2026 Fantasy Baseball Draft Prep Starting Pitcher Tiers 1.0: Tiered rankings for the most forgiving position
There isn't as much cause for anxiety at starting pitcher this year
By
Scott White
•
2 min read
You're in the thick of the draft and can't decide between two players. The logical choice is to target the one whose position is nearest to dropping off. But where are the drop-offs? That's what these tiers denote. Players whose impact is essentially the same are bundled together, revealing at a glance how many alike choices remain. With these tiers in hand, you'll have all you need to determine in real time which position is most appropriate to draft next.
Below are the starting pitcher tiers for 2026. The position is deep through all phases of the draft, which makes it easy to fall back on when there isn't a hitter who demands to be taken. Normally, I wouldn't touch the First-Rounders tier, given the inherent risks associated with starting pitchers, but this year's crop genuinely stands head and shoulders above the rest.
The First-Rounders: Tarik Skubal, Garrett Crochet, Paul Skenes
The Elite: Chris Sale, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Logan Gilbert, Cristopher Sanchez, Bryan Woo, Max Fried, Hunter Brown, Hunter Greene, Cole Ragans, Blake Snell^, Jacob deGrom^, Logan Webb†, Framber Valdez†
The Near-Elite: Spencer Schwellenbach, Jesus Luzardo, Freddy Peralta, George Kirby, Kyle Bradish, Joe Ryan, Shohei Ohtani^, Tyler Glasnow^, Eury Perez, Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta
The Next-Best Things: Brandon Woodruff, Trevor Rogers, Spencer Strider, Chase Burns, Kevin Gausman, Nick Lodolo, Gavin Williams, Nolan McLean, Trey Yesavage, Cameron Schlittler
The Fallback Options: Shane Bieber, Zack Wheeler, Nathan Eovaldi, Bubba Chandler, Jacob Misiorowski, Emmet Sheehan, Tatsuya Imai, Robbie Ray, Pablo Lopez, Michael King, Ranger Suarez, Kris Bubic, Sonny Gray, Luis Castillo, Sandy Alcantara, Cade Horton, Shota Imanaga, Drew Rasmussen^, Tanner Bibee, Ryan Pepiot, Carlos Rodon
The Last Resorts: Edward Cabrera, Andrew Abbott, Matthew Boyd, Joe Musgrove, Gerrit Cole, MacKenzie Gore, Grayson Rodriguez, Roki Sasaki, Merrill Kelly, Shane McClanahan, Aaron Nola, Zac Gallen, Connelly Early, Ryne Nelson*, Quinn Priester, Hurston Waldrep, Shane Baz, Parker Messick, Shane Smith, Noah Cameron, Jacob Lopez, Sean Manaea, Jack Leiter, Ryan Weathers
The Leftovers: Bryce Miller, Jack Flaherty, Kodai Senga, Jared Jones, Reese Olson, Reid Detmers*, Tyler Mahle, Bailey Ober, Zebby Matthews, Robby Snelling, Logan Henderson, Joey Cantillo*, Jameson Taillon, Zack Littell, Lucas Giolito, Brayan Bello, Seth Lugo, Casey Mize, Brady Singer, David Peterson, Michael Wacha, Jose Soriano, Cody Ponce*, Braxton Ashcraft*, Reynaldo Lopez, Luis Morales, Mitch Keller, Jose Berrios, Justin Steele, Grant Holmes, Jonah Tong, Ian Seymour*, Chris Bassitt, Tyler Wells, Max Meyer, Corbin Burnes, Brandon Sproat, Joe Boyle, Taj Bradley, Cade Cavalli, Michael Burrows, Luis Gil, Clay Holmes, Zach Eflin, Cristian Javier
†: one tier lower in categories/Rotisserie leagues
^: one tier lower in Head-to-Head points leagues
*: RP-eligible
