Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Two-Start Max

Todd Zola breaks down the week's starting pitching rankings as Max Scherzer, who has two starts this week, marches toward another Cy Young.

Updated on August 4, 2018 10:38AM EST

By:

Todd Zola

Updated on August 4, 2018 10:38AM EST

Weekly Pitcher Rankings

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A pair of doubleheaders add to an already busy week. Even though it's just the first week in August, this is likely the second to last two-start week for most of the pitchers with a pair on the upcoming docket. Keep in mind these rankings favor strikeouts and win potential over ratios, so if you're in a tight ERA or WHIP race, make the necessary adjustments.

UPDATED: Sunday August 5, 10:15 PM ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Trevor Bauer	CLE	vs. MIN, at CWS	Walks up lately but nothing to worry about
2	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	vs. MIN, at CWS	The expected ERA correction is in full force
3	Charlie Morton	HOU	at SF, vs. SEA	Should be able to salt away a couple of strong efforts
4	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	at SF, vs. SEA
5	Chris Sale	BOS	at BAL	Assuming shoulder is no longer sore
6	Justin Verlander	HOU	vs. SEA
7	Gerrit Cole	HOU	vs. SEA
8	Corey Kluber	CLE	vs. MIN
9	Luis Severino	NYY	at CWS	Settled down nicely after falling behind Red Sox last time out
10	Blake Snell	TB	vs. BAL
11	Lance Lynn	NYY	at CWS, vs. TEX	Replacing Sonny Gray, should be able to pass the baton to the bullpen
12	Sean Manaea	OAK	vs. LAD, at LAA	Low whiffs aided by double dip
13	David Price	BOS	at BAL
14	Matthew Boyd	DET	at LAA, vs. MIN	1.42 ERA, .89 WHIP with 20 K and

UPDATED: Sunday August 5, 10:15 PM ET

AMERICAN LEAGUE

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Trevor Bauer	CLE	vs. MIN, at CWS	Walks up lately but nothing to worry about
2	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	vs. MIN, at CWS	The expected ERA correction is in full force
3	Charlie Morton	HOU	at SF, vs. SEA	Should be able to salt away a couple of strong efforts
4	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	at SF, vs. SEA
5	Chris Sale	BOS	at BAL	Assuming shoulder is no longer sore
6	Justin Verlander	HOU	vs. SEA
7	Gerrit Cole	HOU	vs. SEA
8	Corey Kluber	CLE	vs. MIN
9	Luis Severino	NYY	at CWS	Settled down nicely after falling behind Red Sox last time out
10	Blake Snell	TB	vs. BAL
11	Lance Lynn	NYY	at CWS, vs. TEX	Replacing Sonny Gray, should be able to pass the baton to the bullpen
12	Sean Manaea	OAK	vs. LAD, at LAA	Low whiffs aided by double dip
13	David Price	BOS	at BAL
14	Matthew Boyd	DET	at LAA, vs. MIN	1.42 ERA, .89 WHIP with 20 K and 3 BB in last 3 GS spanning 19 IP
15	Kyle Gibson	MIN	at CLE, at DET
16	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	vs. TEX	Just 3 HR allowed previous 30.2 IP
17	Ervin Santana	MIN	at DET
18	Rick Porcello	BOS	at TOR	Coming off best effort of season, CG effort versus Yankees
19	James Paxton	SEA	at HOU
20	CC Sabathia	NYY	at CWS, vs. TEX
21	Andrew Heaney	LAA	vs. DET
22	Shane Bieber	CLE	at CWS
23	Mike Clevinger	CLE	vs. MIN
24	J.A. Happ	NYY	vs. TEX	Expected to return from hand, foot and mouth disease.
25	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. OAK	Hopes to miss just one start
26	Nathan Eovaldi	BOS	at BAL
27	Blaine Hardy	DET	at LAA	Angels one of the weakest teams facing southpaw pitching
28	Nick Tropeano	LAA	vs. DET, vs. OAK
29	Marcus Stroman	TOR	vs. BOS, vs. TB
30	Drew Pomeranz	BOS	at TOR, at BAL	Could be pitchinh for rotation spot, if he still has it
31	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. CHC, vs. STL	Walks have been an issue lately
32	Jaime Barria	LAA	vs. DET
33	Marco Estrada	TOR	vs. TB
34	Jose Berrios	MIN	at CLE
35	Jake Faria	TB	vs. BAL
36	Burch Smith	KC	vs. STL
37	Brian Johnson	BOS	at TOR
38	Marco Gonzales	SEA	at TEX	Rangers crushing lefthanders lately
39	Felix Pena	LAA	vs. OAK
40	Mike Minor	TEX	at NYY
41	Ryan Borucki	TOR	vs. BOS
42	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. BOS
43	Mike Leake	SEA	at HOU
44	Wade LeBlanc	SEA	at TEX, at HOU	Skills still solid, high homers lately inflating ERA
45	Felix Hernandez	SEA	at TEX, at HOU
46	Tyler Glasnow	TB	vs. BAL, at TOR
47	Alex Cobb	BAL	at TB, vs. BOS
48	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	vs. NYY
49	Carlos Rodon	CWS	vs. CLE
50	Francisco Liriano	DET	vs. MIN
51	Yonny Chirinos	TB	at TOR
52	Mike Fiers	DET	at LAA
53	Danny Duffy	KC	vs. STL
54	Dylan Covey	CWS	vs. NYY, vs. CLE
55	Trevor Cahill	OAK	at LAA
56	Bartolo Colon	TEX	vs. SEA
57	Jordan Zimmermann	DET	vs. MIN
58	Andrew Cashner	BAL	at TB
59	Lucas Giolito	CWS	vs. NYY	Quietly pitching well over the second half but this is a tall order
60	Ryan Yarbrough	TB	at TOR
61	Brett Anderson	OAK	vs. LAD
62	James Shields	CWS	vs. CLE
63	Martin Perez	TEX	vs. SEA, at NYY
64	Edwin Jackson	OAK	at LAA
65	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	at CLE
66	Adalberto Mejia	MIN	at CLE, at DET
67	Yefry Ramirez	BAL	vs. BOS
68	Jimmy Yacabonis	BAL	vs. BOS
69	Sam Gaviglio	TOR	vs. TB
70	Brad Keller	KC	vs. CHC
71	Mike Hauschild	TOR	vs. BOS
72	David Hess	BAL	at TB
73	Ariel Jurado	TEX	at NYY
74	Drew Hutchison	TEX	at NYY
75	Heath Fillmyer	KC	vs. CHC
76	Yovani Gallardo	TEX	vs. SEA

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Rank	Pitcher	TEAM	OPP	Comments
1	Max Scherzer	WAS	at CHC, vs. ATL	Marching towards another Cy Young
2	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIA	Put this man in a bubble
3	Aaron Nola	PHI	at SD
4	Jake Arrieta	PHI	at ARI, at SD	Great matchups in excellent pitching venues
5	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. CIN
6	Luke Weaver	STL	at MIA, at KC	Draws two of the softest lineups in the league
7	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	at OAK	Guess who's back…
8	Zack Greinke	ARI	vs. PHI
9	Cole Hamels	CHC	at KC, vs. WAS	Huge league and park boost, should have strong finish
10	Zack Godley	ARI	vs. PHI, at CIN	It's about time
11	Miles Mikolas	STL	at MIA
12	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	vs. SD
13	Chase Anderson	MIL	vs. SD, at ATL	2.08 ERA, 1.11 WHIP over last 8 GS with 42 K and 14 BB in those 43.1 IP
14	Patrick Corbin	ARI	vs. PHI
15	Madison Bumgarner	SF	vs. HOU
16	Jack Flaherty	STL	at KC
17	Zach Eflin	PHI	at SD	Good spot for a rebound
18	Junior Guerra	MIL	vs. SD
19	Jose Quintana	CHC	at KC
20	Mike Montgomery	CHC	at KC
21	Joey Lucchesi	SD	vs. PHI
22	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. WAS
23	Luis Castillo	CIN	vs. ARI
24	Freddy Peralta	MIL	at ATL	17 BB in last 24.2 IP, mitigates high whiff rate
25	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at COL, at SF	Settling into a nice groove
26	Jose Urena	MIA	vs. NYM
27	Rich Hill	LAD	at OAK, at COL
28	Dereck Rodriguez	SF	vs. HOU, vs. PIT	Aided by .271 BABIP, but not walking hitters and keeping ball in the yard
29	Kevin Gausman	ATL	vs. MIL
30	Robbie Ray	ARI	at CIN
31	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. MIL
32	Ivan Nova	PIT	at SF
33	Sean Newcomb	ATL	vs. MIL, at WAS
34	Dan Straily	MIA	vs. NYM	Big home park boost, facing manageable lineups
35	Wei-Yin Chen	MIA	vs. STL, vs. NYM
36	Derek Holland	SF	vs. PIT	1.80 ERA, .80 WHIP with 24 K and 3 BB last 20 IP
37	Joe Musgrove	PIT	at COL, at SF
38	Zack Wheeler	NYM	at MIA
39	Trevor Williams	PIT	at SF
40	Trevor Richards	MIA	vs. STL
41	Anthony DeSclafani	CIN	vs. ARI
42	Tyson Ross	STL	at KC
43	John Gant	STL	at MIA
44	Corey Oswalt	NYM	at MIA
45	Sal Romano	CIN	at NYM
46	Andrew Suarez	SF	vs. PIT
47	Tyler Anderson	COL	vs. LAD
48	Pablo Lopez	MIA	vs. STL
49	Gio Gonzalez	WAS	vs. ATL
50	Anibal Sanchez	ATL	at WAS
51	Clay Buchholz	ARI	at CIN
52	Kyle Freeland	COL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD
53	Jon Lester	CHC	vs. WAS
54	Nick Pivetta	PHI	at ARI
55	Homer Bailey	CIN	at NYM
56	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	at WAS
57	Tanner Roark	WAS	at CHC
58	Vince Velasquez	PHI	at ARI
59	Ross Stripling	LAD	at COL
60	Robert Stephenson	CIN	at NYM
61	Clayton Richard	SD	at MIL, vs. PHI
62	Ty Blach	SF	vs. PIT
63	Matt Harvey	CIN	vs. ARI
64	Walker Buehler	LAD	at COL
65	Brett Kennedy	SD	at MIL	Replacing Tyson Ross
66	Jeremy Hellickson	WAS	at CHC
67	Jon Gray	COL	vs. LAD
68	Kenta Maeda	LAD	at COL
69	Jason Vargas	NYM	vs. CIN
70	Chris Archer	PIT	at COL
71	Jefry Rodriguez	WAS	vs. ATL
72	Tommy Milone	WAS	vs. ATL
73	German Marquez	COL	vs. PIT
74	Eric Lauer	SD	vs. PHI
75	Chad Bettis	COL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD
76	Wade Miley	MIL	at ATL
77	Robbie Erlin	SD	at MIL
78	Max Fried	ATL	at WAS

MLB

RANK	PITCHER	TEAM	OPP	COMMENT
1	Max Scherzer	WAS	at CHC, vs. ATL	Marching towards another Cy Young
2	Trevor Bauer	CLE	vs. MIN, at CWS	Walks up lately but nothing to worry about
3	Carlos Carrasco	CLE	vs. MIN, at CWS	The expected ERA correction is in full force
4	Charlie Morton	HOU	at SF, vs. SEA	Should be able to salt away a couple of strong efforts
5	Noah Syndergaard	NYM	vs. CIN, at MIA	Put this man in a bubble
6	Dallas Keuchel	HOU	at SF, vs. SEA
7	Chris Sale	BOS	at BAL	Assuming shoulder is no longer sore
8	Justin Verlander	HOU	vs. SEA
9	Aaron Nola	PHI	at SD
10	Gerrit Cole	HOU	vs. SEA
11	Jake Arrieta	PHI	at ARI, at SD	Great matchups in excellent pitching venues
12	Jacob deGrom	NYM	vs. CIN
13	Luke Weaver	STL	at MIA, at KC	Draws two of the softest lineups in the league
14	Corey Kluber	CLE	vs. MIN
15	Clayton Kershaw	LAD	at OAK	Guess who's back…
16	Zack Greinke	ARI	vs. PHI
17	Luis Severino	NYY	at CWS	Settled down nicely after falling behind Red Sox last time out
18	Cole Hamels	CHC	at KC, vs. WAS	Huge league and park boost, should have strong finish
19	Zack Godley	ARI	vs. PHI, at CIN	It's about time
20	Blake Snell	TB	vs. BAL
21	Lance Lynn	NYY	at CWS, vs. TEX	Replacing Sonny Gray, should be able to pass the baton to the bullpen
22	Miles Mikolas	STL	at MIA
23	Sean Manaea	OAK	vs. LAD, at LAA	Low whiffs aided by double dip
24	David Price	BOS	at BAL
25	Jhoulys Chacin	MIL	vs. SD
26	Chase Anderson	MIL	vs. SD, at ATL	2.08 ERA, 1.11 WHIP over last 8 GS with 42 K and 14 BB in those 43.1 IP
27	Patrick Corbin	ARI	vs. PHI
28	Madison Bumgarner	SF	vs. HOU
29	Matthew Boyd	DET	at LAA, vs. MIN	1.42 ERA, .89 WHIP with 20 K and 3 BB in last 3 GS spanning 19 IP
30	Kyle Gibson	MIN	at CLE, at DET
31	Masahiro Tanaka	NYY	vs. TEX	Just 3 HR allowed previous 30.2 IP
32	Jack Flaherty	STL	at KC
33	Zach Eflin	PHI	at SD	Good spot for a rebound
34	Ervin Santana	MIN	at DET
35	Rick Porcello	BOS	at TOR	Coming off best effort of season, CG effort versus Yankees
36	James Paxton	SEA	at HOU
37	CC Sabathia	NYY	at CWS, vs. TEX
38	Andrew Heaney	LAA	vs. DET
39	Shane Bieber	CLE	at CWS
40	Junior Guerra	MIL	vs. SD
41	Jose Quintana	CHC	at KC
42	Mike Clevinger	CLE	vs. MIN
43	Mike Montgomery	CHC	at KC
44	J.A. Happ	NYY	vs. TEX	Expected to return from hand, foot and mouth disease.
45	Joey Lucchesi	SD	vs. PHI
46	Tyler Skaggs	LAA	vs. OAK	Hopes to miss just one start
47	Kyle Hendricks	CHC	vs. WAS
48	Luis Castillo	CIN	vs. ARI
49	Freddy Peralta	MIL	at ATL	17 BB in last 24.2 IP, mitigates high whiff rate
50	Nathan Eovaldi	BOS	at BAL
51	Jameson Taillon	PIT	at COL, at SF	Settling into a nice groove
52	Jose Urena	MIA	vs. NYM
53	Rich Hill	LAD	at OAK, at COL
54	Dereck Rodriguez	SF	vs. HOU, vs. PIT	Aided by .271 BABIP, but not walking hitters and keeping ball in the yard
55	Kevin Gausman	ATL	vs. MIL
56	Blaine Hardy	DET	at LAA	Angels one of the weakest teams facing southpaw pitching
57	Nick Tropeano	LAA	vs. DET, vs. OAK
58	Robbie Ray	ARI	at CIN
59	Julio Teheran	ATL	vs. MIL
60	Ivan Nova	PIT	at SF
61	Sean Newcomb	ATL	vs. MIL, at WAS
62	Dan Straily	MIA	vs. NYM	Big home park boost, facing manageable lineups
63	Marcus Stroman	TOR	vs. BOS, vs. TB
64	Wei-Yin Chen	MIA	vs. STL, vs. NYM
65	Derek Holland	SF	vs. PIT	1.80 ERA, .80 WHIP with 24 K and 3 BB last 20 IP
66	Joe Musgrove	PIT	at COL, at SF
67	Drew Pomeranz	BOS	at TOR, at BAL	Could be pitchinh for rotation spot, if he still has it
68	Jakob Junis	KC	vs. CHC, vs. STL	Walks have been an issue lately
69	Jaime Barria	LAA	vs. DET
70	Zack Wheeler	NYM	at MIA
71	Trevor Williams	PIT	at SF
72	Marco Estrada	TOR	vs. TB
73	Trevor Richards	MIA	vs. STL
74	Anthony DeSclafani	CIN	vs. ARI
75	Jose Berrios	MIN	at CLE
76	Jake Faria	TB	vs. BAL
77	Burch Smith	KC	vs. STL
78	Brian Johnson	BOS	at TOR
79	Tyson Ross	STL	at KC
80	John Gant	STL	at MIA
81	Corey Oswalt	NYM	at MIA
82	Marco Gonzales	SEA	at TEX	Rangers crushing lefthanders lately
83	Felix Pena	LAA	vs. OAK
84	Sal Romano	CIN	at NYM
85	Andrew Suarez	SF	vs. PIT
86	Tyler Anderson	COL	vs. LAD
87	Pablo Lopez	MIA	vs. STL
88	Gio Gonzalez	WAS	vs. ATL
89	Mike Minor	TEX	at NYY
90	Anibal Sanchez	ATL	at WAS
91	Clay Buchholz	ARI	at CIN
92	Kyle Freeland	COL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD
93	Ryan Borucki	TOR	vs. BOS
94	Jon Lester	CHC	vs. WAS
95	Dylan Bundy	BAL	vs. BOS
96	Mike Leake	SEA	at HOU
97	Nick Pivetta	PHI	at ARI
98	Wade LeBlanc	SEA	at TEX, at HOU	Skills still solid, high homers lately inflating ERA
99	Felix Hernandez	SEA	at TEX, at HOU
100	Tyler Glasnow	TB	vs. BAL, at TOR
101	Alex Cobb	BAL	at TB, vs. BOS
102	Homer Bailey	CIN	at NYM
103	Mike Foltynewicz	ATL	at WAS
104	Tanner Roark	WAS	at CHC
105	Vince Velasquez	PHI	at ARI
106	Ross Stripling	LAD	at COL
107	Robert Stephenson	CIN	at NYM
108	Reynaldo Lopez	CWS	vs. NYY
109	Carlos Rodon	CWS	vs. CLE
110	Francisco Liriano	DET	vs. MIN
111	Clayton Richard	SD	at MIL, vs. PHI
112	Ty Blach	SF	vs. PIT
113	Yonny Chirinos	TB	at TOR
114	Mike Fiers	DET	at LAA
115	Matt Harvey	CIN	vs. ARI
116	Walker Buehler	LAD	at COL
117	Danny Duffy	KC	vs. STL
118	Brett Kennedy	SD	at MIL	Replacing Tyson Ross
119	Jeremy Hellickson	WAS	at CHC
120	Jon Gray	COL	vs. LAD
121	Dylan Covey	CWS	vs. NYY, vs. CLE
122	Trevor Cahill	OAK	at LAA
123	Bartolo Colon	TEX	vs. SEA
124	Jordan Zimmermann	DET	vs. MIN
125	Andrew Cashner	BAL	at TB
126	Lucas Giolito	CWS	vs. NYY	Quietly pitching well over the second half but this is a tall order
127	Kenta Maeda	LAD	at COL
128	Jason Vargas	NYM	vs. CIN
129	Ryan Yarbrough	TB	at TOR
130	Chris Archer	PIT	at COL
131	Jefry Rodriguez	WAS	vs. ATL
132	Brett Anderson	OAK	vs. LAD
133	James Shields	CWS	vs. CLE
134	Martin Perez	TEX	vs. SEA, at NYY
135	Tommy Milone	WAS	vs. ATL
136	Edwin Jackson	OAK	at LAA
137	Jake Odorizzi	MIN	at CLE
138	German Marquez	COL	vs. PIT
139	Eric Lauer	SD	vs. PHI
140	Chad Bettis	COL	vs. PIT, vs. LAD
141	Wade Miley	MIL	at ATL
142	Robbie Erlin	SD	at MIL
143	Adalberto Mejia	MIN	at CLE, at DET
144	Yefry Ramirez	BAL	vs. BOS
145	Max Fried	ATL	at WAS
146	Jimmy Yacabonis	BAL	vs. BOS
147	Sam Gaviglio	TOR	vs. TB
148	Brad Keller	KC	vs. CHC
149	Mike Hauschild	TOR	vs. BOS
150	David Hess	BAL	at TB
151	Ariel Jurado	TEX	at NYY
152	Drew Hutchison	TEX	at NYY
153	Heath Fillmyer	KC	vs. CHC
154	Yovani Gallardo	TEX	vs. SEA