This article is part of our Weekly Pitcher Rankings series.
As always, remember that rotations are subject to change, so if you see something that isn't correct, assume that it was a change that has occurred since this was written and feel free to politely bring it up in the comments, and I'll let you know where the new arm slots.
For the week June 16-22
AMERICAN LEAGUE
For the week June 16-22
AMERICAN LEAGUE
START
1. Masahiro Tanaka - TOR, BAL Note: Tanaka's ERA hasn't been above 3.00 since it was at 3.21 back on April 9 |
2. Max Scherzer - KC, at CLE Note: The 25:5 K:BB ratio said his four-start rough patch wasn't much to worry about; his first career CG on Thursday confirmed it |
3. Jon Lester - MIN, at OAK |
4. Felix Hernandez - at SD Note: Hernandez against the Padres can actually out-do some two-start guys, especially since these next three guys all have at least one tough outing |
5. Dallas Keuchel - at WAS, at TB Note: Time to believe if you're still holding out for some reason |
6. Yordano Ventura - at DET, SEA |
7. Phil Hughes - at BOS, CWS Note: Hughes walked six in his first four outings; he's walked two in the nine since (both in the same game) |
8. Yu Darvish - at OAK |
9. Chris Sale - SF Note: The DL stint seemed to be his spinach - 1.69 ERA, 0.53 WHIP, and 19.5 K:BB ratio in 32 IP since returning |
10. Hisashi Iwakuma - at KC |
11. David Price - HOU Note: Turning |
As always, remember that rotations are subject to change, so if you see something that isn't correct, assume that it was a change that has occurred since this was written and feel free to politely bring it up in the comments, and I'll let you know where the new arm slots.
For the week June 16-22
AMERICAN LEAGUE
SIT
NATIONAL LEAGUE
SIT
MLB TOP 100
For the week June 16-22
AMERICAN LEAGUE
START
1. Masahiro Tanaka - TOR, BAL Note: Tanaka's ERA hasn't been above 3.00 since it was at 3.21 back on April 9 |
2. Max Scherzer - KC, at CLE Note: The 25:5 K:BB ratio said his four-start rough patch wasn't much to worry about; his first career CG on Thursday confirmed it |
3. Jon Lester - MIN, at OAK |
4. Felix Hernandez - at SD Note: Hernandez against the Padres can actually out-do some two-start guys, especially since these next three guys all have at least one tough outing |
5. Dallas Keuchel - at WAS, at TB Note: Time to believe if you're still holding out for some reason |
6. Yordano Ventura - at DET, SEA |
7. Phil Hughes - at BOS, CWS Note: Hughes walked six in his first four outings; he's walked two in the nine since (both in the same game) |
8. Yu Darvish - at OAK |
9. Chris Sale - SF Note: The DL stint seemed to be his spinach - 1.69 ERA, 0.53 WHIP, and 19.5 K:BB ratio in 32 IP since returning |
10. Hisashi Iwakuma - at KC |
11. David Price - HOU Note: Turning up the command to match the control w/a 13.5 K:BB ratio and just 1 HR allowed in his last three starts (22.3 IP) |
12. Anibal Sanchez - KC |
13. Corey Kluber - DET Note: 9 Ks in his last two combined after 9+ in five of his previous six outings |
14. Scott Kazmir - BOS Note: He's ascended to become OAK's ace |
15. Drew Hutchison - at NYY Note: Continues to just obliterate folks on the road - 1.79 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 4.9 K:BB ratio in nine road starts |
16. Sonny Gray - TEX |
17. James Shields - SEA |
18. Alex Cobb - BAL Note: Dominating HOU isn't the cakewalk it used to be so it was nice to see Cobb drop a 6.3 IP/1 ER gem with 11 Ks |
19. John Lackey - MIN Note: Five straight QS incl. the last three against CLE, DET, and CLE |
20. Chris Archer - HOU Note: Started to turn in mid-May despite BB issues, but has now quelled BBs en route to an 0.87 ERA in his last 5 starts |
21. C.J. Wilson - at CLE |
22. Hiroki Kuroda - BAL |
23. Jesse Chavez - BOS Note: Allowed more than 1 ER just once in 6 April starts and has allowed 2 ER in his 7 starts since then, but still no more than 4 ER in a single start |
24. Jose Quintana - at MIN Note: It seems the more I write about how steady he is, the worse his outings are w/back-to-back duds |
25. Collin McHugh - at TB Note: Walks have bitten him in his last two - 8 BB in 9.3 IP, but the Ks remain there with 6 in each of those starts |
26. Marcus Stroman - at NYY, at CIN Note: Posted a 2.50 ERA and 8.5 K:BB in his 3 starts (all QS) |
27. Jered Weaver - at CLE, TEX Note: That CLE matchup really mitigates the value of a two-start week as they're killing righties |
28. Drew Pomeranz - TEX, BOS |
29. John Danks - SF, at MIN Note: 4 straight QS all 7+ IP; both of his opp are below league average in wOBA vs. LHP |
30. Colby Lewis - at OAK, at LAA Note: That .394 BABIP has to even out and when it does, so too will his astronomical ERA |
31. Justin Verlander - KC, at CLE Note: This feels wrong… because it might actually be too high |
32. Jason Vargas - at DET, SEA |
33. Tommy Milone - TEX, BOS Note: Milone maintaining his home/road splits - use him here |
34. Roenis Elias - SD, at KC |
35. Jake Odorizzi - BAL, HOU Note: The 8.0 K:BB ratio and 1.06 WHIP over his last 4 starts suggest he's deserved much better than a 4.57 ERA in those 21.7 IP |
36. Mark Buehrle - at NYY Note: I think there's still at least a run to be added to that 2.28 and that'd still be a brilliant season |
37. R.A Dickey - at CIN |
38. Trevor Bauer - LAA |
39. Drew Smyly - KC |
40. Chase Whitley - TOR Note: Wasn't really a prospect, but impeccable command can make up for modest stuff |
41. Rick Porcello - at CLE Note: I like both Porcello and Richards overall, but CLE is a rough matchup |
42. Garrett Richards - at CLE |
43. David Phelps - TOR Note: He's been inconsistent as an SP, but the talent is there for sustainted success |
44. Wei-Yin Chen - at TB, at NYY Note: The HRs keep his ceiling in the high-3.00s to low-4.00s, but he's a useful deep league option with that 5.2 K:BB ratio |
45. Danny Duffy - at DET |
46. Brad Peacock - at TB Note: He's got a 3.34 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and 29 Ks in 29.7 IP over his last 5 starts |
47. Matt Shoemaker - at CLE, TEX |
48. Chris Tillman - at NYY |
SIT
49. Jarred Cosart - at TB |
50. Bud Norris - at NYY Note: Can still look brilliant as he did vs. BOS his last time out, but that's the exception these days |
51. Erik Bedard - BAL, HOU Note: Just doesn't go deep enough for a 2-start week to be that special |
52. Josh Tomlin - LAA, DET Note: Too many HRs makes this slate difficult, but I love the 5.4 K:BB ratio through 46 IP |
53. Ubaldo Jimenez - at TB |
54. Justin Masterson - LAA |
55. Scott Feldman - at WAS |
56. J.A. Happ - at CIN |
57. Ricky Nolasco - CWS |
58. Hector Santiago - TEX Note: This could be Skaggs if he's ready to return |
59. Rubby de la Rosa - MIN, at OAK Note: The second of these starts could go to Buchholz if he's ready or Workman if he somehow wins his suspension appeal |
60. Felix Doubront - at OAK |
61. Jake Peavy - at OAK |
62. Kyle Gibson - at BOS |
63. Kevin Correia - at BOS, CWS Note: He'll probably work his way back to the low-to-mid 4.00s we've seen the last few years meaning he's got a run-plus to shave off |
64. Chris Young - SD, at KC |
65. Miguel Gonzalez - at TB Note: This could be Gausman if Gonzo isn't ready |
66. Zach McAllister - LAA |
67. Nick Tepesch -at OAK |
68. Nick Martinez - at LAA |
69. Jeremy Guthrie - at DET |
70. Erasmo Ramirez - at SD |
71. Vidal Nuno - BAL |
72. Samuel Deduno - CWS |
73. Hector Noesi - at MIN |
74. T.J. House -DET |
75. Andre Rienzo - at MIN |
76. Joe Saunders - at LAA |
NATIONAL LEAGUE
START
1. Johnny Cueto - at PIT, TOR Note: The Reds offense should be embarrassed that he's 6-5 |
2. Cole Hamels - at ATL, at STL Note: Had a 7.02 ERA in his first 3 starts; then a 1.78 in his last 7 |
3. Julio Teheran - PHI, at WAS Note: I fully expect a bounce back from Coors dud |
4. Michael Wacha - NYM, PHI Note: Just 1 K in last 2 starts, but KC and TB are the first- and fourth-toughest teams to fan |
5. Hyun-Jin Ryu - COL, at SD |
6. Clayton Kershaw - COL |
7. Madison Bumgarner - at ARI |
8. Stephen Strasburg - ATL Note: 10 straight QS yielding a 2.04 ERA with 75 Ks in 66.3 IP |
9. Doug Fister - ATL |
10. Jordan Zimmermann - ATL Note: 3 start run of excellence has dropped his ERA from 4.07 to 2.98; he's back |
11. Zack Greinke - COL |
12. Adam Wainwright - NYM, PHI Note: We should know by the end of the weekend if the Monday start will happen |
13. Jon Niese - at STL, at MIA Note: I see him as a Zimmermann-lite (from the left side, of course) |
14. Tyson Ross - at SEA, LAD Note: 8 starts of 0-1 ER mitigates the inconsistency of the occasional 5 ER dud |
15. Jason Hammel - at MIA, PIT Note: The ERA is well-supported by his component numbers |
16. Tanner Roark - HOU, ATL |
17. Andrew Cashner - SEA |
18. Josh Beckett - at SD |
19. Gerrit Cole - at CHC Note: Slated to return, but stay tuned to our news section to see how that Sunday side session goes as it will determine his status for next week |
20. Gio Gonzalez - HOU Note: Could wind up facing ATL instead which might actually be the easier of the two matchups |
21. Homer Bailey - at PIT Note: He was rolling toward his fifth straight QS before a rough seventh inning in Milwaukee |
22. Mat Latos - TOR Note: Monitor his return on Saturday to get an idea of how he looks, but I'm putting him in my lineup right away |
23. Bartolo Colon - at STL Note: Buying anywhere I can, especially if the 4.15 ERA offers a discount |
24. Mike Minor - at WAS Note: Has allowed 14 of his 23 ER in a pair of starts incl. one in Coors; I'm still buying |
25. Jeff Samardzija - at MIA |
26. Nathan Eovaldi - CHC Note: Responding to his last 6 ER outing w/a 2.57 ERA in 4 starts; let's see how he responds to this one against PIT |
27. Ian Kennedy - LAD Note: The skills say he deserves better than his 3.63 ERA; I'm buying |
28. Zack Wheeler - at MIA |
29. Lance Lynn - NYM Note: He's lulling us back into security, maybe this time he won't ruin it with a random 5 ER outing |
30. Tim Hudson - at CWS Note: The NL's Buehrle |
31. Jake Arrieta - at MIA Note: The skills are really supporting the surge of this former blue-chip prospect |
32. Dan Haren - at SD |
33. Ervin Santana - PHI, at WAS Note: Not as good as his 0.86 ERA in the first 3 starts, but not as bad as the 5.30 over his last 9 |
34. Kyle Lohse - at ARI, at COL Note: Lohse & Peralta heading to Coors bumps 'em down |
35. Wily Peralta - at ARI, at COL |
36. Alfredo Simon - at PIT Note: 3 QS to open June has earned him the spot over Cingrani with Latos returning |
37. Aaron Harang - PHI Note: 4 straight QS and 7 of 8 |
38. Gavin Floyd - at WAS |
39. Matt Cain - at CWS |
40. Henderson Alvarez - NYM |
41. Ryan Vogelsong - at ARI |
42. Jaime Garcia - PHI Note: Didn't walk anyone through his first four, but HRs have kept the ERA inflated as a 0.95 WHIP portends better days |
43. Travis Wood - PIT |
44. Mike Leake - TOR |
45. Chase Anderson - MIL Note: Too many HR to fully trust the low-3.00s ERA |
46. Wade Miley - MIL, SF |
47. Charlie Morton - at CHC Note: Gets his 4th start vs. CHC - 2.84 ERA in 19 IP so far |
48. Matt Garza - at ARI |
49. Yovani Gallardo - at ARI |
50. A.J. Burnett - at STL Note: Still too many BB to fully trust, but improved control would greatly turn his season |
51. Edinson Volquez - CIN Note: Turning a corner with a 2.48 ERA and 25 Ks in his last 29 IP? |
52. Brandon Cumpton - CIN, at CHC Note: 10 ER trip to LAD is skewing his numbers; 3.72 ERA in his other five starts |
53. Jeff Locke - CIN |
54. Tom Koehler - CHC, NYM Note: Skills profile is unimpressive, but he's looked great in spurts and this is an excellent pair of matchups |
SIT
55. Tyler Matzek - at LAD, MIL Note: Very intrigued by the former blue-chipper, but I worry about the control even with a 0 BB debut |
56. Brandon McCarthy - MIL, SF Note: Strong ERA indicators can only do so much, at some point you have to stop allowing 5 ER all the time |
57. Shelby Miller - PHI Note: I have no idea how this wizard shutout TOR in the Rogers Centre, but I remain skeptical of the inconsistent youngster |
58. Jacob deGrom - at STL, at MIA |
59. Edwin Jackson - PIT |
60. Tim Lincecum - at ARI |
61. Bronson Arroyo - SF Note: Consistently inconsistent with 1, 5, 1, 5, 4, 1 ER over his last 6 starts |
62. Daisuke Matsuzaka - at MIA Note: Still too many BB |
63. Jorge de la Rosa - at LAD |
64. Jacob Turner - CHC, NYM |
65. Randy Wolf - NYM |
66. Marco Estrada - at COL Note: This could be reeeaaallllyyyy bad |
67. Jesse Hahn - SEA |
68. Jhoulys Chacin - at LAD |
69. Kyle Kendrick - at ATL, at STL |
70. Juan Nicasio - MIL |
71. David Buchanan - at STL |
72. Eric Stults - at SEA, LAD |
73. Josh Collmenter - MIL |
74. Christian Bergman - MIL |
75. Roberto Hernandez - at ATL |
MLB TOP 100
1. Johnny Cueto - at PIT, TOR Note: The Reds offense should be embarrassed that he's 6-5 |
2. Cole Hamels - at ATL, at STL Note: Had a 7.02 ERA in his first 3 starts; then a 1.78 in his last 7 |
3. Masahiro Tanaka - TOR, BAL Note: Tanaka's ERA hasn't been above 3.00 since it was at 3.21 back on April 9th |
4. Max Scherzer - KC, at CLE Note: The 25:5 K:BB ratio said his four-start rough patch wasn't much to worry about; his first career CG on Thursday confirmed it |
5. Julio Teheran - PHI, at WAS Note: I fully expect a bounce back from Coors dud |
6. Michael Wacha - NYM, PHI Note: Just 1 K in last 2 starts, but KC and TB are the first- and fourth-toughest teams to fan |
7. Hyun-Jin Ryu - COL, at SD |
8. Jon Lester - MIN, at OAK |
9. Felix Hernandez - at SD Note: Hernandez against the Padres can actually out-do some two-start guys, especially since these next three guys all have at least one tough outing |
10. Dallas Keuchel - at WAS, at TB Note: Time to believe if you're still holding out for some reason |
11. Yordano Ventura - at DET, SEA |
12. Phil Hughes - at BOS, CWS Note: Hughes walked six in his first four outings; he's walked two in the nine since (both in the same game) |
13. Clayton Kershaw - COL |
14. Madison Bumgarner - at ARI |
15. Stephen Strasburg - ATL Note: 10 straight QS yielding a 2.04 ERA with 75 Ks in 66.3 IP |
16. Yu Darvish - at OAK |
17. Chris Sale - SF Note: The DL stint seemed to be his spinach - 1.69 ERA, 0.53 WHIP, and 19.5 K:BB ratio in 32 IP since returning |
18. Hisashi Iwakuma - at KC |
19. Doug Fister - ATL |
20. Jordan Zimmermann - ATL Note: 3 start run of excellence has dropped his ERA from 4.07 to 2.98; he's back |
21. Zack Greinke - COL |
22. Adam Wainwright - NYM, PHI Note: We should know by the end of the weekend if the Monday start will happen |
23. Jon Niese - at STL, at MIA Note: I see him as a Zimmermann-lite (from the left side, of course) |
24. Tyson Ross - at SEA, LAD Note: 8 starts of 0-1 ER mitigates the inconsistency of the occasional 5 ER dud |
25. Jason Hammel - at MIA, PIT Note: The ERA is well-supported by his component numbers |
26. Tanner Roark - HOU, ATL |
27. David Price - HOU Note: Turning up the command to match the control w/a 13.5 K:BB ratio and just 1 HR allowed in his last three starts (22.3 IP) |
28. Anibal Sanchez - KC |
29. Corey Kluber - DET Note: 9 Ks in his last two combined after 9+ in five of his previous six outings |
30. Scott Kazmir - BOS Note: He's ascended to become OAK's ace |
31. Drew Hutchison - at NYY Note: Continues to just obliterate folks on the road - 1.79 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 4.9 K:BB ratio in nine road starts |
32. Sonny Gray - TEX |
33. James Shields - SEA |
34. Alex Cobb - BAL Note: Dominating HOU isn't the cakewalk it used to be so it was nice to see Cobb drop a 6.3 IP/1 ER gem with 11 Ks |
35. Andrew Cashner - SEA |
36. Josh Beckett - at SD |
37. John Lackey - MIN Note: Five straight QS incl. the last three against CLE, DET, and CLE |
38. Chris Archer - HOU Note: Started to turn in mid-May despite BB issues, but has now quelled BBs en route to an 0.87 ERA in his last 5 starts |
39. C.J. Wilson - at CLE |
40. Gerrit Cole - at CHC Note: Slated to return, but stay tuned to our news section to see how that Sunday side session goes as it will determine his status for next week |
41. Gio Gonzalez - HOU Note: Could wind up facing ATL instead which might actually be the easier of the two matchups |
42. Homer Bailey - at PIT Note: He was rolling toward his fifth straight QS before a rough seventh inning in Milwaukee |
43. Mat Latos - TOR Note: Monitor his return on Saturday to get an idea of how he looks, but I'm putting him in my lineup right away |
44. Bartolo Colon - at STL Note: Buying anywhere I can, especially if the 4.15 ERA offers a discount |
45. Mike Minor - at WAS Note: Has allowed 14 of his 23 ER in a pair of starts incl. one in Coors; I'm still buying |
46. Jeff Samardzija - at MIA |
47. Nathan Eovaldi - CHC Note: Responding to his last 6 ER outing w/a 2.57 ERA in 4 starts; let's see how he responds to this one against PIT |
48. Ian Kennedy - LAD Note: The skills say he deserves better than his 3.63 ERA; I'm buying |
49. Zack Wheeler - at MIA |
50. Lance Lynn - NYM Note: He's lulling us back into security, maybe this time he won't ruin it with a random 5 ER outing |
51. Tim Hudson - at CWS Note: The NL's Buehrle |
52. Jake Arrieta - at MIA Note: The skills are really supporting the surge of this former blue-chip prospect |
53. Dan Haren - at SD |
54. Hiroki Kuroda - BAL |
55. Jesse Chavez - BOS Note: Allowed more than 1 ER just once in 6 April starts and has allowed 2 ER in his 7 starts since then, but still no more than 4 ER in a single start |
56. Jose Quintana - at MIN Note: It seems the more I write about how steady he is, the worse his outings are w/back-to-back duds |
57. Collin McHugh - at TB Note: Walks have bitten him in his last two - 8 BB in 9.3 IP, but the Ks remain there with 6 in each of those starts |
58. Marcus Stroman - at NYY, at CIN Note: Posted a 2.50 ERA and 8.5 K:BB in his 3 starts (all QS) |
59. Jered Weaver - at CLE, TEX Note: That CLE matchup really mitigates the value of a two-start week as they're killing righties |
60. Ervin Santana - PHI, at WAS Note: Not as good as his 0.86 ERA in the first 3 starts, but not as bad as the 5.30 over his last 9 |
61. Kyle Lohse - at ARI, at COL Note: Lohse & Peralta heading to Coors bumps 'em down |
62. Wily Peralta - at ARI, at COL |
63. Drew Pomeranz - TEX, BOS |
64. John Danks - SF, at MIN Note: 4 straight QS all 7+ IP; both of his opp are below league average in wOBA vs. LHP |
65. Colby Lewis - at OAK, at LAA Note: That .394 BABIP has to even out and when it does, so too will his astronomical ERA |
66. Justin Verlander - KC, at CLE Note: This feels wrong… because it might actually be too high |
67. Jason Vargas - at DET, SEA |
68. Tommy Milone - TEX, BOS Note: Milone maintaining his home/road splits - use him here |
69. Roenis Elias - SD, at KC |
70. Jake Odorizzi - BAL, HOU Note: The 8.0 K:BB ratio and 1.06 WHIP over his last 4 starts suggest he's deserved much better than a 4.57 ERA in those 21.7 IP |
71. Mark Buehrle - at NYY Note: I think there's still at least a run to be added to that 2.28 and that'd still be a brilliant season |
72. R.A Dickey - at CIN |
73. Alfredo Simon - at PIT Note: 3 QS to open June has earned him the spot over Cingrani with Latos returning |
74. Aaron Harang - PHI Note: 4 straight QS and 7 of 8 |
75. Gavin Floyd - at WAS |
76. Matt Cain - at CWS |
77. Henderson Alvarez - NYM |
78. Ryan Vogelsong - at ARI |
79. Jaime Garcia - PHI Note: Didn't walk anyone through his first four, but HRs have kept the ERA inflated as a 0.95 WHIP portends better days |
80. Trevor Bauer - LAA |
81. Drew Smyly - KC |
82. Chase Whitley - TOR Note: Wasn't really a prospect, but impeccable command can make up for modest stuff |
83. Travis Wood - PIT |
84. Mike Leake - TOR |
85. Chase Anderson - MIL Note: Too many HR to fully trust the low-3.00s ERA |
86. Wade Miley - MIL, SF |
87. Charlie Morton - at CHC Note: Gets his 4th start vs. CHC - 2.84 ERA in 19 IP so far |
88. Matt Garza - at ARI |
89. Yovani Gallardo - at ARI |
90. A.J. Burnett - at STL Note: Still too many BB to fully trust, but improved control would greatly turn his season |
91. Edinson Volquez - CIN Note: Turning a corner with a 2.48 ERA and 25 Ks in his last 29 IP? |
92. Brandon Cumpton - CIN, at CHC Note: 10 ER trip to LAD is skewing his numbers; 3.72 ERA in his other five starts |
93. Jeff Locke - CIN |
94. Rick Porcello - at CLE Note: I like both Porcello and Richards overall, but CLE is a rough matchup |
95. Garrett Richards - at CLE |
96. David Phelps - TOR Note: He's been inconsistent as an SP, but the talent is there for sustainted success |
97. Wei-Yin Chen - at TB, at NYY Note: The HRs keep his ceiling in the high-3.00s to low-4.00s, but he's a useful deep league option with that 5.2 K:BB ratio |
98. Danny Duffy - at DET |
99. Brad Peacock - at TB Note: He's got a 3.34 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and 29 Ks in 29.7 IP over his last 5 starts |
100. Matt Shoemaker - at CLE, TEX |