at KC, at BAL	Disappointing last time vs. Tigers but still buying second half strides
32	Alex Cobb	BAL	vs. OAK, vs. CWS
33	Erasmo Ramirez	SEA	at LAA
34	Yohander Mendez	TEX	at SD
35	Brian Johnson	BOS	vs. NYM
36	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	at BAL
37	Adam Plutko	CLE	vs. DET
38	J.A. Happ	NYY	at MIN
39	Matt Shoemaker	LAA	vs. SEA
40	Felix Pena	LAA	vs. TEX
41	Lance Lynn	NYY	vs. TOR
42	Mike Leake	SEA	at LAA
43	Ian Kennedy	KC	vs. MIN
44	Yonny Chirinos	TB	vs. OAK
45	Daniel Mengden	OAK	at BAL
46	James Shields	CWS	at BAL
47	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. OAK
48	Brett Anderson	OAK	at BAL
49	Sonny Gray	NYY	at MIN
50	Matthew Boyd	DET	at CLE
51	Ryan Yarbrough	TB	vs. OAK
52	Edwin Jackson	OAK	at TB
53	Stephen Gonsalves	MIN	at KC
54	Yefry Ramirez	BAL	vs. CWS
55	Ariel Jurado	TEX	at SD
56	Michael Fulmer	DET	at CLE
57	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	vs. NYY
58	Eric Skoglund	KC	vs. CWS
59	Marco Estrada	TOR	at NYY
60	Jalen Beeks	TB	vs. CLE
61	Sean Reid-Foley	TOR	at NYY
62	Jaime Garcia	TOR	at WAS
63	Thomas Pannone	TOR	at NYY
64	Dylan Covey	CWS	at KC
65	Jordan Zimmermann	DET	vs. HOU
66	Ryan Borucki	TOR	at BOS
67	Aaron Sanchez	TOR	at BOS
68	Brad Keller	KC	vs. CWS
69	David Hess	BAL	vs. CWS
70	Heath Fillmyer	KC	vs. MIN
71	Framber Valdez	HOU	at DET
72	Yovani Gallardo	TEX	at LAA
73	Adrian Sampson	TEX	at LAA
74	Jorge Lopez	KC	vs. MIN
75	Odrisamer Despaigne	LAA	vs. TEX
76	Francisco Liriano	DET	vs. HOU, at CLE
77	Andrew Cashner	BAL	vs. OAK
78	Daniel Norris	DET	vs. HOU
79	Sam Gaviglio	TOR	at BOS
80	Chase De Jong	MIN	at KC
81	Kohl Stewart	MIN	vs. NYY

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Rank	Pitcher	TEAM	OPP	Comments
1	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. MIA, at BOS
2	Max Scherzer	WAS	at ATL
3	Jake Arrieta	PHI	vs. WAS, vs. MIA
4	Zack Greinke	ARI	at COL, at HOU
5	Miles Mikolas	STL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD	Peripherals consistent with early on but surface stats on the rise
6	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. MIA	Expects to start after taking a line drive to the chest last time out
7	Alex Wood	LAD	at CIN, at STL
8	Aaron Nola	PHI	vs. WAS
9	Dereck Rodriguez	SF	vs. ATL, vs. COL	Beginning to think about how I want my crow prepared
10	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	at STL
11	Stephen Strasburg	WAS	at PHI
12	Jon Lester	CHC	vs. MIL, vs. CIN
13	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	at SF
14	Jack Flaherty	STL	vs. LAD
15	German Marquez	COL	vs. ARI, at SF
16	Anibal Sanchez	ATL	at SF
17	Madison Bumgarner	SF	vs. COL
18	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at STL	Ending season strong, will be popular target in 2019
19	Sean Newcomb	ATL	at SF
20	Zach Eflin	PHI	vs. MIA
21	Vince Velasquez	PHI	vs. MIA
22	Tyler Anderson	COL	at SF
23	Cole Hamels	CHC	vs. CIN
24	Antonio Senzatela	COL	vs. ARI, at SF
25	Walker Buehler	LAD	at STL
26	Steven Matz	NYM	vs. MIA	1.89 ERA, .68 WHIP last three starts with 23 K and 3 BB in those 19 IP
27	Ross Stripling	LAD	at CIN
28	Zack Godley	ARI	at COL, at HOU	Toughest draw of the week
29	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. MIL
30	Tanner Roark	WAS	at PHI	Definition of league average
31	Trevor Williams	PIT	at STL, at MIL	.66 ERA last 9 GS, but 4.75 xFIP screams good luck, .233 BABIP and 4.9% HR/FB proves it
32	Rich Hill	LAD	at STL
33	Joe Musgrove	PIT	at STL
34	Jose Urena	MIA	at NYM, at PHI	Low strikeouts temper ranking even with double dip
35	Luis Castillo	CIN	vs. LAD	Homers remain major issue
36	Robbie Ray	ARI	at HOU	Racking up whiffs, but high walks limiting innings
37	Joey Lucchesi	SD	at SEA
38	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	at BOS
39	Zach Davies	MIL	vs. PIT
40	Chris Stratton	SF	vs. COL
41	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. WAS
42	Jose Quintana	CHC	vs. MIL	No homers allowed last 4 GS, spanning 22.2 IP
43	Wei-Yin Chen	MIA	at PHI	Nails at home, questionable on the road
44	Kevin Gausman	ATL	vs. WAS
45	Trevor Richards	MIA	at NYM
46	Hyun-Jin Ryu	LAD	at CIN	Quietly keeping the Dodgers in the NL West race
47	Jon Gray	COL	vs. ARI
48	Anthony DeSclafani	CIN	vs. LAD
49	Nick Pivetta	PHI	vs. WAS	Disappointing second half
50	Mike Montgomery	CHC	vs. CIN
51	John Gant	STL	vs. LAD
52	Chase Anderson	MIL	at CHC
53	Robbie Erlin	SD	vs. TEX
54	Chris Archer	PIT	at MIL
55	Austin Gomber	STL	vs. PIT
56	Gio Gonzalez	MIL	vs. PIT
57	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	at CHC
58	Touki Toussaint	ATL	vs. WAS
59	Derek Holland	SF	vs. ATL
60	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	at NYM
61	Kyle Freeland	COL	vs. ARI
62	Joe Ross	WAS	at ATL
63	Andrew Suarez	SF	vs. ATL
64	Brett Kennedy	SD	vs. TEX
65	Ivan Nova	PIT	at MIL
66	Jeff Brigham	MIA	at NYM, at PHI
67	Cody Reed	CIN	vs. LAD, at CHC
68	Patrick Corbin	ARI	at COL
69	Clay Buchholz	ARI	at COL
70	Jason Vargas	NYM	vs. MIA, at BOS
71	Bryan Mitchell	SD	at SEA
72	Erick Fedde	WAS	at PHI, at ATL
73	Adam Wainwright	STL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD
74	Eric Lauer	SD	vs. TEX
75	Matt Harvey	CIN	at CHC
76	Tyler Mahle	CIN	at CHC
77	Wade Miley	MIL	at CHC, vs. PIT
78	Jefry Rodriguez	WAS	vs. CHC

MLB

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. MIA, at BOS
2	Corey Kluber	CLE	at TB, vs. DET	Strikeouts back up, 45 in last 42 IP
3	Justin Verlander	HOU	at DET, vs. ARI	3.93 ERA, 1.23 WHIP since the break but with 76 K, 10 BB in those 50.1 IP, damage has been 11 HR
4	Max Scherzer	WAS	at ATL
5	Jake Arrieta	PHI	vs. WAS, vs. MIA
6	Zack Greinke	ARI	at COL, at HOU
7	Gerrit Cole	HOU	at DET
8	Miles Mikolas	STL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD	Peripherals consistent with early on but surface stats on the rise
9	Mike Minor	TEX	at LAA, at SD	Great matchups, great pitching venues, whiffs up lately
10	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	at TB
11	James Paxton	SEA	at LAA
12	Mike Clevinger	CLE	vs. DET
13	Zack Wheeler	NYM	vs. MIA	Expects to start after taking a line drive to the chest last time out
14	Alex Wood	LAD	at CIN, at STL
15	Aaron Nola	PHI	vs. WAS
16	Blake Snell	TB	vs. CLE
17	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. CWS, vs. MIN	Grab if available, 1.89 ERA, .92 WHIP with 39 K, 5 BB last 6 GS, covering 38 IP
18	Dereck Rodriguez	SF	vs. ATL, vs. COL	Beginning to think about how I want my crow prepared
19	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	at STL
20	Charlie Morton	HOU	vs. ARI
21	Stephen Strasburg	WAS	at PHI
22	Mike Fiers	OAK	at BAL, at TB
23	Jon Lester	CHC	vs. MIL, vs. CIN
24	David Price	BOS	vs. TOR	Adjustments since being blasted by Yankees really paying off
25	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	vs. ARI
26	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	at SF
27	Jack Flaherty	STL	vs. LAD
28	German Marquez	COL	vs. ARI, at SF
29	Eduardo Rodriguez	BOS	vs. TOR	Pitching like he wants to be in the playoff rotation
30	Anibal Sanchez	ATL	at SF
31	Rick Porcello	BOS	vs. NYM
32	Luis Severino	NYY	at MIN	6.83 ERA since July 7, but with 10.4 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 in that span. Issue is 13 HR in those 55.1 IP
33	Jaime Barria	LAA	vs. TEX, vs. SEA
34	Jose Berrios	MIN	at KC	7 HR last 21.2 IP
35	Madison Bumgarner	SF	vs. COL
36	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	vs. TOR
37	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at STL	Ending season strong, will be popular target in 2019
38	Carlos Rodon	CWS	at KC
39	Sean Newcomb	ATL	at SF
40	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. SEA
41	CC Sabathia	NYY	vs. TOR
42	Wade LeBlanc	SEA	vs. SD
43	Zach Eflin	PHI	vs. MIA
44	Vince Velasquez	PHI	vs. MIA
45	Tyler Anderson	COL	at SF
46	Cole Hamels	CHC	vs. CIN
47	Antonio Senzatela	COL	vs. ARI, at SF
48	Walker Buehler	LAD	at STL
49	Steven Matz	NYM	vs. MIA	1.89 ERA, .68 WHIP last three starts with 23 K and 3 BB in those 19 IP
50	Kyle Gibson	MIN	vs. NYY, at KC
51	Ross Stripling	LAD	at CIN
52	Zack Godley	ARI	at COL, at HOU	Toughest draw of the week
53	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. MIL
54	Tyler Glasnow	TB	vs. CLE, vs. OAK
55	Tanner Roark	WAS	at PHI	Definition of league average
56	Trevor Cahill	OAK	at TB
57	Shane Bieber	CLE	at TB
58	Chris Sale	BOS	vs. TOR, vs. NYM	Only expected to work 2 innings in first start, maybe more in second
59	Andrew Heaney	LAA	vs. SEA
60	Marco Gonzales	SEA	vs. SD, at LAA	Great matchups but likely on pitch limit
61	Trevor Williams	PIT	at STL, at MIL	.66 ERA last 9 GS, but 4.75 xFIP screams good luck, .233 BABIP and 4.9% HR/FB proves it
62	Rich Hill	LAD	at STL
63	Joe Musgrove	PIT	at STL
64	Jose Urena	MIA	at NYM, at PHI	Low strikeouts temper ranking even with double dip
65	Luis Castillo	CIN	vs. LAD	Homers remain major issue
66	Robbie Ray	ARI	at HOU	Racking up whiffs, but high walks limiting innings
67	Lucas Giolito	CWS	at KC, at BAL	Disappointing last time vs. Tigers but still buying second half strides
68	Joey Lucchesi	SD	at SEA
69	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	at BOS
70	Zach Davies	MIL	vs. PIT
71	Alex Cobb	BAL	vs. OAK, vs. CWS
72	Erasmo Ramirez	SEA	at LAA
73	Yohander Mendez	TEX	at SD
74	Brian Johnson	BOS	vs. NYM
75	Chris Stratton	SF	vs. COL
76	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. WAS
77	Jose Quintana	CHC	vs. MIL	No homers allowed last 4 GS, spanning 22.2 IP
78	Wei-Yin Chen	MIA	at PHI	Nails at home, questionable on the road
79	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	at BAL
80	Kevin Gausman	ATL	vs. WAS
81	Trevor Richards	MIA	at NYM
82	Hyun-Jin Ryu	LAD	at CIN	Quietly keeping the Dodgers in the NL West race
83	Adam Plutko	CLE	vs. DET
84	J.A. Happ	NYY	at MIN
85	Jon Gray	COL	vs. ARI
86	Matt Shoemaker	LAA	vs. SEA
87	Felix Pena	LAA	vs. TEX
88	Anthony DeSclafani	CIN	vs. LAD
89	Nick Pivetta	PHI	vs. WAS	Disappointing second half
90	Mike Montgomery	CHC	vs. CIN
91	John Gant	STL	vs. LAD
92	Chase Anderson	MIL	at CHC
93	Robbie Erlin	SD	vs. TEX
94	Lance Lynn	NYY	vs. TOR
95	Chris Archer	PIT	at MIL
96	Austin Gomber	STL	vs. PIT
97	Mike Leake	SEA	at LAA
98	Gio Gonzalez	MIL	vs. PIT
99	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	at CHC
100	Touki Toussaint	ATL	vs. WAS
101	Ian Kennedy	KC	vs. MIN
102	Derek Holland	SF	vs. ATL
103	Yonny Chirinos	TB	vs. OAK
104	Daniel Mengden	OAK	at BAL
105	James Shields	CWS	at BAL
106	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. OAK
107	Brett Anderson	OAK	at BAL
108	Sandy Alcantara	MIA	at NYM
109	Kyle Freeland	COL	vs. ARI
110	Sonny Gray	NYY	at MIN
111	Matthew Boyd	DET	at CLE
112	Ryan Yarbrough	TB	vs. OAK
113	Edwin Jackson	OAK	at TB
114	Stephen Gonsalves	MIN	at KC
115	Joe Ross	WAS	at ATL
116	Andrew Suarez	SF	vs. ATL
117	Brett Kennedy	SD	vs. TEX
118	Yefry Ramirez	BAL	vs. CWS
119	Ariel Jurado	TEX	at SD
120	Ivan Nova	PIT	at MIL
121	Michael Fulmer	DET	at CLE
122	Jeff Brigham	MIA	at NYM, at PHI
123	Cody Reed	CIN	vs. LAD, at CHC
124	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	vs. NYY
125	Eric Skoglund	KC	vs. CWS
126	Marco Estrada	TOR	at NYY
127	Patrick Corbin	ARI	at COL
128	Clay Buchholz	ARI	at COL
129	Jalen Beeks	TB	vs. CLE
130	Sean Reid-Foley	TOR	at NYY
131	Jaime Garcia	TOR	at WAS
132	Jason Vargas	NYM	vs. MIA, at BOS
133	Thomas Pannone	TOR	at NYY
134	Dylan Covey	CWS	at KC
135	Bryan Mitchell	SD	at SEA
136	Erick Fedde	WAS	at PHI, at ATL
137	Adam Wainwright	STL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD
138	Jordan Zimmermann	DET	vs. HOU
139	Ryan Borucki	TOR	at BOS
140	Eric Lauer	SD	vs. TEX
141	Matt Harvey	CIN	at CHC
142	Aaron Sanchez	TOR	at BOS
143	Brad Keller	KC	vs. CWS
144	David Hess	BAL	vs. CWS
145	Tyler Mahle	CIN	at CHC
146	Heath Fillmyer	KC	vs. MIN
147	Wade Miley	MIL	at CHC, vs. PIT
148	Framber Valdez	HOU	at DET
149	Yovani Gallardo	TEX	at LAA
150	Adrian Sampson	TEX	at LAA
151	Jorge Lopez	KC	vs. MIN
152	Odrisamer Despaigne	LAA	vs. TEX
153	Francisco Liriano	DET	vs. HOU, at CLE
154	Jefry Rodriguez	WAS	vs. CHC
155	Andrew Cashner	BAL	vs. OAK
156	Daniel Norris	DET	vs. HOU
157	Sam Gaviglio	TOR	at BOS
158	Chase De Jong	MIN	at KC
159	Kohl Stewart	MIN	vs. NYY