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 Aug. 25-31
AMERICAN LEAGUE
For the week Aug. 25-31
AMERICAN LEAGUE
START
| 1. Felix Hernandez - TEX Note: Back-to-back sub-6 IP outings aren't enough to lose the top spot |
| 2. Corey Kluber - at CWS |
| 3. Max Scherzer - at CWS |
| 4. David Price - NYY Note: Probably figured his run support issues to be long gone, but he's 1-1 in 4 GS with DET thanks to 13 runs on his behalf |
| 5. Chris Sale - DET |
| 6. Hisashi Iwakuma - WAS |
| 7. Alex Cobb - at BAL, BOS Note: Has an insane 0.88 ERA in his last six starts (41 IP) with 46 Ks |
| 8. Jose Quintana - CLE, DET |
| 9. James Shields - NYY, CLE |
| 10. Dallas Keuchel - OAK, TEX |
| 11. Jake Odorizzi - at BAL, BOS Note: Has fanned at least 5 in 19 of his 25 starts; more than Sale, Samardzija, Lynn (18) |
| 12. Jeff Samardzija - at HOU, at LAA |
| 13. Michael Pineda - at KC, at TOR |
| 14. Matt Shoemaker - MIA, OAK Note: His no-hit bid in Boston garnered him some much-deserved attention, he's been really impressive this year |
| 15. Jon Lester - at LAA Note: Tough matchup, but he's been so good with OAK |
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 Aug. 25-31
AMERICAN LEAGUE
SIT
NATIONAL LEAGUE
SIT
MLB TOP 100
For the week Aug. 25-31
AMERICAN LEAGUE
START
| 1. Felix Hernandez - TEX Note: Back-to-back sub-6 IP outings aren't enough to lose the top spot |
| 2. Corey Kluber - at CWS |
| 3. Max Scherzer - at CWS |
| 4. David Price - NYY Note: Probably figured his run support issues to be long gone, but he's 1-1 in 4 GS with DET thanks to 13 runs on his behalf |
| 5. Chris Sale - DET |
| 6. Hisashi Iwakuma - WAS |
| 7. Alex Cobb - at BAL, BOS Note: Has an insane 0.88 ERA in his last six starts (41 IP) with 46 Ks |
| 8. Jose Quintana - CLE, DET |
| 9. James Shields - NYY, CLE |
| 10. Dallas Keuchel - OAK, TEX |
| 11. Jake Odorizzi - at BAL, BOS Note: Has fanned at least 5 in 19 of his 25 starts; more than Sale, Samardzija, Lynn (18) |
| 12. Jeff Samardzija - at HOU, at LAA |
| 13. Michael Pineda - at KC, at TOR |
| 14. Matt Shoemaker - MIA, OAK Note: His no-hit bid in Boston garnered him some much-deserved attention, he's been really impressive this year |
| 15. Jon Lester - at LAA Note: Tough matchup, but he's been so good with OAK |
| 16. Sonny Gray - at HOU |
| 17. Phil Hughes - at KC Note: That seven-start late-June to late-July slump (6.31 ERA) is punishing his bottom line (2.72 ERA in his other 102.7 IP) |
| 18. Scott Kazmir - at LAA |
| 19. Yordano Ventura - MIN Note: Since his 0 K game in BOS on July 20th - 2.84 ERA and 37 Ks in 38 IP |
| 20. Chris Archer - BOS |
| 21. Brandon McCarthy - at DET, at TOR |
| 22. Rick Porcello - NYY, at CWS |
| 23. Danny Duffy - MIN, CLE Note: Survived COL due to error erasing 4 ER, but impressed by the bounce-back seventh inning after grand slam in the sixth |
| 24. Drew Smyly - at BAL Note: Perhaps TB knew what they were doing? 1.55 ERA with 23 Ks and 3.8 K:BB ratio in 29 IP |
| 25. Shane Greene - at DET Note: His breakout start was against DET and they are playing even worse now |
| 26. Collin McHugh - TEX |
| 27. Jered Weaver - OAK |
| 28. Marcus Stroman - BOS Note: OK, now this is three duds in his last four; fatigue setting in? (career-high 127.7 IP) |
| 29. Justin Verlander - at CWS |
| 30. Jason Vargas - CLE Note: CLE carries fourth-lowest OPS vs. LHP; Vargas has 3.29 ERA and 1.02 WHIP vs. CLE in 2 GS |
| 31. Jeremy Hellickson - at BAL |
| 32. Wei-Yin Chen - TB, MIN |
| 33. James Paxton - TEX, WAS Note: Perhaps if he hadn't missed most of the year on the shelf, he'd have been given a longer leash in that tough outing at PHI |
| 34. Jason Hammel - at HOU, at LAA |
| 35. Chris Tillman - TB, MIN |
| 36. Hiroki Kuroda - at DET |
| 37. Hector Santiago - MIA |
| 38. Chris Young - WAS Note: Even though I've had a hard time buying Young this year, I don't think his start at BOS is anything more than a rough start |
| 39. Brett Oberholtzer - TEX |
| 40. Chris Capuano - at TOR |
| 41. Danny Salazar - at KC Note: Ks could be a challenge against KC with their league-best 15.5 percent K rate vs. RHP |
| 42. Rubby De La Rosa - at TOR Note: Two 8-K outings in his last three, both vs. LAA |
| 43. Kevin Gausman - TB Note: Showing signs every outing |
| 44. C.J. Wilson - OAK Note: Back-to-back useful outings are encouraging, but neither were close to flawless (1.58 WHIP) |
| 45. Carlos Carrasco - at CWS Note: Another a big outing, albeit against HOU, but still notable |
| 46. Miguel Gonzalez - MIN |
| 47. Bud Norris - TB Note: Has a 2.87 ERA in his last 10 starts with 51 Ks in 59.7 IP |
| 48. Trevor Bauer - at KC Note: Still wildly inconsistent, so now your team's risk tolerance needs to be the primary consideration with him |
| 49. R.A. Dickey - BOS Note: See also - Bauer, Trevor |
SIT
| 50. Kyle Gibson - at BAL |
| 51. T.J. House - at CWS, at KC |
| 52. Scott Feldman - OAK, TEX Note: Contact-heavy approach can be bumpy - 2, 7, 3, 6, 1, 1, 3, 7, and 2 ER in his last nine starts |
| 53. J.A. Happ - BOS, NYY |
| 54. Roenis Elias - TEX Note: He hasn't completed 6 IP since June 28th |
| 55. Jeremy Guthrie - MIN Note: Once you start to buy in, you get back-to-back 4 ER outings dropped on your head |
| 56. Drew Hutchison - NYY Note: I preferred it when he only got pounded at home (13 ER in last two, both on the road) |
| 57. Joe Kelly - at TOR |
| 58. Mark Buehrle - NYY |
| 59. John Danks - CLE |
| 60. Nick Tepesch - at HOU |
| 61. Nick Martinez - at SEA, at HOU |
| 62. Colby Lewis - at SEA |
| 63. Brandon Workman - at TB |
| 64. Brad Peacock - OAK |
| 65. Ricky Nolasco - at KC, at BAL |
| 66. Allen Webster - at TB |
| 67. Wade LeBlanc - MIA, OAK |
| 68. Tommy Milone - at KC |
| 69. Robbie Ray - NYY |
| 70. Hector Noesi -CLE |
| 71. Trevor May - at BAL |
| 72. Buck Farmer - at CWS Note: Likely to get a look as the other arm in a doubleheader with CWS on Saturday |
| 73. Clay Buchholz - at TOR, at TB |
| 74. Scott Carroll - DET |
| 75. Miles Mikolas - at SEA, at HOU |
| 76. Yu Darvish or replacement - at HOU Note: His Aug. 25 return date is said to be too aggressive now. Stay tuned. Obviously if it's Darvish, he's an auto-start back up near the top. |
NATIONAL LEAGUE
START
| 1. Clayton Kershaw - WAS, ARI Note: Great time for a two-start week in H2H leagues, especially if the playoffs have already started |
| 2. Johnny Cueto - CHC, at PIT |
| 3. Madison Bumgarner - COL, MIL Note: A bit more inconsistent this year with nine starts of 4-plus ER after just four all last year |
| 4. Cole Hamels - WAS |
| 5. Jake Arrieta - at CIN Note: See why we didn't worry after the rough start at COL? (1.27 ERA in 21.3 IP with 18 Ks since) |
| 6. Jordan Zimmermann - at SEA |
| 7. Stephen Strasburg - at SEA Note: Still not having a *bad* season just because he doesn't have a 2.50 ERA |
| 8. Julio Teheran - at NYM |
| 9. Adam Wainwright - at PIT Note: No longer a K force by rate, but volume (7 IP/start) keeps his totals solid |
| 10. Zack Greinke - ARI |
| 11. Lance Lynn - at PIT Note: Has a 1.73 ERA in his last nine starts spanning July and August |
| 12. Tyson Ross - MIL Note: No longer a road liability (3.44 ERA in 86.3 road IP) |
| 13. John Lackey - at PIT, CHC |
| 14. Zack Wheeler - ATL Note: Last year or even earlier this year, he probably lets that OAK start get away from him |
| 15. Ian Kennedy - LAD |
| 16. Gerrit Cole - STL Note: Came out blazing with a big seven-inning outing vs. ATL |
| 17. Doug Fister - at PHI |
| 18. Mat Latos - CHC |
| 19. Hyun-Jin Ryu - ARI Note: Stay tuned to ensure he's still slated to return later next week. Otherwise, it'll be Kevin Correia |
| 20. Yovani Gallardo - at SD |
| 21. Kyle Lohse - at SD, at SF Note: Common theme in any of his bad outings? Home runs. Both of these venues stifle the longball significantly |
| 22. Tanner Roark - at PHI, at SEA |
| 23. Alex Wood - at NYM, MIA |
| 24. Wily Peralta - at SF Note: Since allowing 9 ER vs. PHI on July 8 - 8 ER in seven starts (1.59 ERA) |
| 25. Mike Fiers - at SF |
| 26. Ervin Santana - MIA |
| 27. Gio Gonzalez - at PHI Note: The Ks made it easy to stick by him even when the results weren't there |
| 28. Wade Miley - LAD Note: Dodged raindrops in CIN (14 runners in 6.7 scoreless IP) |
| 29. Jon Niese - ATL |
| 30. Kyle Hendricks - at CIN Note: No free passes and keeping the ball in the yard alleviates the need for massive K totals |
| 31. Bartolo Colon - PHI |
| 32. Tim Hudson - COL |
| 33. Andrew Cashner - LAD Note: Could be a nice boost to a rotation down the stretch after missing over two months |
| 34. Jacob deGrom - PHI |
| 35. Chase Anderson - COL Note: Trip to WAS spoiled a big run, but stay the course |
| 36. Jimmy Nelson - at SD |
| 37. Aaron Harang - MIA Note: He's been pretty good all year save those three 5-plus ER disasters |
| 38. Ryan Vogelsong - MIL |
| 39. Mike Minor - at NYM Note: Coming out of it finally? 2.53 ERA and 19 Ks in last three starts (21.3 IP) |
| 40. Francisco Liriano - STL, CIN Note: Two-start weeks for volatile guys aren't always as embraced as normal two-start weeks |
| 41. Jake Peavy - COL, MIL |
| 42. Tom Koehler - at ATL Note: 2.70 ERA and 20 Ks in 20 IP vs. ATL this year |
| 43. Vance Worley - CIN Note: Four HRs allowed in two poor starts; just a blip or something more? Need to see more, but not afraid to use him vs. CIN |
| 44. David Buchanan - at NYM |
| 45. Mike Leake - CHC |
| 46. Tsuyoshi Wada - at STL Note: Missing more bats than I expected (7.7 K/9, 21 percent K rate) |
| 47. Jordan Lyles - at SF |
| 48. Dillon Gee - ATL, PHI |
| 49. Trevor Cahill - LAD Note: I always liked what Cahill had to offer at his best; he seems to have recovered at least a large portion of that form |
| 50. Edinson Volquez - CIN Note: Searage, you did it again! 2.22 ERA in his last 10 starts |
| 51. Henderson Alvarez - at LAA Note: That was pretty much what I expected in COL |
| 52. Roberto Hernandez - WAS Note: He does have a 2.94 ERA in his last 10 starts, but also a 1.4 K:BB ratio |
SIT
| 53. Dan Haren - WAS Note: Has a 2.70 ERA in his last four starts with 20 Ks, 5.0 K:BB ratio, but HRs still loom, ready to destroy any start at a moment's notice |
| 54. Jeff Locke - STL Note: Walked 13 in first 11 starts; has 12 in his last three |
| 55. Tim Lincecum - COL |
| 56. Alfredo Simon - at PIT Note: It wasn't a disaster, but he's benched |
| 57. A.J. Burnett - WAS, at NYM |
| 58. Jarred Cosart - at LAA, at ATL |
| 59. Justin Masterson - CHC |
| 60. Nathan Eovaldi - at LAA Note: Too volatile to trust against this offense |
| 61. Vidal Nuno - COL |
| 62. Jorge De La Rosa - at SF, at ARI |
| 63. Tyler Matzek - at SF, at ARI |
| 64. Shelby Miller - CHC Note: Just continues an incredible run of schedule luck, but he's squandering it (4.25 ERA in five straight vs. weak teams) |
| 65. Josh Collmenter - COL |
| 66. Brad Hand - at ATL |
| 67. Franklin Morales - at SF |
| 68. Eric Stults - MIL, LAD |
| 69. Dan Straily - at STL |
| 70. Kyle Kendrick - WAS |
| 71. Travis Wood - at CIN, at STL |
| 72. Jerome Williams - at NYM |
| 73. Odrisamer Despaigne - MIL |
| 74. Christian Bergman - at ARI |
| 75. Homer Bailey Replacement - at PIT Note: Doubt it will be David Holmberg again |
MLB TOP 100
| 1. Clayton Kershaw - WAS, ARI Note: Great time for a two-start week in H2H leagues, especially if the playoffs have already started |
| 2. Johnny Cueto - CHC, at PIT |
| 3. Madison Bumgarner - COL, MIL Note: A bit more inconsistent this year with nine starts of 4-plus ER after just four all last year |
| 4. Cole Hamels - WAS |
| 5. Felix Hernandez - TEX Note: Back-to-back sub-6 IP outings aren't enough to lose the top spot |
| 6. Jake Arrieta - at CIN Note: See why we didn't worry after the rough start at COL? (1.27 ERA in 21.3 IP with 18 Ks since) |
| 7. Corey Kluber - at CWS |
| 8. Max Scherzer - at CWS |
| 9. David Price - NYY Note: Probably figured his run support issues to be long gone, but he's 1-1 in 4 GS with DET thanks to 13 runs on his behalf |
| 10. Chris Sale - DET |
| 11. Hisashi Iwakuma - WAS |
| 12. Jordan Zimmermann - at SEA |
| 13. Stephen Strasburg - at SEA Note: Still not having a *bad* season just because he doesn't have a 2.50 ERA |
| 14. Julio Teheran - at NYM |
| 15. Adam Wainwright - at PIT Note: No longer a K force by rate, but volume (7 IP/start) keeps his totals solid |
| 16. Alex Cobb - at BAL, BOS Note: Has an insane 0.88 ERA in his last six starts (41 IP) with 46 Ks |
| 17. Jose Quintana - CLE, DET |
| 18. James Shields - NYY, CLE |
| 19. Dallas Keuchel - OAK, TEX |
| 20. Jake Odorizzi - at BAL, BOS Note: Has fanned at least 5 in 19 of his 25 starts; more than Sale, Samardzija, Lynn (18) |
| 21. Jeff Samardzija - at HOU, at LAA |
| 22. Michael Pineda - at KC, at TOR |
| 23. Matt Shoemaker - MIA, OAK Note: His no-hit bid in Boston garnered him some much-deserved attention, he's been really impressive this year |
| 24. Zack Greinke - ARI |
| 25. Lance Lynn - at PIT Note: Has a 1.73 ERA in his last nine starts spanning July and August |
| 26. Tyson Ross - MIL Note: No longer a road liability (3.44 ERA in 86.3 road IP) |
| 27. Jon Lester - at LAA Note: Tough matchup, but he's been so good with OAK |
| 28. Sonny Gray - at HOU |
| 29. Phil Hughes - at KC Note: That seven-start late-June to late-July slump (6.31 ERA) is punishing his bottom line (2.72 ERA in his other 102.7 IP) |
| 30. John Lackey - at PIT, CHC |
| 31. Zack Wheeler - ATL Note: Last year or even earlier this year, he probably lets that OAK start get away from him |
| 32. Ian Kennedy - LAD |
| 33. Gerrit Cole - STL Note: Came out blazing with a big seven-inning outing vs. ATL |
| 34. Doug Fister - at PHI |
| 35. Mat Latos - CHC |
| 36. Hyun-Jin Ryu - ARI Note: Stay tuned to ensure he's still slated to return later next week. Otherwise, it'll be Kevin Correia |
| 37. Yovani Gallardo - at SD |
| 38. Scott Kazmir - at LAA |
| 39. Yordano Ventura - MIN Note: Since his 0 K game in BOS on July 20th - 2.84 ERA and 37 Ks in 38 IP |
| 40. Chris Archer - BOS |
| 41. Brandon McCarthy - at DET, at TOR |
| 42. Rick Porcello - NYY, at CWS |
| 43. Kyle Lohse - at SD, at SF Note: Common theme in any of his bad outings? Home runs. Both of these venues stifle the longball significantly |
| 44. Danny Duffy - MIN, CLE Note: Survived COL due to error erasing 4 ER, but impressed by the bounce-back seventh inning after grand slam in the sixth |
| 45. Drew Smyly - at BAL Note: Perhaps TB knew what they were doing? 1.55 ERA with 23 Ks and 3.8 K:BB ratio in 29 IP |
| 46. Shane Greene - at DET Note: His breakout start was against DET and they are playing even worse now |
| 47. Collin McHugh - TEX |
| 48. Jered Weaver - OAK |
| 49. Tanner Roark - at PHI, at SEA |
| 50. Alex Wood - at NYM, MIA |
| 51. Wily Peralta - at SF Note: Since allowing 9 ER vs. PHI on July 8 - 8 ER in seven starts (1.59 ERA) |
| 52. Mike Fiers - at SF |
| 53. Ervin Santana - MIA |
| 54. Gio Gonzalez - at PHI Note: The Ks made it easy to stick by him even when the results weren't there |
| 55. Marcus Stroman - BOS Note: OK, now this is three duds in his last four; fatigue setting in? (career-high 127.7 IP) |
| 56. Justin Verlander - at CWS |
| 57. Jason Vargas - CLE Note: CLE carries fourth-lowest OPS vs. LHP; Vargas has 3.29 ERA and 1.02 WHIP vs. CLE in 2 GS |
| 58. Jeremy Hellickson - at BAL |
| 59. Wei-Yin Chen - TB, MIN |
| 60. James Paxton - TEX, WAS Note: Perhaps if he hadn't missed most of the year on the shelf, he'd have been given a longer leash in that tough outing at PHI |
| 61. Jason Hammel - at HOU, at LAA |
| 62. Chris Tillman - TB, MIN |
| 63. Wade Miley - LAD Note: Dodged raindrops in CIN (14 runners in 6.7 scoreless IP) |
| 64. Jon Niese - ATL |
| 65. Kyle Hendricks - at CIN Note: No free passes and keeping the ball in the yard alleviates the need for massive K totals |
| 66. Bartolo Colon - PHI |
| 67. Tim Hudson - COL |
| 68. Andrew Cashner - LAD Note: Could be a nice boost to a rotation down the stretch after missing over two months |
| 69. Jacob deGrom - PHI |
| 70. Hiroki Kuroda - at DET |
| 71. Hector Santiago - MIA |
| 72. Chase Anderson - COL Note: Trip to WAS spoiled a big run, but stay the course |
| 73. Jimmy Nelson - at SD |
| 74. Aaron Harang - MIA Note: He's been pretty good all year save those three 5-plus ER disasters |
| 75. Ryan Vogelsong - MIL |
| 76. Mike Minor - at NYM Note: Coming out of it finally? 2.53 ERA and 19 Ks in last three starts (21.3 IP) |
| 77. Francisco Liriano - STL, CIN Note: Two-start weeks for volatile guys aren't always as embraced as normal two-start weeks |
| 78. Jake Peavy - COL, MIL |
| 79. Chris Young - WAS Note: Even though I've had a hard time buying Young this year, I don't think his start at BOS is anything more than a rough start |
| 80. Tom Koehler - at ATL Note: 2.70 ERA and 20 Ks in 20 IP vs. ATL this year |
| 81. Vance Worley - CIN Note: Four HRs allowed in two poor starts; just a blip or something more? Need to see more, but not afraid to use him vs. CIN |
| 82. David Buchanan - at NYM |
| 83. Mike Leake - CHC |
| 84. Tsuyoshi Wada - at STL Note: Missing more bats than I expected (7.7 K/9, 21 percent K rate) |
| 85. Jordan Lyles - at SF |
| 86. Dillon Gee - ATL, PHI |
| 87. Trevor Cahill - LAD Note: I always liked what Cahill had to offer at his best; he seems to have recovered at least a large portion of that form |
| 88. Rubby De La Rosa - at TOR Note: Two 8-K outings in his last three, both vs. LAA |
| 89. Kevin Gausman - TB Note: Showing signs every outing |
| 90. C.J. Wilson - OAK Note: Back-to-back useful outings are encouraging, but neither were close to flawless (1.58 WHIP) |
| 91. Carlos Carrasco - at CWS Note: Another a big outing, albeit against HOU, but still notable |
| 92. Miguel Gonzalez - MIN |
| 93. Bud Norris - TB Note: Has a 2.87 ERA in his last 10 starts with 51 Ks in 59.7 IP |
| 94. Edinson Volquez - CIN Note: Searage, you did it again! 2.22 ERA in his last 10 starts |
| 95. Henderson Alvarez - at LAA Note: That was pretty much what I expected in COL |
| 96. Roberto Hernandez - WAS Note: He does have a 2.94 ERA in his last 10 starts, but also a 1.4 K:BB ratio |
| 97. Trevor Bauer - at KC Note: Still wildly inconsistent, so now your team's risk tolerance needs to be the primary consideration with him |
| 98. R.A. Dickey - BOS Note: See also - Bauer, Trevor |
| 99. Kyle Gibson - at BAL |
| 100. Dan Haren - WAS Note: Has a 2.70 ERA in his last four starts with 20 Ks, 5.0 K:BB ratio, but HRs still loom, ready to destroy any start at a moment's notice |
