Each day of the 2022 baseball season, I will look at today’s and tomorrow’s list of scheduled pitchers and rank their matchups for your fantasy baseball streams.
There’s a lot that goes into it and you can hang out with me on Twitch.tv/pitcherlist to talk about the specific pitches I do every weekday morning from 9am to 11am ET. If you have any questions about these ranks, please ask them during the morning Twitch AMA. These are my office hours as I generally do not respond to comments on the site.
There are four tiers to this ranking for 12 teamers:
Auto start – Just do it. Don’t think about it, start with the man.
Probably beginning – I’ll probably start with these weapons, although I recognize the risk is greater than we would like. It’s either a tough matchup for a good pitcher or a weak lineup for a fugitive arm.
Questionable start – There are situations where I would take the risk, either with a strong enough advantage on the skill side or a bad offense for a pitcher to exploit.
Don’t start – The reward is not worth the risk. Do not do it.
Obviously, there will be circumstances where pitchers should rotate between teams specific to your situation, and these new tiers should provide a little more help than last year’s straight table.
Please keep in mind that streaming is far from a perfect game. In fact, if they exercise more than half the time, I would call it a success. These matchup rankings and streamer picks will vary wildly from actual results throughout the year, so please excuse the scathing comments and tweets. I’m just trying to help!
Be sure to read the notes if you’re wondering why I choose certain pitchers over others – I won’t go into all of them and hopefully answer any questions you may have.
There is a second table for tomorrow is Also, start pitcher matchups and help everyone use their nightly pickups. Please note, however, these matchups are subject to change will let’s be where I’ve got the wrong pitcher running. Thank you for your future understanding.
Finally, there are my streaming picks of the day, and please keep that in mind I am forced to choose a streamer every day. Those highlighted in it Green are in the second row and I would roll with them anywhere. The most common are those in Yellow in the third tier and should be decent if you’re looking some on a specific day. After all, these are Red is that me Yes, really don’t want to start (after all, they’re marked “Do Not Start”) but have no choice. Don’t stream these guys until you’re really desperate. A streaming pick is defined as “listed in 20% or fewer leagues,” meaning Yes, really stresses that I would be happy if over 50% of these worked. I could do the whole sub 30/40% lineup, but it’s no fun. You can instead use the rankings to see who those picks would be.
(NC contact) – Outlines that a pitcher will be opened for the day and the listed pitcher follows the opener.
As I do my rankings, I thought it would be helpful to present a table showing how we rank offenses. Dave Swan makes one unbelievable Task to feature future SP matches every 2-3 weeks in this article and I decided to use his Offensive ranks to share them with all of you here:
Nick’s Loose Team Offense Rankings
I’m sure it will change throughout the year + there are differences between teams and LHP or RHP but it’s a great general chart to keep in mind for all of you.
Alright, let’s get to that.
Streamer record 2022: 33-20
Today’s Starting Pitcher Rankings
- would you look at this Sandy Alcantara takes the top spot for Thursday’s games. It’s hard to deny the man after throwing three straight games of 8+ inning balls fresh from a fourteen strikeout game. Sigh. what a guy
- The level is rounded off by Alex Manoah and Shhei Ohtani, two more pitchers with the Aces Gonna Ace tag. Spoiler Alert: That means you start them and don’t think about it.
- in the second stage, Sean Manaea should be a solid game against the Brewers. He has the ability to start at a specific start, and the Brewers, despite being in the wOBA top 10 this season, aren’t scary enough to hold Manaea back.
- I let Alex Wood loose against the Marlins, even if his 2022 has been rough so far. I dig up the fact that he’s at 92.8 mph with his sinker and his slider is still a solid proposition. This should work in his favor.
- The last two of the second row are Tony Gonsolin and Jameson Taillon, and I wrestled with her order. On the one hand, Gonsolin has been playing well and his slider has earned a good number of strikes lately, but the Mets offense can pack a punch on any given day.
- on the other, Jameson Taillon has succeeded with its kitchen sink approach and has gained the trust of managers around the world. Still, it’s the angels, and it feels like an inevitable regression is on the horizon. Hopefully it’s not against the angels.
- The third stage begins with Chris Flexen and Corey Kluber, everyone faces decent lineups as correct Tobi. I’m okay with starting them, although we all know it can go either way.
- The streaming pick of the day is Matthew Liberatore as he faces the Cubs. I’m not a huge fan of this as Liberatore’s heater still makes me doubt its ceiling, but the curveball is a strong offering that could make for a productive day at the park.
- The bottom two options in the questionable starting class are distant from the other three. Adrian Hauser is a pure coin toss against the Padres and I’m not pushing that in the slightest.
- Alex Faedo has fascination with his slider, but he hasn’t shown up in the last two launches. Its success rests on difficult get through on this field against a dangerous Twins crew and I’m not sure how the cards will end up.
- The bottom row starts with Ian Anderson in Coors since I was already worried about Anderson. A date in Coors makes this an easy pass for me.
- I can see it Jordan Lyles being his best self against the Mariners, but it’s too risky to let it ride on my fantasy teams. The same with Taijuan Walker against the Dodgers.
- I have great interest in Graham Ashcrafts Starting against the Nationals. He boasts a 97mph cutter and sinker and if he’s able to find consistent shots with his slider then there’s a clear path to success here. He still hasn’t got his crusher under control though, which makes me watch from afar instead of picking it up now.
- I know some have worship for Keegan Thompson, But simply put, I don’t think he offers enough to be of much importance against a Cardinals offense that can put runs on the board quickly.
- Wednesday’s LAA vs NYY game was rained out and will be played early this morning at 1:05pm ET. Assure yourself Nestor Cortes and Shhei Ohtani are in your lineups for their starts while Reid Detmers stay connected.
Today’s Starting Pitcher Rankings
Tomorrow’s pitcher rankings
- The top tier is filled with aces on Friday, making for a fairly straightforward top tier once again. You know, it often feels pointless writing about the major leagues every day — start with these guys, you know.
- Okay, well, there’s a dispute with Max Fried and Logan Gilbert be included. Fried goes to Coors – gasping — but I think you still start with the man. He should be fine. As for Gilbert, I don’t love his secondaries, but Rangers aren’t threatening enough to keep him on the bench. That seems silly.
- In the second row, I wish Chris Bassitt faced a lighter offense but he’s getting the Dodgers and I can’t ignore the lack of performance in the past few weeks. He did well last time out and had a strong game against Los Angeles (hey, they was swept by the pirates!) would do wonders in our confidence.
- It feels like we’re having our bad luck days Alex Cobb behind us and now he’s getting a comfortable date with the Marlins. Let it ride, let it ride
- With both Miles Nicholas and Merrill Kelly As they feel comfortable on Friday, both deserve a place in the second division. Who wouldn’t start them against the Cubs and Pirates?
- I can’t say I dig what I saw Jose Urquidy lately even though he’s getting the royals and stuff should be a safe game.
- The third stage is a little more interesting than usual. We’re not sure if joe ryan will make the trip to Toronto given his recent COVID stay, and even if he does, will he have rust from not serving while he’s away?
- Our streaming pick of the day is a solid one JT Brubaker against the Diamondbacks. Coffee Cakes thrives with his slider, and while the sneks are more left-heavy, I still think he can pull this off.
- I wouldn’t rule it out Bruce Zimmerman pull it off against the guards. Zim has a solid changeup + slider and Cleveland’s offense could roll over Friday.
- I placed Josiah Gray in the third row simply because he was able to rack up 7+ strikeouts in that one. His circumstances are risky, but if that’s what you need, I know how to fly him.
- I’ve been vocal about my distrust Yusei Kikuchis The recent surge for the Jays and now facing the Twins scares me a bit. This could be a big trap game – be careful.
- Will Dane reminder have his command? Will Brady Singer be able to survive using only sliders and sinkers? Both face quality opponents and it’s hard to say if they can prevail.
- I don’t want to rely on the lowest level Zach Eflins Curveball, which makes a big showing against the Angels, yet Hunt Silseth with his splinter on the other side of the hill.
- I’m curious to see Elvin Rodriguez against the Yanks as he was pulled early from his last start (where he performed well!) and the Yankees offense is a bit more dodgy than usual at the moment.
Tomorrow’s pitcher rankings
Featured image by Drew Wheeler (@drewisokay on Twitter)