Ranking |
Starting Pitchers |
| 1 | Clayton Kershaw – LAD |
| 2 | Felix Hernandez – Sea |
| 3 | Max Scherzer – Was |
| 4 | Madison Bumgarner – SF |
| 5 | Chris Sale – CWS |
| 6 | David Price – Det |
| 7 | Stephen Strasburg – Was |
| 8 | Corey Kluber – Cle |
| 9 | Johnny Cueto – Cin |
| 10 | Zack Greinke – LAD |
| 11 | Cole Hamels – Phi |
| 12 | Jeff Samardzija – CWS |
| 13 | Jordan Zimmermann – Was |
| 14 | Jon Lester – ChC |
| 15 | Alexander Cobb – TB |
| 16 | Hisashi Iwakuma – Sea |
| 17 | Alex Wood – Atl |
| 18 | Gio Gonzalez – Was |
| 19 | Adam Wainwright – StL |
| 20 | Julio Teheran – Atl |
| 21 | James Shields – SD |
| 22 | Sonny Gray – Oak |
| 23 | Gerrit Cole – Pit |
| 24 | Matt Harvey – NYM |
| 25 | Jake Arrieta – ChC |
| 26 | Tyson Ross – SD |
| 27 | Carlos Carrasco – Cle |
| 28 | Hyun-Jin Ryu – LAD |
| 29 | Jacob DeGrom – NYM |
| 30 | Ian Kennedy – SD |
| 31 | Phil Hughes – Min |
| 32 | Lance Lynn – StL |
| 33 | Chris Archer – TB |
| 34 | Michael Fiers – Mil |
| 35 | Drew Smyly – TB |
| 36 | Jose Quintana – CWS |
| 37 | Andrew Cashner – SD |
| 38 | Anibal Sanchez – Det |
| 39 | Michael Wacha – StL |
| 40 | Garrett Richards – LAA |
| 41 | Justin Verlander – Det |
| 42 | Doug Fister – Was |
| 43 | Mat Latos – Mia |
| 44 | Collin McHugh – Hou |
| 45 | Yordano Ventura – KC |
| 46 | Masahiro Tanaka – NYY |
| 47 | Michael Pineda – NYY |
| 48 | Homer Bailey – Cin |
| 49 | Scott Kazmir – Oak |
| 50 | Danny Salazar – Cle |
| 51 | Francisco Liriano – Pit |
| 52 | Chris Tillman – Bal |
| 53 | Kevin Gausman – Bal |
| 54 | Bud Norris – Bal |
| 55 | Jake Odorizzi – TB |
| 56 | Jose Fernandez – Mia |
| 57 | Drew Hutchison – Tor |
| 58 | Matt Shoemaker – LAA |
| 59 | Derek Holland – Tex |
| 60 | Jered Weaver – LAA |
| 61 | Shelby Miller – Atl |
| 62 | A.J. Burnett – Pit |
| 63 | Dallas Keuchel – Hou |
| 64 | Brandon McCarthy – LAD |
| 65 | John Lackey – StL |
| 66 | Trevor Bauer – Cle |
| 67 | Kyle Lohse – Mil |
| 68 | Yusmeiro Petit – SF |
| 69 | Rick Porcello – Bos |
| 70 | Ervin Santana – Min |
| 71 | Danny Duffy – KC |
| 72 | R.A. Dickey – Tor |
| 73 | Taijuan Walker – Sea |
| 74 | Matt Cain – SF |
| 75 | Shane Greene – Det |
| 76 | James Paxton – Sea |
| 77 | Tanner Roark – Was |
| 78 | Jesse Hahn – Oak |
| 79 | Henderson Alvarez – Mia |
| 80 | Jenrry Mejia – NYM |
| 81 | Wade Miley – Bos |
| 82 | Jonathon Niese – NYM |
| 83 | Clay Buchholz – Bos |
| 84 | CC Sabathia – NYY |
| 85 | Mike Minor – Atl |
| 86 | Wily Peralta – Mil |
| 87 | Matt Garza – Mil |
| 88 | Anthony Cingrani – Cin |
| 89 | Jake Peavy – SF |
| 90 | Yovani Gallardo – Tex |
| 91 | Wei-Yin Chen – Bal |
| 92 | Mike Leake – Cin |
| 93 | Carlos Martinez – StL |
| 94 | Kyle Hendricks – ChC |
| 95 | Aaron Sanchez – Tor |
| 96 | Andrew Heaney – LAA |
| 97 | Dan Haren – Mia |
| 98 | Jason Hammel – ChC |
| 99 | Nathan Eovaldi – NYY |
| 100 | Drew Pomeranz – Oak |
| 101 | C.J. Wilson – LAA |
| 102 | Alfredo Simon – Det |
| 103 | Tim Lincecum – SF |
| 104 | Anthony DeSclafani – Cin |
| 105 | Jeremy Hellickson – Ari |
| 106 | Jimmy Nelson – Mil |
| 107 | Bartolo Colon – NYM |
| 108 | Josh Collmenter – Ari |
| 109 | Scott Feldman – Hou |
| 110 | Tom Koehler – Mia |
| 111 | Miguel Gonzalez – Bal |
| 112 | T.J. House – Cle |
| 113 | David Phelps – Mia |
| 114 | Jorge De La Rosa – Col |
| 115 | Kyle Gibson – Min |
| 116 | Mark Buehrle – Tor |
| 117 | Patrick Corbin – Ari |
| 118 | Marco Estrada – Tor |
| 119 | Tim Hudson – SF |
| 120 | Brandon Morrow – SD |
Starting Pitcher Notables
Jeff Samardzija (Chicago White Sox). Once aces come flying off the board, a team that misses out may feel way behind the 8-ball in terms of finding a quality starting pitcher. Samardzija has the ability to deliver ace numbers for the price of a No. 2 SP. He suddenly starting throwing first-pitch strikes at an elite level, leading to excellent walk numbers to go with his already quality strikeout production. His upside is a healthy Cliff Lee in his prime; his floor makes him a top-15 starter.
Hisashi Iwakuma (Seattle Mariners). While Iwakuma doesn’t have the strikeout production of a clear-cut ace, he has everything else you could want: pinpoint control, good health and a general penchant for avoiding complete duds. Pair him with a high-strikeout ace and you have an excellent 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation, allowing you to fill out most of the offense before dipping back into the SP pool.
Mike Fiers (Milwaukee Brewers). Fiers was excellent in his first look in 2012 but so horrendous in 2013 that many owners swore they would never own him again. Others snapped him up last season and were rewarded with ace-level production. He’s the rare commodity who can get strikeouts without overwhelming stuff, and with the team handing him a rotation spot and a consistent role, he should be over the valleys of past years.
Jose Fernandez (Miami Marlins). Where you should target Fernandez rests solely on the structure of your league. If you have ample DL or bench slots, he’s well worth burning a mid-round pick to own for the second half, as his talent is nearly unmatched in baseball. I have no issue targeting him outside the top 40-50 starting pitchers – if you end up having a team stocked with healthy, quality pitchers, you can revel in the fact that Fernandez’s trade value is only going to shoot skyward the closer he gets from a return.
