Weekly Pitcher Rankings: End of the Dog Days

Weekly Pitcher Rankings: End of the Dog Days

This article is part of our Weekly Pitcher Rankings series.

This time next week it will be Labor Day weekend. Yikes. Other than being the last time one can wear white shorts this year (is that still a thing?), Labor Day triggers fantasy managers to be a little more aggressive with pitching since ERA drops. Even with all the changes this season, runs have followed the typical pattern of increasing as the weather warms, which usually means falling a bit in September:

MonthRuns per GameBABIPWOBAK/PABB/PAHR/PA
March/April4.590.2980.3180.2300.0880.030
May4.550.2970.3200.2230.0870.031
June4.530.2970.3190.2280.0840.031
July4.640.2960.3230.2270.0840.033
August4.700.2990.3260.2280.0820.035

Hang in there folks, scoring should wane a bit soon.

As always, the matchups are pulled from the Probable Pitchers Grid, so please direct rotation questions over there. Feel free to post rankings questions below.

UPDATED: Monday August 28 2:00 AM

Week of August 28 - September 3

Mixed

RankPitcherTMOPPCommentsMIX12MIX15
1Blake SnellSD@STL, SF.273 BABIP hiding bloated 13.5% walk rate  
2Sandy AlcantaraMIATB, @WAS   
3Kevin GausmanTORWAS, @COLShould be able to navigate Coors Field  
4Zac GallenARI@LAD, BALTough pair, but 3-0 with .98 ERA and .93 WHIP over last 3 GS 
5Luis CastilloSEA@NYM   
6Zack WheelerPHI@MIL   
7Gerrit

This time next week it will be Labor Day weekend. Yikes. Other than being the last time one can wear white shorts this year (is that still a thing?), Labor Day triggers fantasy managers to be a little more aggressive with pitching since ERA drops. Even with all the changes this season, runs have followed the typical pattern of increasing as the weather warms, which usually means falling a bit in September:

MonthRuns per GameBABIPWOBAK/PABB/PAHR/PA
March/April4.590.2980.3180.2300.0880.030
May4.550.2970.3200.2230.0870.031
June4.530.2970.3190.2280.0840.031
July4.640.2960.3230.2270.0840.033
August4.700.2990.3260.2280.0820.035

Hang in there folks, scoring should wane a bit soon.

As always, the matchups are pulled from the Probable Pitchers Grid, so please direct rotation questions over there. Feel free to post rankings questions below.

UPDATED: Monday August 28 2:00 AM

Week of August 28 - September 3

Mixed

RankPitcherTMOPPCommentsMIX12MIX15
1Blake SnellSD@STL, SF.273 BABIP hiding bloated 13.5% walk rate  
2Sandy AlcantaraMIATB, @WAS   
3Kevin GausmanTORWAS, @COLShould be able to navigate Coors Field  
4Zac GallenARI@LAD, BALTough pair, but 3-0 with .98 ERA and .93 WHIP over last 3 GS 
5Luis CastilloSEA@NYM   
6Zack WheelerPHI@MIL   
7Gerrit ColeNYY@DET   
8George KirbySEAOAKStrikeouts inching up  
9Max ScherzerTEXMIN   
10Bryce MillerSEAOAK   
11Andrew AbbottCIN@SF, CHC   
12Justin SteeleCHCMIL, @CIN   
13Tyler GlasnowTB@CLE   
14Logan WebbSFCIN   
15Brandon WoodruffMIL@CHC   
16Spencer StriderATL@COL   
17Aaron NolaPHI@MIL29 homers allowed, third most in MLB  
18Eury PerezMIA@WAS   
19Kyle BradishBAL@ARI   
20Tarik SkubalDETNYY, @CWSWalks and homers remain low  
21Seth LugoSD@STL, SFQuietly shoving, 1.06 ERA and 1.06 WHIP over last 17 IP with 17 K 
22Jon GrayTEX@NYM   
23Justin VerlanderHOUNYY   
24Jordan MontgomeryTEXMIN   
25Corbin BurnesMIL@CHCLooked to be back as one of the best, but 4 HR in last 18 IP 
26Sonny GrayMINCLE   
27Logan GilbertSEA@NYM   
28Aaron CivaleTB@MIA, @CLE4.02 xFIP warns of regression, but matchups are favorable 
29Pablo LopezMINCLE   
30Clayton KershawLADARI, ATLCan't count on more than 5 IP per start  
31Freddy PeraltaMILPHI   
32Chris BassittTORWAS   
33Bobby MillerLADARI, ATL   
34James PaxtonBOS@KC   
35Chase SilsethLAA@OAK   
36Nathan EovaldiTEXMIN   
37Cristopher SanchezPHILAA   
38Chris SaleBOSHOU, @KCTeam still limiting workload  
39Mike ClevingerCWSDET   
40Max FriedATL@LAD   
41Griffin CanningLAA@OAK   
42Eduardo RodriguezDETNYY   
43Zach EflinTB@MIAVictimized by .381 BABIP over last three GS  
44Jose BerriosTORWAS   
45Kenta MaedaMINCLE, @TEX   
46Kodai SengaNYMTEX   
47Dane DunningTEX@NYM   
48Tanner HouckBOS@KC 22% 
49Mason MillerOAKLAA 7% 
50Michael LorenzenPHILAA   
51Matt ManningDETNYY 28% 
52Bryan WooSEAOAK, @NYM   
53Tanner BibeeCLE@MIN   
54Mitch KellerPIT@STLSeems to have righted the ship  
55Andrew HeaneyTEX@NYM   
56Taijuan WalkerPHILAA, @MIL   
57Patrick SandovalLAA@OAK   
58Brandon WilliamsonCIN@SF, CHC18 K, 4 BB spanning last 17.1 IP44% 
59Johan OviedoPIT@KC, @STL   
60Charlie MortonATL@COL, @LAD   
61Michael WachaSDSF   
62Cole RagansKCPIT   
63Julio UriasLADATL   
64Framber ValdezHOU@BOS   
65Gavin WilliamsCLE@MIN   
66Javier AssadCHC@CIN   
67Jesus LuzardoMIATB   
68Kyle HendricksCHCMIL   
69Merrill KellyARI@LAD   
70Joe RyanMIN@TEX   
71Lucas GiolitoLAA@PHI   
72Wade MileyMIL@CHC, PHI   
73Reese OlsonDETNYY, @CWS 24% 
74Dean KremerBALCWS   
75Kutter CrawfordBOSHOU   
76Jose QuintanaNYMTEX 43% 
77Jose UrquidyHOUNYY   
78Mix 12 Reliever     
79Bryce ElderATL@COL, @LAD   
80Jameson TaillonCHCMIL, @CIN   
81Hunter BrownHOUNYY   
82Zack GreinkeKCPIT 1%8%
83Zack LittellTB@CLE   
84Hyun Jin RyuTOR@COL   
85Braxton GarrettMIA@WASMerits SP2/SP3 status  
86Bailey OberMIN@TEX   
87Cole IrvinBAL@ARI 11% 
88Mix 15 Reliever     
89Lance LynnLADATL   
90Edward CabreraMIA@WAS   
91Sean ManaeaSF@SD 5%49%
92Hunter GreeneCIN@SF   
93Yu DarvishSD@STL   
94Logan AllenCLETB   
95Angel ZerpaKCPIT 0%0%
96Dylan CeaseCWS@BAL   
97Grayson RodriguezBALCWS   
98Alex CobbSFCIN, @SD   
99Brayan BelloBOSHOU   
100Kyle HarrisonSFCIN, @SD 1%2%
101Kyle GibsonBALCWS   
102Miles MikolasSTLSD   
103Graham AshcraftCINCHC   
104Reid DetmersLAA@PHI   
105Alex FaedoDET@CWS 14% 
106Dakota HudsonSTLPIT 9% 
107Rich HillSDSF 6% 
108Jordan WicksCHC@CIN 0%0%
109MacKenzie GoreWAS@TOR   
110Clarke SchmidtNYY@DET   
111Michael KopechCWS@BAL, DET   
112Tristan BeckSF@SD 0%0%
113Cristian JavierHOU@BOS   
114Carlos RodonNYY@HOU   
115Yusei KikuchiTOR@COL   
116JP SearsOAKLAA   
117Jake IrvinWASMIA 7% 
118Josiah GrayWAS@TOR, MIA   
119Jack FlahertyBAL@ARI   
120Xzavion CurryCLE@MIN, TB 4%34%
121David PetersonNYMSEA 6%40%
122Paul BlackburnOAKLAA   
123Andre JacksonPIT@KC 1%6%
124Bailey FalterPIT@STL 2%34%
125Brandon PfaadtARI@LAD   
126Ben LivelyCINCHC 10% 
127Jhony BritoNYY@DET, @HOU 2%4%
128Cal QuantrillCLETB 8%13%
129Tyler AndersonLAA@PHI 7% 
130Slade CecconiARIBAL 0%0%
131Drew RomSTLPIT 0%0%
132Ryan PepiotLADARI 19% 
133Joan AdonWASMIA 0%4%
134Brady SingerKCBOS   
135Trevor WilliamsWASMIA 0%8%
136Adrian HouserMILPHI 3% 
137Luis SeverinoNYY@DET, @HOU   
138Tylor MegillNYMTEX, SEA 14%23%
139Ken WaldichukOAK@SEA 2%28%
140Touki ToussaintCWSDET 10% 
141Jared ShusterATL@LAD 8%13%
142J.P. FranceHOU@BOS   
143Luis OrtizPIT@KC 0%0%
144Alec MarshKCBOS 3%42%
145Jordan LylesKCBOS 0%0%
146Adam WainwrightSTLSD, PIT 5%0%
147Kyle MullerOAK@SEA 1%2%
148Carlos CarrascoNYMSEA 17% 
149Jesse ScholtensCWS@BAL 4% 
150Zach DaviesARIBAL 0%4%
151Austin GomberCOLATL, TOR 3%28%
152Zack ThompsonSTLSD 7% 
153Patrick CorbinWAS@TOR 1%19%
154Peter LambertCOLATL 0%2%
155Chris FlexenCOLTOR 0%0%
156Ty BlachCOLTOR 0%0%
157Zach NealOAK@SEA 0%0%
158Kyle FreelandCOLATL 5%25%

American League

RankPitcherTMOPPComment
1Kevin GausmanTORWAS, @COLShould be able to navigate Coors Field
2Luis CastilloSEA@NYM 
3Gerrit ColeNYY@DET 
4George KirbySEAOAKStrikeouts inching up
5Max ScherzerTEXMIN 
6Bryce MillerSEAOAK 
7Tyler GlasnowTB@CLE 
8Kyle BradishBAL@ARI 
9Tarik SkubalDETNYY, @CWSWalks and homers remain low
10Jon GrayTEX@NYM 
11Justin VerlanderHOUNYY 
12Jordan MontgomeryTEXMIN 
13Sonny GrayMINCLE 
14Logan GilbertSEA@NYM 
15Aaron CivaleTB@MIA, @CLE4.02 xFIP warns of regression, but matchups are favorable
16Pablo LopezMINCLE 
17Chris BassittTORWAS 
18James PaxtonBOS@KC 
19Chase SilsethLAA@OAK 
20Nathan EovaldiTEXMIN 
21Chris SaleBOSHOU, @KCTeam still limiting workload
22Mike ClevingerCWSDET 
23Griffin CanningLAA@OAK 
24Eduardo RodriguezDETNYY 
25Zach EflinTB@MIAVictimized by .381 BABIP over last three GS
26Jose BerriosTORWAS 
27Kenta MaedaMINCLE, @TEX 
28Dane DunningTEX@NYM 
29Tanner HouckBOS@KC 
30Mason MillerOAKLAA 
31Matt ManningDETNYY 
32Bryan WooSEAOAK, @NYM 
33Tanner BibeeCLE@MIN 
34Andrew HeaneyTEX@NYM 
35Patrick SandovalLAA@OAK 
36Cole RagansKCPIT 
37Framber ValdezHOU@BOS 
38Gavin WilliamsCLE@MIN 
39Joe RyanMIN@TEX 
40Lucas GiolitoLAA@PHI 
41Reese OlsonDETNYY, @CWS 
42Dean KremerBALCWS 
43Kutter CrawfordBOSHOU 
44Jose UrquidyHOUNYY 
45Hunter BrownHOUNYY 
46Zack GreinkeKCPIT 
47Zack LittellTB@CLE 
48Hyun Jin RyuTOR@COL 
49Bailey OberMIN@TEX 
50Cole IrvinBAL@ARI 
51Logan AllenCLETB 
52Angel ZerpaKCPIT 
53Dylan CeaseCWS@BAL 
54Grayson RodriguezBALCWS 
55Brayan BelloBOSHOU 
56Kyle GibsonBALCWS 
57Reid DetmersLAA@PHI 
58AL Reliever   
59Alex FaedoDET@CWS 
60Clarke SchmidtNYY@DET 
61Michael KopechCWS@BAL, DET 
62Cristian JavierHOU@BOS 
63Carlos RodonNYY@HOU 
64Yusei KikuchiTOR@COL 
65JP SearsOAKLAA 
66Jack FlahertyBAL@ARI 
67Xzavion CurryCLE@MIN, TB 
68Paul BlackburnOAKLAA 
69Jhony BritoNYY@DET, @HOU
70Cal QuantrillCLETB 
71Tyler AndersonLAA@PHI 
72Brady SingerKCBOS 
73Luis SeverinoNYY@DET, @HOU
74Ken WaldichukOAK@SEA 
75Touki ToussaintCWSDET 
76J.P. FranceHOU@BOS 
77Alec MarshKCBOS 
78Jordan LylesKCBOS 
79Kyle MullerOAK@SEA 
80Jesse ScholtensCWS@BAL 
81Zach NealOAK@SEA 

National League

RankPitcherTMOPPComment
1Blake SnellSD@STL, SF.273 BABIP hiding bloated 13.5% walk rate
2Sandy AlcantaraMIATB, @WAS 
3Zac GallenARI@LAD, BALTough pair, but 3-0 with .98 ERA and .93 WHIP over last 3 GS
4Zack WheelerPHI@MIL 
5Andrew AbbottCIN@SF, CHC 
6Justin SteeleCHCMIL, @CIN 
7Logan WebbSFCIN 
8Brandon WoodruffMIL@CHC 
9Spencer StriderATL@COL 
10Aaron NolaPHI@MIL29 homers allowed, third most in MLB
11Eury PerezMIA@WAS 
12Seth LugoSD@STL, SFQuietly shoving, 1.06 ERA and 1.06 WHIP over last 17 IP with 17 K
13Corbin BurnesMIL@CHCLooked to be back as one of the best, but 4 HR in last 18 IP
14Clayton KershawLADARI, ATLCan't count on more than 5 IP per start
15Freddy PeraltaMILPHI 
16Bobby MillerLADARI, ATL 
17Cristopher SanchezPHILAA 
18Max FriedATL@LAD 
19Kodai SengaNYMTEX 
20Michael LorenzenPHILAA 
21Mitch KellerPIT@STLSeems to have righted the ship
22Taijuan WalkerPHILAA, @MIL 
23Brandon WilliamsonCIN@SF, CHC18 K, 4 BB spanning last 17.1 IP
24Johan OviedoPIT@KC, @STL 
25Charlie MortonATL@COL, @LAD 
26Michael WachaSDSF 
27Julio UriasLADATL 
28Javier AssadCHC@CIN 
29Jesus LuzardoMIATB 
30Kyle HendricksCHCMIL 
31Merrill KellyARI@LAD 
32Wade MileyMIL@CHC, PHI 
33Jose QuintanaNYMTEX 
34Bryce ElderATL@COL, @LAD 
35Jameson TaillonCHCMIL, @CIN 
36Braxton GarrettMIA@WASMerits SP2/SP3 status
37Lance LynnLADATL 
38Edward CabreraMIA@WAS 
39Sean ManaeaSF@SD 
40Hunter GreeneCIN@SF 
41Yu DarvishSD@STL 
42Alex CobbSFCIN, @SD 
43Kyle HarrisonSFCIN, @SD 
44Miles MikolasSTLSD 
45Graham AshcraftCINCHC 
46NL Reliever   
47Dakota HudsonSTLPIT 
48Rich HillSDSF 
49Jordan WicksCHC@CIN 
50MacKenzie GoreWAS@TOR 
51Tristan BeckSF@SD 
52Jake IrvinWASMIA 
53Josiah GrayWAS@TOR, MIA 
54David PetersonNYMSEA 
55Andre JacksonPIT@KC 
56Bailey FalterPIT@STL 
57Brandon PfaadtARI@LAD 
58Ben LivelyCINCHC 
59Slade CecconiARIBAL 
60Drew RomSTLPIT 
61Ryan PepiotLADARI 
62Joan AdonWASMIA 
63Trevor WilliamsWASMIA 
64Adrian HouserMILPHI 
65Tylor MegillNYMTEX, SEA 
66Jared ShusterATL@LAD 
67Luis OrtizPIT@KC 
68Adam WainwrightSTLSD, PIT 
69Carlos CarrascoNYMSEA 
70Zach DaviesARIBAL 
71Austin GomberCOLATL, TOR 
72Zack ThompsonSTLSD 
73Patrick CorbinWAS@TOR 
74Peter LambertCOLATL 
75Chris FlexenCOLTOR 
76Ty BlachCOLTOR 
77Kyle FreelandCOLATL 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Todd Zola
Todd has been writing about fantasy baseball since 1997. He won NL Tout Wars and Mixed LABR in 2016 as well as a multi-time league winner in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship. Todd is now setting his sights even higher: The Rotowire Staff League. Lord Zola, as he's known in the industry, won the 2013 FSWA Fantasy Baseball Article of the Year award and was named the 2017 FSWA Fantasy Baseball Writer of the Year. Todd is a five-time FSWA awards finalist.
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