All the final 2026 fantasy baseball rankings for hitters are done. For those that skipped today’s title, this starts the top 20 starters for 2026 fantasy baseball. This is NOT for next year (caps for those who can’t read titles; supposedly it’s easier to read caps, I have my doubts). This is a recap. Will these affect next year’s rankings? Sure. Maybe. Maybe not. I don’t know. Not entirely. Yes, entirely. Like when you had a knee replacement, this is a recap! To recapitulate the recap, these rankings are from our Fantasy Baseball Player Rater. We’re (me’re) using it to fairly gauge our (my) preseason rankings. Anyway, here’s the top 20 starters for 2026 fantasy baseball and how they compared to where I originally ranked them:
1. Jacob Misiorowski – Last bit of looking back before we look forward, and, to look back, we have to look further back than even this looking back to last year’s #1 starter. Who was it? Any ideas? He only pitched 30 IP this year. That’s right, Garrett Crochet. (Giving you the benefit of the doubt that you remembered.) The 2nd best pitcher last year? Had loose bodies removed from his elbow (Skubal). Third best pitcher last year? Was barely a top 30 starter (Skenes) and the 4th best was the 30th best (Woo). 5th best? Was out half the year (Rodon). Pitchers are insanely risky. It’s always like this. This year was especially nuts. As for The IO Update, I think the number one takeaway from him is how a pitcher can unlock a next level and become great, and there’s no way of anticipating it. You can pretend you knew The IO Update would be this great, but you’re only lying to yourself. What’s the point? Preseason Rank #31, 2026 Projections: 9-8/3.83/1.27/164 in 144 IP, Final Numbers: 16-5/1.80/0.80/252 in 174 2/3 IP
2. Cam Schlittler – In the preseason top 40 starters, I highlight one tier that you have to draft a bunch of guys from. In that tier, there was Misiorowski, Schlittler, and McLean. Also, in that tier, Eury Perez, Emmet Sheehan and Nick Lodolo. If you chose right, you were near the top of your league; if you chose wrong, you were sending Blistex to the Reds’ clubhouse to see if the clubhouse attendant could get it to Lodolo. He couldn’t, by the way. Waste of my time and money! As for Schlittler, did he just have the 2nd best starter year ever for the Yanks behind Ron Guidry? Preseason Rank #28, 2026 Projections: 10-7/3.74/1.19/171 in 151 IP, Final Numbers: 14-6/1.95/0.92/239 in 193 2/3 IP
3. Yoshinobu Yamamoto – As I said a few times already this postseason (next week starts the preseason — don’t forget to adjust your clocks!), it’s about intention. I’m all for holding myself accountable. I nailed Misiorowski and Schlittler because I told you to draft them aggressively and ranked them where you could’ve drafted them. I seemingly nailed Yamamoto’s ranking and projections, but my intention was for you to NOT draft him, and I said he was overrated. I was wrong. I didn’t think he could bounce back well from the deep playoff run in 2025. As for him, I have to tell ya, I hate to be a hater my whole life, but his Ks went from 10.4 to 8.9 K/9 and his BABIP was obscenely low. The good news (for me, the bona fide hater), he’ll be drafted before I want to draft a starter next year, so I won’t have any decision to make on whether I want him or not. Preseason Rank #4, 2026 Projections: 17-5/2.56/0.98/211 in 177 IP, Final Numbers: 14-9/2.53/0.8/182 in 185 IP
4. Drew Rasmussen – Mentioned this numerous times before but, if I get a hitter’s rank way wrong, I think it’s a failing of me. If I get a pitcher’s ranking wrong, I think it’s just pitchers, man. If this end of the year recap doesn’t have you thinking to yourself, “I really don’t need to draft starters high,” I don’t know if you’ll ever get there. You could’ve overslept your draft by ten rounds and still drafted a great staff. You could not have done that with hitters. Yes, PCA, Yordan, James Wood, Olson, Alonso and Abrams were great. They were 2nd rounders, not 17th rounders. Rasmussen went 261st overall in some leagues; Misiorowski went 249th in a league (130th overall on average), Schlittler went 257th in one league (132nd ADP) and so on and so forth for this entire post. Preseason Rank #41, 2026 Projections: 8-9/3.09/1.04/136 in 147 IP, Final Numbers: 16-5/2.67/0.91/174 in 172 IP
5. Chris Sale – Didn’t really hit me until this year how 1st ballot-y Chris Sale is for the HOF. He has a 11.1 K/9, 2 BB/9 for his career! In 2246 2/3 IP! If a guy did that for one year, he’d be a top five starter the following year. He’s done it for 16 years. His three years in Atlanta: 2.38, 2.58, 2.16. Not his BB/9’s. Those are his ERAs! He’s had issues with injuries (not as much as deGrom), and wasn’t great in Boston, a big market, so he might actually be a tad underrated for a 1st balloter. He’s also capable of doing the first half of tailoring. The cutting part. Sale watched the 1st half of The Phantom Thread, then shut it off. Preseason Rank #15, 2026 Projections: 8-6/2.61/1.04/187 in 154 IP, Final Numbers: 14-9/2.16/0.98/200 in 162 2/3 IP
6. Cristopher Sanchez – He had a 1.96 BB/9 and a 1.20 WHIP. That feels weird and has me doing a google. Hold on, will be right back…From 2001, he had the 150th best BB/9 and a ton of them had 1.20 WHIPs. That makes sense. Good command equals being around the plate and getting hit. So I added in ERA, because a low walk rate and high WHIP should equal a bad ERA. This is where things got scarce. Since 1921, it’s happened 22 times (at least 150 IP). Five times since 1969. I honestly don’t know what to make of this, but it does not feel great; it might mean nothing:
Things get really strange when you filter by FIP and Sanchez’s last year (2.80) and lower. You’d think this would filter out the great pitching seasons from the lucky ones. Sanchez has the lowest FIP of all starters from 1921 until present day when filtering by BB/9, ERA, and a high WHIP. Preseason Rank #7, 2026 Projections: 12-6/2.84/1.04/196 in 192 IP, Final Numbers: 18-7/2.91/1.20/231 in 207 IP
7. Jesus Luzardo – That Luzardo had a slightly high WHIP had me scrambling to see if the Phils were historically awful for fielding range, and meh. Not really. Didn’t turn that many double plays and weren’t top of the league in fielding, but it wasn’t that bad. I am now going to move onto a new player, focus on something else and try to shake from my OCD. Wish me luck! Preseason Rank #21, 2026 Projections: 11-10/3.64/1.24/192 in 168 IP, Final Numbers: 14-5/2.86/1.07/221 in 179 2/3 IP
8. Dylan Cease – I have never played Strat-o-matic, but I understand the gist of it. If you were to run back a Cease year of 12.7 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9, and simulated it, you’d have a year of 4.50 ERA, another year of 3.50 ERA and a year of 2.40 ERA, as he had. And that’s it, no more simulating! You’re going to go blind! Preseason Rank #19, 2026 Projections: 12-10/3.88/1.28/223 in 183 IP, Final Numbers: 11-6/2.40/1.10/239 in 169 IP
9. Tarik Skubal – If you heard Skubal would end up on the Dodgers, the first thing you’d say is, “Lockout when?” Second thing you’d say is, “Did he win 25 games?” Thing is, wins are silly unpredictable. In two months of Dodgers starts, he had four wins. In three months of Tigers starts, he had eight wins. That’s why I chuckle a bit when someone is like, “I’m drafting this guy on the (insert good team) for wins.” Yeah, doesn’t really track the way you think it will. Preseason Rank #1, 2026 Projections: 15-4/2.38/0.91/238 in 196 IP, Final Numbers: 12-7/2.72/0.96/186 in 158 2/3 IP
10. Parker Messick – He threw how many innings this year? Oh, okay. Um, okay. And how many did he throw last year? 140 IP? Hmm. Well, he does have a pretty clean health record so hopefully he stays sick in name only. Gave you a Parker Messick fantasy towards end of the year, when he had his star mitzvah. Preseason Rank #78, 2026 Projections: 7-5/3.94/1.35/124 in 117 IP, Final Numbers: 12-9/2.56/1.06/193 in 186 1/3 IP
11. Zack Wheeler – I was ready to get back in on Joe Musgrove and Gerrit Cole this year and was worried about Wheeler. With reverence to Meatloaf, two out of three is bad! Wheeler was returning from TOS surgery (TOSS is right there, guys, cmon), and the history of that surgery wasn’t good, but it was, like, only four guys previously who had it, and now it looks like you have a 25% chance of success, and maybe that gets better as more people have it. Preseason Rank #59, 2026 Projections: 6-2/3.02/1.07/118 in 102 IP, Final Numbers: 14-5/3.00/1.05/193 in 162 IP
12. Sonny Gray – Was out on Gray this preseason (very disrespectful in a meta way), and his K/9 went from 10 to 7.9 and I can’t believe that led to a great year, but that’s how you beat Fenway. With either extreme Ks or ground balls. Like the teamster on the ladder, Gray leant on the latter. Preseason Rank #36, 2026 Projections: 12-9/3.91/1.26/182 in 171 IP, Final Numbers: 18-5/2.72/1.15/149 in 169 IP
13. Gavin Williams – Was out on Gavin in the preseason, so I went back to see why, and I was basically saying, “He’s great for Ks, but I don’t trust the ratios.” And that’s me paraphrasing me! Gavin cut his BB/9 from 4.5 to 3. Yeah, that’ll do it. Yeah, that’ll make a pitcher great. Preseason Rank #61, 2026 Projections: 9-11/3.87/1.32/172 in 168 IP, Final Numbers: 14-8/3.76/1.11/248 in 184 1/3 IP
14. Chase Burns – I had him in that tier of pitchers with Cam Schlittler, but moved him late in spring when the Reds hinted at a six-man rotation. (Then Lodolo had a blister issue and the rest is history.) I also wrote a Chase Burns sleeper. Preseason Rank #73, 2026 Projections: 5-5/3.49/1.18/118 in 102 IP, Final Numbers: 15-3/2.86/1.17/185 in 154 1/3 IP
15. Cade Cavalli – Drafted Cade in one NL-Only league, and that was about the only place he ever appeared to me to be worthwhile in the preseason. He was coming off a historically awful year (5.35 ERA in the minors in 74 IP) and seemed broken. That’s the thing about pitchers — they’re great until they’re not and they’re awful until they’re not. Preseason Rank #124, 2026 Projections: 7-12/4.10/1.36/119 in 143 IP, Final Numbers: 13-5/3.02/1.16/200 in 169 2/3 IP
16. Logan Gilbert – Predicting pitchers is so impossible that I’m pretty sure the most knowledgable fantasy baseball ‘pert couldn’t have told you where Gilbert ended up this year for a season that just happened! If you would’ve asked me if Gilbert was the 25th or 16th best starter, I’m not sure I would’ve got that either-or correct-a-moundo. (Not correctamundo but correct-a-moundo because he’s a pitcher.) Preseason Rank #8, 2026 Projections: 12-8/3.19/1.02/197 in 183 IP, Final Numbers: 12-11/3.73/1.09/205 in 186 IP
17. Braxton Ashcraft – And another thing (on the Gilbert point), everyone is victim of what-have-you-done-lately-itis. If you asked most people who was the best Pirates pitcher this year, they might’ve begrudgingly said Skenes or might’ve excitedly said Jared Jones. Ashcraft got shut down coming out of August and memory-holed. Preseason Rank #113, 2026 Projections: 7-9/3.86/1.29/134 in 131 IP, Final Numbers: 14-6/3.65/1.09/173 in 165 1/3 IP
18. Nolan McLean – Okay, I’m still thinking about Cris Sanchez and Luzardo and weirdly high WHIPs this year. Did Manfred use a high-WHIP baseball in 2026? McLean’s WHIP was lower than I projected but feels high for a 3.16 ERA. Preseason Rank #30, 2026 Projections: 10-8/3.87/1.26/164 in 147 IP, Final Numbers: 12-10/3.16/1.17/194 in 179 2/3 IP
19. Eduardo Rodriguez – Love the fact that the highest unranked starter is someone no one ever would’ve guessed in the preseason and most wouldn’t have guessed now. It’s the genius that is pitchers and their unpredictability. Also, it’s absolutely perfect that EdRod is right next to Brew Rasmussen. EdRod was great because of quantity and Brew Rasmussen was quality. More than one way to shave that hare. Preseason Unranked, Final Numbers: 16-7/2.89/1.24/143 in 189 2/3 IP
20. Logan Henderson – Gonna be hard to say “Logan Henderson sleeper” next year, when he was a top 20 starter this year. I know most people are checked out now so it’ll come as a real surprise to them that Logan Henderson was a top 20 starter this year. I guarantee you there will be people next year who are like, “Grey, can I say you’re handsome like a young George Hamilton? Also, do you like Logan Henderson this year? Maybe a sleeper?” He was already excellent. What’s not to like? I actually love him, but because people are checked out already, I bet if I ranked Logan Henderson in the top 20 next year people would claim I was being too aggressive. Preseason Rank #120, 2026 Projections: 4-4/3.66/1.19/83 in 74 IP, Final Numbers: 11-3/2.47/0.84/110 in 98 1/3 IP
