The royal we already went over all the hitters for 2023 fantasy baseball rankings. That’s not the “royal we” as that term usually implies. It was me writing it alone while wearing a Burger King crown. I refuse to draft a top starter where they are usually drafted. Unlike hitters, you need six starters, depending on your league depth. In most leagues, there’s a ton of pitchers on waivers that can help you — all year. Not just in April. With the help of the Stream-o-Nator, you can get by with, say, three starters while streaming the rest. (By the by, Razzball Subscriptions are now open. Early subscribers get Rudy’s War Room, which I haven’t drafted without in about five years, and it’s worth the price of a subscription alone.) There’s also the fact that three stats by starters are difficult to predict due to luck. Wins, ERA and WHIP are prone to change, depending on which way the ball bounces and whether or not the guys behind the pitchers can score runs. Finally, the best starters can give you four categories. The best hitters can give you five categories. Here’s Steamer’s 2023 Fantasy Baseball Projections for Hitters and 2023 Fantasy Baseball Projections for Pitchers. Anyway, here’s the top 20 starters for 2023 fantasy baseball:
NOTE I: All my rankings are currently available on Patreon for the price of a Starbucks coffee, if you get one of those extra grande frappuccino jobbers. Don’t wait for the rankings to come out over the next month, and get them all now.
NOTE II: Free agents are listed as just that and not yet projected. Once a guy signs, I will write out their blurb and add in projections, or remove them, if they sign in an unfavorable place. They are ranked currently where I think they might be if they sign on for a full-time job.
NOTE III: Hear us talk about starters 1-40:
1. Corbin Burnes – Already went over him in the top 20 for 2023 fantasy baseball.
2. Gerrit Cole – This is a new tier. This tier goes from here until Woodruff. I call this tier, “Hanging out with Neil, Patrick, Harris.” I do the rankings and write-ups in the order you see them: top 10, top 20, then catchers and around the horn. I tell you this to try to properly express how excited I am to finally get to talk about pitchers. Imagine you’re 75 words into a blurb about Avisail Garcia and you’re like, “Can I please just write about velocity for, like, ten minutes?” I know I have the best pitcher rankings, and I wonder if it’s not slightly because I’m so eager to dig into pitching after a month of my time writing about hitting. Yes, what you read over the course of two weeks takes me twice as long. Any hoo! Pitching! *breathes in* Smell it up, baby! Smell it up! It smells great, right? It sure does! Okay, now don’t draft any of the guys in this tier. Allow me to explain.
Your buddy tells you to meet him at this place, because Neil Patrick Harris is gonna be there, and you’re like, “Holy crap, Doogie Howser, that’s amazing!” You rush over there with some memorabilia for him to sign that you plan on keeping and not immediately putting on eBay because you are a stan, as the kids say, then you get there, and it’s three guys named Neil, Patrick and Harris. That disappointment is what you will have when you draft one of the guys in this tier.
Now for a diatribe, I give every year, “If these starters were to fall in drafts to where I’m willing to draft a starter, I will draft any and/or all of them. It’s not about them as much as it’s about their draft slot. Sure, I have actual problems with some starters, which I’ll get to, but if Cole or Woodruff or any of these guys fell to around 50th overall in a draft? Sure, at that point, you have to draft one, because I would be drafting a starter and they’d be above other guys. (Thank you for not laughing too loud when I said Burnes, Cole or Woodruff would fall to pick 50.) For unstints, I always draft a starter around 50th overall (give or take ten picks, depending on size of league and rules), so if I’m in a draft with eleven other Greys and we’re sitting there discussing boba and how we’re totally Swifties and just general BS’ing, and all of us forget to draft a starter, I’d draft Burnes at 50th overall, then Cole, then Woodruff, then etc. So, this is a ranking of my starters, it’s just unrealistic for me to say I’m actually drafting these guys. They’ll be gone before I’m willing to draft a starter. Yes, I love the pitchers in this tier. They are great. There, I said it. But I will never roster them. You’ve read some form of this before from me. The names change, but it’s same general gist. By the way, my high school band, General Gist, was so rocking in the general vicinity of a crowd!
Last year if you rostered Alcantara, Cease, Manoah, McClanahan and Bassitt, you would’ve walked away with your league’s pitching categories and not drafted any top starters. Am I cherrypicking? Yes, just like you could’ve cherrypicked last year’s pitchers based on my suggestions!
You could’ve had Alcantara, Cease, Manoah, McClanahan and Bassitt and not drafted one starter before 50th overall.
Yes, I brought out the repeat in bold, and underlined the key word.
In some leagues, you could do fine NOT drafting ANY starters. Yes, I brought out the caps.
I’m not only talking about H2H leagues where you can carry only relievers. I’m talking 10 or 12-team roto leagues, where you can stream starters. Maybe you roster one starter and stream five spots. Maybe you roster two guys and stream four spots. Maybe you drink seven cups of coffee and stream all day. Even if you want to draft an entire rotation and hold them (or try to), you don’t need a guy from this tier. There’s plenty of options later to fill out your rotation so you’re competitive in leagues where you can’t stream. I’m not suggesting you Reggie Roby starters. I’m telling you to Reggie Roby top starters. Concentrate on your hitting while these guys are being drafted.
It’s like this every year. Without fail. In the preseason, everyone will be telling you that you need a top starter, some people might even tell you that you need two top starters. What they never say, or purposely fail to mention is how every year there’s starters in the “top starters” who weren’t there a year ago, so you could’ve had a top starter without paying for one. I told you to draft Cease in every league last year even writing a sleeper post; draft McClanahan, I said, and wrote a sleeper on him too; Manoah, I said, draft and I said I’m surprised I didn’t write a sleeper on him, Bassitt and Alcantara were guys I loved. Every year I tell you who to draft later, then the following year all of those starters are in the top 20. You think this is an accident? Just luck? Look at my rankings from previous years. You didn’t need Cole, deGrom, Burnes, or others last year, and you don’t need these guys this year.
There’s dozens of starters to roster, and you need at most six. For whatever reason, everyone forgets how many starters are available later. Nestor Cortes wasn’t even drafted in most leagues! (Coolwhip wrote a sleeper post on him in the preseason, by the way, and natch.) People always tell you that you need a starter in the 1st couple of rounds. You do not.
Last year, I wrote sleeper posts for Cease, McClanahan, Patrick Sandoval and Jordan Montgomery. Last two were both great if only slightly less than the first two because the 1st two were so good. In the preseason, I told everyone to draft Cristian Javier, and Tony Gonsolin. Those starters alone were all you needed. If you had those starters on your team, you were trading away pitching because you had too much! I’m being 100% serious when I tell you that if someone tells you that you need a top starter, you should question everything they tell you. If they tell you to draft two aces, then you should make an anonymous call for help. They need it.
As for Cole, he had a 3.50 ERA last year in a year when the ball was dead, though, he might not have been a recipient of the dead ball, since there was some research done on the balls and it turns out balls used in Yankee Stadium were juiced for Judge, then again again Cole’s home ERA was 3.20. What’s wild, his 2nd half ERA was 4.12. I know, I know, don’t put so much weight on ERA. Yeah, not shizz, Sherlock. It’s why I ranked Cole 2nd here. Though, I am saying don’t draft him either. Holy mixed messages, Batman! Some people call them “mixed messages,” some people call them “hedges.” Let’s call the whole thing off! Either hoo! His K/9 was still elite in the 2nd half (11.3), his BB/9 elite (2.1) and his xFIP was 2.87. He was getting mostly killed by the home run, and that’s a bit fluky. He’s one of the best bets for 200 IP with elite strikeouts and walks, so, yeah, he’s the 2nd overall starter to not draft. 2023 Projections: 15-4/2.88/0.99/261 in 202 IP
3. Brandon Woodruff – So, confession time. I drafted Woodruff in one league already this year. “You said to never draft top starters! I know you have a standing desk, so let me be very clear: I hate you and all you stand for!” I know, I know, but here’s the thing. It was a 15-team league, and it was the third round, which was pick 41, and I couldn’t risk waiting for my next pick. Also, he was the 11th pitcher off the board! As I say time and again in my rankings, I don’t hate the top pitchers. Well, not this tier at least, and if they’re going to fall to around where I draft my first starter 45-55, then go for it. It’s usually lip service to say a starter like Burnes, Cole or Woodruff are going to fall that far, but pucker up, baby, because it wasn’t lip service for me. I don’t have the faintest idea why people were drafting a guy like deGrom as the third pitcher off the board. Maybe they know something I don’t, like deGrom’s about to stay healthy for 150+ IP. Then others took Cease and Sandy before Woodruff. Nothing Ceases to amaze me, but that kinda did. Woodruff is the third best starter in baseball. He has the high 11.2 K/9; the low 2.5 BB/9; the fastball velocity that’s consistent; the ability to throw a bunch of innings; the everything. He had the 8th best SwStr% with the lowest Z-Contact% in baseball. So, what does that mean? He gets more hitters than anyone to miss at strikes. He’s not getting by throwing balls in the dirt like a Gausman. He’s challenging hitters and they can’t do anything. The top ten lowest contact made on pitches in the zone is basically the cream of the cream. Factor in that Woodruff doesn’t throw many walks, and it’s lights out, good night. 2023 Projections: 14-6/2.77/0.98/233 in 194 IP
4. Dylan Cease – This is a new tier. This tier goes from here until McClanahanananananananan. I call this tier, “HOW ARE YOU.” You ever ask an elderly person how they’re doing, and they can’t hear you, so before you know it you’re screaming “HOW ARE YOU” and everyone around you thinks you’re being too aggressive with an elderly person, and someone comes over to ask, “Is everything okay over here?” Then you say, “Yeah, everything’s fine.” And then the elderly guy says, “This guy is screaming at me.” And you’re escorted out of the bingo hall. That’s this tier. You think you’re doing something good, but it’s going to turn on you and bite you in the ass. I not only wouldn’t draft one of these guys in this tier, but I also think they will disappoint. You have to understand I still think these guys could be great, but there’s some real concerns. Last year, Walker Buehler was in this tier to give you an idea what I think of this tier. It’s not that these guys are going too high, but they also scare me.
As for Cease, I think the White Sox put their humidor so high that if you walk into their stadium, you start puckering your lips. You’re like, “Hey, I’m not trying to kiss you, I swear.” Then you have charges pressed, and you’re like, “It was the humidor!” Then people call it The Humidor Defense, and everyone inside baseball ignores it as they ignore everything else, and Rob Manfred scoffs, saying something like, “That lacks believability.” Something was off last year in Chicago (in Wrigley even more so). Both stadiums were down for home runs. Could be the dead balls; could be the humidors. It matters because Cease finally wrangled his home run problem, while still being pretty out-of-control on his pitches. His stuff is so good that he can get away with a 3.8 BB/9, and have the 4th least number of pitches in the zone, but if he’s wild in the zone or puts guys on and starts giving up homers again? That’s dangerous. From Cease’ing to government seizures of your fantasy winnings. Hopefully, I’m not manifesting it. Leave it to latency. Or Latin Cease, and still a carpe diem. 2023 Projections: 14-7/2.86/1.13/238 in 191 IP
5. Sandy Alcantara – Seeing people draft Sandy Alcantara in front of Woodruff or even Cease is just so funny to me. Just cackling like a loon. Just howling at the moon like a nut bar, no relation to Lars. Just standing in front of a mirror and applying Joker makeup as I let out hideous laughs. This is your standard shizz that happens every year. I like Sandy, tell you to draft him last year, then he clearly goes out and has what has to be so obviously a career year, yet people now draft him like he’s going to win the Cy Young every year. Pitching is tremendously difficult. Dancing between the raindrops with a 8.2 K/9, 2 BB/9 and 3.29 xFIP to come out on the other side with a dry-and-crisp 2.28 ERA? It’s especially difficult to repeat. Can he? Sure. And Emily Ratajkowski can storm through that door and scream, “Bobby, where have you been my whole life?” And, while your name isn’t Bob, you reply, “Entering, uh, data for south Cleveland’s Public Transit department,” and you run off together, then you get into a major tiff five years into your relationship because you still can’t spell her last name and she sees your phone ID reads, Emily Something. That all could happen! Likely won’t. 2023 Projections: 11-6/2.79/1.02/203 in 214 IP
6. Shane McClanahan – There’s a lot to like about McClanahanananananananan. That his name echoes so naturally is just one thing. Another thing, he led the league in SwStr% (tied with Gausman). Not sure there’s a better stat for what you want from pitchers. He was in front of everyone, except Gausman, obviously, but I feel like pointing out exactly who he was in front of: Burnes, Cease, Ohtani and Cole. Comparing him to Burnes (since he’s my number one), McClanahanananananananan actually got more hitters to swing, and was in the zone 43.5% to 35.1%. McClanahanananananananan has a case to be made that he’s the best starter in MLB right now. So, why rank him here and not, ya know, number one? Or even in a positive tier? He had shoulder discomfort on August 30th, and was removed from starts late in September with shoulder discomfort. Don’t want to put any serious voodoo on a guy like I’m Lisa Bonet in Angel Heart, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see McClanahanananananananan throw barely 140 IP this year, and need long IL stints. 2023 Projections: 13-7/2.74/1.01/188 in 168 IP
7. Spencer Strider – This is a new tier. This tier goes from here until Nola. I call this tier, “Fill my holes with dry rice to reduce moistness.” I imagine by now you are moist for starters. Well, before you fill your holes with dry rice to reduce moistness, I have a special treat for you: You can begin to draft starters. See, that wasn’t too long, was it? Great, I didn’t think so either, and I could tell you were overflowing with moistness, so I’m happy to tell you starters are now available. But you might want to chew on a sanitary napkin or rub deodrant on your forehead, because it might actually be longer before you can draft a starter. Here’s the thing, and, yes, there’s always a thing. I will absolutely draft someone in this tier, but I won’t reach for them. If they make it to around 50 overall, or under $30, then I’d happily draft one to reduce my moistness, and remove the dry rice from my holes. See, I don’t punt all starters, just the very top ones. Just don’t reach for one of these guys. Also, I’m using the same tier names as previous years so I can transfer over my Pitching Draft Tool with relative ease. You’ll get over your outrage.
As for Strider, I tried to not like him. Really, I did. I went to his 2nd half splits, expecting to see a fall-off, but they were better in the 2nd half (3.03 vs. 2.20 ERA; 3.6 vs. 2.4 BB/9; 2.51 vs. 2.02 xFIP). By the by, it’s hilarious that one site still has their prospect grade for Strider on his player page, showing he’s a 45-grade prospect. Saying his slider was a 45-grade pitch when it was a top ten slider in baseball last year, slightly better than Rodon’s. Goes back to William Goldman’s saying about Hollywood that applies here: No one knows anything. Strider, Rodon, Verlander and Cristian Javier are the only pitchers with at least 130 IP and a 20+ run value fastball and a 8+run value slider. Strider had a .139 BAA on his slider and .201 on his 98 MPH fastball. Yeah, good luck with those pitches. Doesn’t even need anything else. Oh, and his change had a .136 BAA and a 47.7% Whiff%. Again, I tried to not like Strider this year. Too many innings last year, I wanted to shout. Sophomore slump, I wanted to make up outta thin air. But, yeah, I see no reason why he’s not a number one. If he’s drafted before 45-55 to overall, then I’ll be out on him, but if he’s there, I’m in. 2023 Projections: 12-7/2.83/1.03/231 in 164 IP
8. Justin Verlander – Here’s what I said this offseason, “Signed with the Mets. Steve Cohen collects modern art, but prefers classic aces, kinda like A-Rod with women. S0, the Mets add Justin Verlander, as they compose the best staff possible of aces who might remember the 1986 World Series. “Wah-wah, wee-wee, Mookie Wilson.” That’s Justin Verlander’s first words. “Wah-wah, wee-wee, Ray Knight.” That’s Baby Scherzer. Mets are putting together a great pitching staff that won’t at all need the Mets doctors’ attention. Seriously. Because they’re already on Medicare, and can get an in-network doctor. Justin Verlander will likely be thrilled to be looking into that big brown eye once again. Get your heads out of the gutter, I’m not talking about Kate Upton! I’m talking about Max Scherzer’s one brown eye.
Mets just need to convince Rick Porcello to come out of retirement pic.twitter.com/ElbnB1oxvh
— Razzball (@Razzball) December 5, 2022
If you think about it, the writing was on the wall with Justin Verlander and his wife and the Mets signing:
So, Justin Verlander goes to a new league, though the Astros used to be an NL team. Does that count? No? Okay. The whole league thing is irrelevant nowadays, and the new team does nothing either for a guy like Verlander, except he no longer has to contend with the Crawford Boxes. Oh, wait a second, his HR/9 was only 0.6. His strikeouts were down, but you almost get the sense that he was throwing more to contact (relatively), because he was returning from Tommy John, and knew he wouldn’t be able to throw 220 IP. Him and Scherzer are such reliable stalwarts that the Mets got better, even with the loss of deGrom, i.e., Verlander + Scherzer is better than deGrom + Scherzer. Just for the reliability and innings. Not saying Verlander is better than deGrom inning to inning, but when you need 175 IP more than an insane 100 IP, Verlander is the one. He’s actually The One.” And that’s me quoting me! 2023 Projections: 17-5/2.54/0.94/196 in 179 IP
9. Max Scherzer – You, laughing, “Verlander and Scherzer? Give Grey all the ancient pitchers! What a loser this guy is!” One quick note about age curves. I think they’ve changed in the last five years, or maybe it’s the pitchers instead of a larger pitcher–uh, picture thing. I’m not pointing at Charlie Morton or Wainwright, but I could, and now I have pointed at them while saying I’m not. So, I debated if I wanted Verlander or Scherzer 1st more time than I care to admit (17 seconds). In the end, why not both? I mean, not both in the same league, but grab one in one league then the other in another league. I’m not usually Mr. Old Pitchers Rock! But I’ve become that guy this year. Allow me to explain further. Old pitchers are great for 150-180 IP. Do you really need 200 IP? You do? Okay, then Sandy Alcantara or bust, because no one throws a lot of innings anymore. Will the Mets be careful with Verlander and Scherzer? They should. It’s fine. Unless you’re in an insanely deep league, there’s streamers available for when Scherzer or Verlander go down for a few weeks in the middle of the season. Scherzer’s had a sub-3 ERA for the last seven of eight seasons. Halloween season starts earlier every year, but not sure why Scherzer would suddenly become a pumpkin, like the all-time losingest pitcher, Jack O’Lantern. Could this be the year when it all falls apart? I guess, but you’re just guessing. Why not guess Rodon’s shoulder will finally fall off? Or deGrom won’t throw more than 50 IP? Or Strider will fall back to earth? You’re just guessing. Don’t guess, just go with what Scherzer has done for the last 15 years. Is this the first time in over a decade I’m saying to draft Scherzer, so that’ll make him absolutely jinxed? Well, yes, I can get behind that logic. Grey is a stupid jinxer! 2023 Projections: 15-6/2.63/0.96/191 in 164 IP
10. Aaron Nola – One quick note about my starter rankings vs. ADP this year. It’s early, so it could change, but my rankings seem way different than what I’ve seen early on for ADP. More of a difference from what I’m doing than years past. As I always say, trying to figure why others are drafting the way they are is a fool’s errand. I bring this up now because Nola seems to be the most disconnected from rankings and ADP, which means there’s a good chance that Nola is on so many of my teams this year. Not sure how you can look at 200+ IP, 1.3 BB/9, 10.3 K/9, 2.77 xFIP and not see an ace. Phils about to win 100+ games and Nola’s about to win a Cy Young. He’s going 22-3/2.30/0.89/236 in 215 IP. No, I won’t project him for those numbers, but that’s sorta what I’m expecting for his ceiling and I’m expecting him to get his ceiling. 2023 Projections: 16-5/2.76/0.98/227 in 201 IP
11. Alek Manoah – This is a new tier. This tier goes from here until Darvish. I call this tier, “Eat your ideal lover’s weight in cookie dough.” The tier name is a self-help tip. Much like any pizza can be a personal pan pizza with some dedication. Or wait until midnight on Valentine’s Day, go to Wal-Mart and buy 50% off candy so you can gorge yourself. Another self-help tip for a person is drafting a starting pitcher. So, stop reading, Who Moved My String Cheese, get off your butt and draft a starter! Now!
As for Manoah, saw that Steamer had his projections down for a 4.07 ERA, and I did a spit take, and the spit spelled out the question, “What the hell?” And now I think my spit is like the Sphinx. How do I answer that? Has my spit stumped me? I think so. Stupid, freakin’ smart-ass spit! His 8.3 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and 3.97 xFIP does read more like a number two or three, but why is it that people think a guy does one thing and that’s what he’s always going to be? Manoah is a 25-year-old who still hasn’t settled on what he will be. He could easily be a 10 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 guy. If he couples that with his 23.7% Hard Contact% last year, he’s going to win the Cy Young, and not just come in third, as he just did. Oh, that 23.7% Hard Contact? That was the lowest in the majors. It’s how Max Fried, Ranger Suarez, Chris Bassitt and Martin Perez keep being successful. Only Manoah could blow all of them away with many more strikeouts. Plus, his mom. Mommaoah mia! 2023 Projections: 15-5/2.97/1.00/197 in 196 IP
12. Luis Castillo – He dealt with a sore shoulder last preseason, so I did a big deep dive for guys with shoulder soreness who came back to be fine and never have problems again. A full day of research (minus about 23 hours and 45 minutes). If his velocity was down or there was some lost stuff when he returned or, honestly, if the Mariners didn’t just give him a long-term deal, I might’ve been more concerned. I’d contend (for the featherwieght title) that Castillo wouldn’t have got a 5-year deal from the M’s if there was real concern here. So, when you put aside health concerns, which honestly every pitcher has to a certain respect, Castillo’s been a top 15 starter for the last three of four years, and for most of that time he had to deal with Cincy. In Seattle, I had to fight with myself to not put him in the tier above this. 10 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, 2.99 ERA, off one of the best fastball/slider combos in baseball and his change had a .239 BAA. It might be harder to catch up with Castillo than it is for me to pronounce his name. (Though, let’s be honest, prolly not.) 2023 Projections: 14-7/2.94/1.10/203 in 186 IP
13. Kevin Gausman – Mentioned Gausman up in the McClanahanananananananan blurb, but one thing I didn’t mention is Gausman also has a 42.7% O-Swing, aka swing percentage outside zone. McClanahanananananananan’s is 35%. Think about that for a second. To illustrate further before I clarify and put your mind at ease: Gausman’s 42.7% is the highest O-Swing%. Done thinking? Okay, I figured, because your eyes were starting to cross and you looked like you were trying to push steam out of your ears. Gausman gets more people to chase crap pitches, and when they do, they can’t hit sheeeeeeeeeeeeet, to quote Senator Clay Davis. McClanahanananananananan’s SwStr% is awesome, and super impressive, but Gausman’s ability to get people to chase dogshizz pitches is truly remarkable. His ERA was up a little last year (3.35), but that’s about as fluky as things come with his insane metrics. Go all-in once again on Gausman throwing gas, man. 2023 Projections: 14-6/2.94/1.09/214 in 188 IP
14. Yu Darvish – He prolly could’ve had a sleeper post written about him, if I didn’t find the idea of calling Darvish a sleeper so laughable. Based just on his previous year, where he ended up as the 7th best starter on the Player Rater, he could’ve been ranked up by Verlander and Scherzer, and I nearly did. Still have him way above ADP, because. Dot dot dot. He was the 7th best starter last year! He’s a career 3.50 ERA pitcher with a 9.4 K/9, and last year he had a 9.1 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9. He does tend to have these super random years where his ERA balloons (2021: 4.22 ERA; 2018: 4.95 ERA), but there’s nothing really in his profile that says he shouldn’t be great. He’s still throwing 95 MPH and if you were to just cover their names, there’s a case that Darvish is a better bet this year than Sandy Alcantara. There’s nothing wrong with Darvish. There’s so much gee-dee pitching it’s hard to even come up with a sane reason why Darvish isn’t ranked higher, except there’s just some guys who are better. So, here’s an insane reason: He’s in San Diego, and they’re the Padres, which translates to Dads, and Father’s Day, the movie starring Billy Crystal and Robin Williams, sucks, so be careful of Darvish! Also, I go over Darvish in the video at the top of the post. 2023 Projections: 13-7/3.21/1.02/194 in 191 IP
15. Jacob deGrom – This is a new tier. This tier goes from here until Urias. I call this tier, “Wearing flip-flops with socks.” There’s just no excuse for wearing socks with flip-flops unless you are a Polish immigrant or you just took off your shoes and were asked to take out the garbage. Anywhere else with socks and flips-flops is strictly prohibited. That’s this tier, strictly prohibited. As for deGrom, here’s what I said this offseason:
“You can spend any amount of money, but it has to be in the months of November and December, then from the months of April thru October you have to stink.”
Rangers’ GM, the 8-foot tall Chris Young shakes his head, lowering the last will and testament of the Rangers’ crazy aunt Mary, who just passed. Finally, Young says, “This is more convoluted than Brewster’s Millions.”
Don’t fully understand it, but the Rangers print money in December of every year, then set it on fire all summer long. It’s not clear how, why or any other question you have. All I know is the Rangers have made this their MO. It truly is impressive if you stop to think about it. I’m glad they’re spending money, but real questions: Where is all this money coming from and are they ever going to win anything? So, the latest spend was on Jacob deGrom, giving him $222 million. Good for him. As I said at one point last year, when he’s healthy, he’s one of the best pitchers in the game. Speaking of which, as frequent contributor, Coolwhip, reminded me: What will deGrom’s health be like without the Mets’ trainers? 220 IP incoming! I kid, I think. No, I don’t think deGrom will suddenly be the model of good health. He has a better chance of being a cover model on Men’s Health next to a topless Bartolo Colon.
So, Jacob deGrom goes to a great park, but he’s stadium-proof. He’s in a new league, but he’s league-proof. He’s the best pitcher in the game, who can’t get past 92 IP since 2021. He could be one of the biggest lottery tickets in fantasy baseball drafts, but, unless he fell, I won’t be trying to cash it. His 14.3 K/9, 1.1 BB/9, and 1.54 xFIP last year are so ridiculous. In 64 IP or 15 IP, it doesn’t matter. No one is better, it’s just “no one is better” for how many innings? That’s the question.” And that’s me quoting me! 2023 Projections: 10-2/2.26/0.83/167 in 107 IP
16. Shane Bieber – Pointing at Urias,”I want to become that!” That’s Bieber talking to his genie. “Stuff reduction in the form of a fantasy number two that’s valued as a number one…Coalesce?” That’s Bieber and Urias doing the Wonder Twins catchphrase but forgetting what they say, so going with “Coalesce?” These rankings will be 47,000 words long if I don’t cut to the chase, which is what one says when they’re not cutting to the chase, but Bieber: Lost Ks, velocity, ability to fool, getting swings, getting chases, needed an absurd amount of his cutter, got hit around on the fastball (.292) and threw it 34.4% of the time. Maybe he can dance with the devil again and not get burned by its Flaming Hot Cheetos-coated pitchfork, but I don’t trust it. 2023 Projections: 12-8/3.31/1.08/193 in 196 IP
17. Shohei Ohtani – This is my strictly pitching ranking for Shohei Ohtani, but I go over both his hitting and pitching in the top 10 for 2023 fantasy baseball. One quick word on Ohtani, as just a pitcher. Don’t think there’s any leagues where he’s just a pitcher, so this is likely irrelevant, but I wouldn’t draft him as only a pitcher. It would be like saying you love Tom Cruise movies, but only Tropic Thunder. It’s a great movie, and Cruise is great in it, but it’s not a Tom Cruise movie.
18. Julio Urias – Disliking Julio Urias is a rite of passage for my acolytes. You can’t play volleyball in Albany with the rest of my crew if you don’t dislike Urias. I’m sorry. You know what you’ve done, and I want be branding you with a tramp stamp of my initials. If you’re willing to dislike Urias after he has great year after great year, then welcome. Join the rest of my altar boys, they’re the ones wearing a shirt that reads, “Urias? No, UR Ass.” Yes, the shirt is in the shade of a light peach. It was all the t-shirt printer had in stock. That’s irrelevant! The real problem is his falling K-rate, loss of velocity and heavy reliance on men left on base. Yes, I know he gets by on an elite ability to produce weak contact. That’s like the peach shirt’s color, irrelevant! Let me hate on Urias before I start hating on your ass. 2023 Projections: 15-5/3.35/1.11/182 in 188 IP
19. Max Fried – This is a new tier. This tier goes from here until top 40 starters for 2023 fantasy baseball. I call this tier, “Bon varyäge.” The tier name is what you say when you’re taking a number two in a fancy joint. You want a cheap number one? Well, that ship has sailed, but how about an expensive number two? I will go over how to draft starters when I do my pairings post, but this tier is essentially when you think your number one might be a little weak, and you wanna bulk up on a strong number two.
As for Fried, the only difference I can see between him and Urias is Fried is drafted about 20-25 spots later, didn’t lose fastball velocity, didn’t get a 2.48 ERA based solely on luck and — how many one differences is this? — AND has a much better xFIP (3.09). Max Fried zucchini–sorry, I was talking to my Grubhub delivery guy–Max Fried is your prototypical number two. He won’t have elite strikeouts, but it’s no fluke that he had a 36.8% O-Swing% and an insanely low Zone% of 38.3% while having great command (1.6 BB/9). Think about what that means from a real world perspective. No, I’m not re-litigating David being kicked out of the Los Angeles Real World house. Lowercase R & W real world. You got what it means yet? It means Fried doesn’t throw strikes, but he gets people to chase so much that he’s never in the zone and everyone is swinging. You’d know why they’re chasing if you ever saw his curve, that elicits a .174 BAA. Max Fried onion rings–Sorry, I really need to take this call from Grubhub. 2023 Projections: 15-6/2.89/1.03/171 in 183 IP
20. Cristian Javier – This tier could’ve been called, “Putting icing on top of a cupcake’s icing.” If starters were sugar, you’d all be diabetic. There’s just too many sweet, sweet pitchers. There’s really 25 top ten pitchers. Does that make any sense? No, and this rest of this shizz does? Javier is an ace being sold to you as a number two because I can’t see a world where there’s 25 number ones. My brain can’t wrap its tortilla around that burrito stuffed with riddles. If you squint hard enough, Javier’s 11.7 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 is Dylan Cease only 50 picks later. This tier could be called, “This is why I keep screaming at you to not draft a starter in the top 50 overall.” This tier could’ve been called, “You prolly don’t need to draft a starter in the top 100 overall, if I’m being honest.” This tier could’ve been called, “I’m calling these high number two starters, but you could make these guys your number ones and prolly be fine.” This tier has as many tiers as there are starters to draft. You’re not drafting starters higher than this tier because you need them, but because you’re scared. 2023 Projections: 12-6/3.24/1.04/201 in 161 IP
CONTINUE ON TO TOP 40 STARTERS FOR 2023 FANTASY BASEBALL
Hey dude, in a 12 man mix roto, if you drafted Manoah and Castillo, how far should I ride until I even look at another SP?
Hey G love your site thanks!
Would you be happy in a 12 man 5×5 redraft with Castillo or Gallen as you #1? Gimme a handful of guys you would be happy with as your #2-3
Thanks, be gentle, I am new to this
Thanks! Follow this https://razzball.com/2023-fantasy-baseball-draft-prep-pitchers-pairings/
That video is haunting.
HAHAHA, why thank you
15 Team Keeper, OPS and QS in place of AVG and W. Can only keep one of Vlad for $21 or Cease for $11 – which way are we going? I think they are pretty comparable in terms of value vs cost, but Vlad feels safer
My h2h is slanted toward hitting (6×5[+ops]). Minimum Innings requirement so no drafting all RP but I was thinking about drafting 2 SP in the 5th/6th round and not drafting anymore SP until the backup rounds. We start 4 SP each week and 1 CL. How would you approach the draft in this league? Thank you.
I have Tatis, Devers and Bichette (points league). Was offered a choice of Cole or Burnes for one of them. Would you trade any? If so, who would you lean?
Burnes for Devers sounds fine since I’m assuming your league is slanted towards pitching
yep – pretty heavy lean towards pitching, maybe a touch most than more points leagues – thanks!
No problem
Hey Feb Grey!
Enjoying the rankings, no surprises in the top 20 today
Made a few deals to better my keepers..keep 11, 15 team obp and slg, k and k/9 plus reg cats
Keepers:
C
1
2 Albies
3 Gunnar
Ss Treat Urner
LF
Cf Mullins
Rf Judge
U SMarte
SP Degrom, Cease, Gilbert
RP Romano
Last keeper between:
I Happ, Casas, Jhoan of Arc, Jordan Mont, Ashby
Keep one of them or trade Cease for 2 of Wright, Webb or Helsey
I’m leaning JoMo or Jhoan as lots of pitching is usually kept
Thanks Boss
Hey nightpandas! Happ or JoMo…prolly go Happ at LF
FYI – yahoo still treats Ohtani as two different players and you must draft them separately.
Regardless, would you trade away Trout for Robert in a keeper league? He offered me Lindor with Robert but think I want ONeill more and I have an early pick.
Interesting on Ohtani…I’d keep Trout
Hey Grey, thanks for your work-12 team,6×6(Saves,no holds) H2H, auction. Weekly transactions and no bench. We roster a total of 9 pitchers. What are your thoughts on just drafting closers or mostly closers and a couple of starters? Thanks Man!
Don’t think you should draft only closers or mostly closers…I think you should draft mostly starters, just don’t need to be great ones
Hey Grey,
I’m in a Keeper League where we keep 12 regular players and 3 prospects. Since I only have three prospects, those spots are taken. But I won the league last year with a loaded team and now I’ve got roster problems trying to decide which 12 to keep. For instance, I’ve got Machado and Riley at 3B, so that takes up 3B and one of my two utility spots. I’ve also got Julio Rodriguez and Mike Trout, so that’s going to fill CF and my other utility spot.. Now, the problem here is I also have Ohtani but he’s a DH so he needs one of those two utility spots. I’m thinking I keep them all and either trade one or plan for a Trout injury. Maybe I could trade Trout for an LF or RF. On top of that, Jazz Chisholm is moving to CF and may only be CF eligible in 2024,. so I will have the same problem next year.
So, with those issues in mind, how about you pick my 12. Let’s see if we think the same or if you have something smarter up your sleeve than I can think of. I’m kinda stumped here thinking I got to keep a player that may not even be able to play because of a roster logjam. Seems keeping Trout and trading one my CFs is my best option?
Pick 12:
Julio Rodriguez CF
Adley Rutschman C
Manny Machado 3B
Mike Trout CF
Austin Riley 3B
Shohei Ohtani Util
Jazz Chisholm 2B/SS/CF
Gunnar Henderson 3B/SS
Marcus Semien 2B/SS
Trevor Story 2B
Jonathan India 2B
Carlos Rodon SP
Julio Urias SP
Shane Beiber SP
Kyle Wright SP
David Bednar RP
Julio Rodriguez CF
Adley Rutschman C
Manny Machado 3B
Ohtani
Riley
Jazz Chisholm 2B/SS/CF
Gunnar Henderson 3B/SS
Rodon, Urias, Bieber, Wright, Bednar…Your pitching isn’t as good as your hitting, so I’d trade Riley or Machado for an ace or even a bat (Machado or Riley) and Wright for one ace and keep Semien and whoever you trade for
Thanks. Very helpful to get your perspective. I’ll probably offer Machado and Wright for an ace and keep Semien. Good stuff, appreciate the input!
Yup!
happy spring, hope all is well
keep 3 of these 12 team roto 5×5
gleyber
m j melendez
javier
jordan montgomery
renfroe
christian walker
thanks
Hope you’re well! Gleyber, Javier then a toss up I guess MJ
I listened to your wise words and waited on starters last year. Now I have to figure out keepers. 13 team league. Choose 3
McLanahanahana Rd 7
Cease 8
Valdez 11
Manoah 16
E. Jimenez 18
D. Williams 20
O’Neill 24
Nice! Alek, Cease and Shane
man i love the day when pitcher rankings come out. because youre so awesome i have to choose exclude one of these guys from my keepers. tatis, jazz, cease, mclanahan and strider. Im actually thinking of dropping mclanahan because I know with your rankings I will nail mid round pitching again like i always do. What say you?
Thanks! Shane
Really enjoying these rankings brother, getting closer and closer to crunch time!
Sorting out keepers in this league and would like your opinion.
12 team h2h 10×10, keep 3, 20% increase on keepers every year.
Options…
O’Neil Cruz- $2
Vlad Jr- $45
Tatis Jr. – $40
Lindor- $27
Woodruff- $21
Darvish- $19
Glasnow- $12
What combination would you go with in this format? Only 15 innings minimum pitched every week so I tend to go RP heavy to win SV’s/Hlds, whip, ERA, hits allowed, walks allowed, Losses
Thanks! Vlad, Tatis, Oneil
Keeper question for a 12-team, H2H auction league, 27-player roster, $300 team limit. Keeper increases: $5 for players over $19.50, $3 for those at and under.
Should I deal a $3 Kyle Wright for a $28 Luis Castillo (2023 prices)?
Likely top 20 pitchers available in the auction: Scherzer and deGrom. Not sure if I should save the cash to bulk up my OF and just load up on middle-of-the-pack pitchers. Would one ace make a difference?
Current keeper pitchers:
K. Wright
C. Bassitt
P. Sandoval
J. Gray
K. Meada
Probably laughing at that rotation, but usually focus on offense. Hoping to compete in 2024.
Thanks for your comments, and the great content you provide!
I’d take Castillo, No problem!
Julio will prove you wrong yet again. A falling K rate at age 26 can quickly rise with a nice off-season. The rest of your argument is just Hogwash Hating.
Nah, his K-rate won’t be great, he might get by without it tho, as he always does
You’re basically admitting you have him ranked too low lol. Every year you do this. Every year I call you out on it. Glad to see nothing has changed!
Every year it happens! At some point he’s going to stop making me look dumb
You don’t look dumb. You look like a hater!
Tomato-tohater
player rater for QS leagues has him 31st SP so grey’s too high on him.
Grabbed Verlander and Fried in the 4th and 5th in a recent DC after going Yordy, Pete and Ced. Not sure why but Verly doesn’t seem to ever get any love (but plenty at home – ha). I too am high on Javier and like Lynn to bounce back. Interested to see where Cortes rates, keep’em coming!
I like Javier and Lynn too, remember we’re not even out of the top 100 overall with these starters
I’m keeping Manoah ($13) and Valdez ($13) in my keeper league (5 total, others are position players) and I am wondering who should I pair him with?
Should I be looking at the other top guys who are available (Scherzer, Darvish, deGrom, Nola, Woodruff, Gausman and Bieber are the only guys available from your top 20) Any of these guys I should stay clear of at all or should I bid up to about $20 or so on all of them and if I get one great, and if not, just pivot to someone from the top 40? I say $20 because that’s about the max I want to spend on a pitcher at this point. I know at least 3-4 of those guys will not be available at the price, so I’m thinking The Gasman is my best bet
Thanks
Don’t know how many teams in your league, but likely you have a #1 and #2, you don’t need another ace…So another #2 or $3, that’s Fried down to top 40
ya that was my other line of thinking. just pivot and use like $10 of that spread around to my other pitchers and the other $10 on my hitters.
Thanks
EDIT: It’s a 10 teamer, initial reasoning RE another top tier guy is the top 2 teams in the league each have 3 elite guys for super cheap
Guy who won last year has McClanahan, Burnes and Strider for $45. Guy who finished 3rd last year has Rodon, Verlander and Castillo for $45 as well. I finished 2nd last year and trying to take the leap.
Thought spending $50 on The Gasman, Manoah and Valdez would align me well to compete with each of their top 3s for a similar price.
The league is weird, only 6 teams are any good, the other teams are garbage and for some reason keep spending $150 a year to field a bad team
Yeah, absolutely, spend what you need
Thanks! I’ll likely just do what you said initially. Buy another $12-15 pitcher instead in the tier below Fried and use the savings on my position players
Thanks.
my goal this year anyways it mostly just to end up in the money (top 5) and get a couple of better keepers to go along with my $8 Witt
Yeah, for sure!
Hit em with the Heim!
HAHA
Loving the rankings so far Grey!
Would you rather own Oneil Cruz or Luis Robert in a keeper?
LG
Oneil
Hi Grey – love the pitcher posts. My question is open to all. 12 team keeper points league. We keep 10. I am keeping 7 hitters and 3 SPs.
My two for sure SP keepers are C.Burnes and S.Alcantara. I am deciding b/w T.Glasnow, L.Webb, and Grayson Rodriguez. I know I could just look at the rankings (and have thanks to Paterson), but given that this is a points keeper league where we can keep players forever, I thought I’d check.
I am in win now mode but I love The idea of Grayson on my team going forward. FWIW L.Webb was the 17th ranked SP at the end of the 2022 season.
Thanks! Webb is safest, Glasnow is most interesting for next year…Grayson is the top upside…I think I go Grayson
Keep Clase or Castillo? Same $ amount.
Castillo
Is my logic right here? Auction league- 4 keepers. They keep the value drafted from the previous yr, so there can be some real bargains. 2022 players KEPT with $30+ of actual auction value (not they amount they were kept for) there were 6. In 2023 there are 10 regulars. So am I right to assume that since there are less $30 left on the auction market that their price should go way up? Supply and demand right? I understand assuming is dangerous.
Yes, price is inflated in keepers…Think of it like if someone has Jul-Rod for $2, then there’s $35 extra left over not being spent there and it will be spent elsewhere
Morning Grey. In a 12 team H2H Points league at what round do I start drafting pitchers? Thanks
5th-ish
Oh yeah!
Grey is on to Starting Pitching!
It’s February!
I’ve been saving my exclaims for awhile!
Keep in mind Fried food is very bad for you!
FBB season has officially begun!
More importantly socks with flips is part of Caribbean culture…after a long day in the sun hunting land crab and diving for grouper and rock lobster and picking some Bahamian goat peppers to go with the conch you’ve harvested for a delicious Conch Salad…and sucking down your third backwoods rollie along with your sixth Gunniess and red bull…the sun is laying low in the west about to kiss the Atlantic, and the wind picks up and your pinky toe starts to chill…there’s nothing better than throwing on that fresh pair of socks under those flips!!!
Haha, nice username, Wake…Backwoods rollie — hahaha!
But I love Fried food
Oops did I let out a little secret…85 is way too late !
Haha, where you reaching for him at?
You make a good point about HR/SB being retail…but I also like the 100 Runs and the 600 PA’s at .300
The BA boost lets you add donkeys! And I love donkeys…much more loyal than horses!!!
I love all donkeys, it’s a weakness! I like Wander too, the only problem I might have is he goes around the time I’m taking my 2nd SP
I get that you group these guys in logical tiers…basically groups of guys you’re either in or out on – but Urias for example, you seem to not like him at all – yet have him in front of Fried (who you seem to like) in your rankings.
I guess all in all – the tiers are more important than the actual rank/number next to each of these guys? In other words, you have Urias 19 and Fried 20 – but if you need a pitcher and both of these guys are available, it seems you’re going Fried – right?
Also – love the ranks. I agree with your sentiment that you have the best pitcher ranks. great work
Might be a dumb question Grey, but is the Stream O Nator subscription included in the MLB Roto Deluxe ?
And also is the price for the full year or every month ?
You wrote above that you really only need six starters, but that’s very dependent on the type of league you play in, daily transactions or not, and roster size. Every single manager in our league typically has 10 or 11 starting pitchers on the roster, along with another 3 – 4 closers. It’s a 10 team, 30 roster spots per team, 21 active, 9 reserves, 13 hitter spots active and 8 pitcher spots active daily transactons league.
So everyone rotates their starters on a daily basis, keeping maybe 4 max who are starting that day active. We don’t have an innings limit either so there are guys getting over 2,200 innings pitched (and over 2,200 strikeouts) each season at the top of the K category. So, yeah, our league needs a lot more than 6 starting pitchers if you want to compete for the championship.
Yeah, I’m talking the leagues people play in 95% of the time — 10 and 12 team mixed…But yes you’re right, leagues vary…
Imagine how bad it would get if we had a 15 team league with those daily transaction rules. LOL.
Also – on Julio Urias I think you need to have someone print out his stats for the last two seasons but cover up his name. He’s still not even 27 years old and just went 37-10 over 360 innings of sub 2.90 ERA and sub 1.00 WHIP baseball. It his name was not Julio Urias my guess is you would be all over that.
Yeah, Urias cracks me up, like, literally..I’m shattered at trying to figure him out…It’s year 4 of me betting against him! Haha….I at least get that I’m doing daft
Julio Urias for you, Buxton for me. And yes, as of now Buxton is still on my keeper list……for now. Promise. For reals. No way am I falling for that banana in a tailpipe again. Nope, no way, no how, uh uh. Pinky swear.
I’ve always been out on Buxton, but I’m gonna try to get in this year
Steamer is a lot more optimistic than you are in their 2023 projections:
Steamer: .239, 32, 77, 10, 85
Grey: .233, 25, 63, 8, 58
I think the SBs are probably in the right range on both projections as I don’t see him running much anymore (kind of like how Trout just stopped running completely). But if he stays healthy (IF, IF, IF…) there’s upside to their 32 HRs and 77 RBI projections.
Yeah, I’m prolly more conservative on his ability to stay healthy, but his price is finally decent and I’m willing to try him
Can’t wait to see where Javier is ranked if he didn’t quite make the top 20 along with these dudes!
He’s eligible to be kept in my 10-teamer 6×6 (OPS/QS) where we keep 10. Assuming I already have all infield positions and 3/5 outfielders covered, would you keep him over Santander and Andrew Vaughn? I’m generally wary of keeping pitchers but the combination of price and upside seem just about right. Thanks Grey!
I like Javier a lot, and keep them over Santander and Vaughn
Are you guys/gals gonna do a “Tiers” spreadsheet? I used to love those.
I never did it, a commenter would do it and I’d make it available, so if someone does it, I will pass it along to everyone if they get it to me
That is the Draft WarRoom I think you are referring too and it should drop this month (Feb)
The War Room is available right now…I don’t think that what he means tho
OH!?! Annnnnd a swing and a miss…. The Dashboard Tab in the War Room Excel sheet was a readers doing?! I’m blown away. Thanks for always sharing that! I still have an old copy, wonder if I can mimic that or if he is still around reading and will be rejuvenated to do it!
Yeah, it was a reader’s doing…By all means, if you do it, I’ll make it available (or anyone reading this)
On it. If anyone wants to chip in, let me know I can share the spreadsheet I’m working off of. Will hopefully complete this mission and return with success.
Nice! Good luck!
Should be all good! I loved doing this before and tweaking the list for AL/NL Only on my own. The prospects might be my biggest challenge.. so far everything is caught up. I’ll probably re-subscribe my Patreon so I can fill in any holes! <3 Cheers! Talk soon
Thanks!
Any concern that they brought the walls in at Toronto?
one thing to consider is they also raised the wall height which appears to more or less negate the moving in of the walls
Heard that it could take away homers from righties, turning homers into doubles…It’s not clear, plus Gausman’s splitter isn’t by anyone so doesn’t matter
this may be in poor taste but will he be suspended?…Just saw this article today it would take too long for him to wind up and hit someone….he rocks back and forth touching his toe 5 times before slapping someone
I’m sure he will be suspended
Trevor Bauer and this dude… ffs Guardian’s changed their name simply to avoid the fallout from these two..
Yeah, shadesville
i think you are right about Nola it may be his time
Hope so!
Grey. Great job as always. I always look forward to your rankings. Im struggling who to keep between manoah and Gunnar Henderson as my last keeper. Thoughts?
Thanks! Alek, but that is a coin flip…Just saying Alek bc of more of a track record, could easily be Gunnar
Grey, strategy question in my 20-team dynasty. My team is pretty well stacked in all facets, except left field. Everyone wants my starting pitching or Elly DLC, and I’m reluctant to part with either. How comfortable would you be rolling into the season with an obvious hole in your line-up that you’ve patched with guys like Kerry Carpenter, Jesus Sanchez, Wi Myers, etc.? I’m thinking the fill-on-the-fly method might be the best course of action. Thanks!
Depends what you can get and how close to winning you are…Myers could be ok tho
I think my team is strong enough to win with subpar production in left field (esteury currently). That said, I would love to shore it up with an above average stick. I might be able to acquire Yelich for a reasonable price.
Depends on the price then for Yelich
Ahhh this is the one I’ve been looking for. Thanks gray for all your wise words. I am in a keepers league (keep 7 at the round you drafted them), wanna see your opinion on who to keep from this lot:
– Tucker – 1 rd
– Olson – 2 rd
– Alvarez – 3 rd
– Gausman – 4 rd
– Tim Anderson – 5 rd
– Cease – 8 rd
– Witt jr. – 10 rd
– JRod – 18 rd
– Adolis – 22 rd
– Kirby – 21 rd
– Joe Ryan – 17 rd
– Logan Gilbert – 16 rd
What do you think?
Thanks!
Tucker – 1 rd
– Olson – 2 rd
– Alvarez – 3 rd
– Cease – 8 rd
– Witt jr. – 10 rd
– JRod – 18 rd
Adolis
So my keeper rotation of Cole, Strider, Woodruff, Scherzer, Gausman, and D. May is pretty good? Let’s hope they all reach your projections! Anyway, if you were to deal one of Cole, Woodruff, or Strider, since those are the only 3 anyone in my keeper league would take, what bat would you accept in a deal for any of them? Thanks!
Wow, nice staff! I’d want a top 20 bat for one of the 1st two and top 30 for Strider…Basically a #1 something
I was happy to see that you love when it’s time to rank pitchers, because this is definitely my favorite time of the razzball preseason too.
Thank you for your hard work and dedication to your craft. The random nonsense you include with every ranking makes your articles such a sureal-y (word?) good time to read.
Thanks!
Grey!!!!!
Awesome!!!!
a. Awesome read, so painfully obvious it hurts.
b. My pick in round 3 is 3 moves away in my 10-team roto redraft. The league is 1000 IP with 200 starts maximum, minimum 9 pitchers no designation as to RP or SP. Oh and Cole and Burns went in round 2 – Burns at #16 and Cole at #19.
I have these four guys queued. I drafted VGJ (3) and Witt (18) so far.
Riley
Harris II
Devers
Tatis
I’m leaning Riley, then I have 1B, 3B and SS locked up. Then I’ll go OF and SP with my next two picks for rounds 4 and 5 (picks 38 and 43). Or should I wait for pick 58 to take my first SP? I will use either of picks 58 or 63 to draft Oneil Cruz.
Cheers,
Ante
Thanks!
B. Riley then OF and SP, yeah
Grey!!!
Took Strider and Manoah at 38 and 43. Going back to back at 48 and 53 with OF. In the queue
Adolis
Carroll
Jimenez
Jake is still out there, I’ll take him and Oneil at 58 and 63.
Cheers,
Ante
Jake who? McCarthy?
McCarthy. I see. Sorry, man. Thanks. I’ll take another OF, maybe O’Neill or Santander?
Cheers,
Ante
Seems early for those guys, no? I guess O’Neill
Grey!!
My OF is in a shambles. I’ll take O’Neill and Oneil (haha!) with 58 and 63. Hopefully 48 and 53 will be Adolis and Carroll or Eloy making the OF after 9 rounds
Adolis
Carroll or Eloy
O’Neill
Pretty good. Then fill the rest with Jake, Santander, Taylor Ward and Seth Brown.
Cheers,
Ante
Yeah, that’s not bad, plusOF has most guys on waivers
Castillo having 5 top 15 seasons in 6 years isn’t right. There’s just no way. Maybe 3?
Honestly, I’m not sure what I saw there, but I might’ve missed his rookie year was only 89 IP, anyway, it’s 3 of last 4, my bad
The Best Damn Pitchers Rankings in the business! I had the same feeling around Top 60 outfielders, can’t wait to read pitchers!
Thanks!
Lol Hanukkah had finally arrived!! Happy Hanukkah, Grey!
Haha thanks!
I’m shocked by how high Strider is. And this coming from a Braves fan who loves him and rostered him all of last year. Lol and judging by your write up, you were surprised, too lol.
Yeah! I was very surprised, ha
(Grey as he sits down to write his rankings)
Boba, check. Laptop, check. Copy of 2022’s Best Mustaches for inspiration, check. Ahh let’s get started. Checks notes…Burnes, Cole, Woodruff, Cease, Alcantara, McClanahan, Strider, Ver…what??? Strider?! Quickly looks at copy of 2022’s Best Mustaches…you handsome devil you. I guess Strider at 7 will do.
In my ongoing ss saga, the Turner owner has now said he’s thinking about swapping his Turner for my Oneil Cruz and I’ll have to pony up some value in a draft pick swap.
Meanwhile while I wait him out, the Bo Bichette owner asked me about JRam. He said he’d do his Bo for my JRam and Wander. I said that was too rich and I would like a draft pick swap back to level the value.
Turner is round 2, Bo Bichette is round 7, JRam is round 7, Wander is round 13, Oneil is round 22.
I know you like swapping Oneil for Turner but what do you think about swapping JRam and Wander for Bo? And if you like both deals, which do you prefer?
I think you’re right, that is too rich, that JRam and Wander for Bo — I’d prefer Trea for Oneil
Lol I wish someone would go ahead and throw their ss at me so I get off this ride already. I wish the Bichette owner would take something straight up rather than 2 players. Assuming packages for Bo and Trea are equal, would you prefer Bo due to him being 6 years younger and him having him at a 5 round discount in a keeper league (Trea round 2 and Bo round 7)?
They seem like a push, but prolly 55/45 in Bo’s favor due to price
Thank you! Time to send in the muscle to strong arm Bo’s owner. Ps, you’re the muscle.
Hahaha
HAHAHA, yeah, that’s pretty accurate actually
Hahahha nailed it.