Top 50 Starting Pitcher Rankings: Week 5 (2023 Fantasy Baseball)

We’ve almost completed the season’s first month and are on to Week 5 of our Top 50 Starting Pitchers of the Week series for 2023. Every Friday, we review the upcoming slate and rank the starters based on their ability, matchups, and their number of scheduled starts. Today’s rankings are for the week of Monday, May 1, through Sunday, May 7.

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Top 50 Starting Pitcher Rankings: Week 5

As always, our planning starts with the Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) and is adjusted based on the Pitcher Planner. Double-check this resource before setting your lineup, as rotations change frequently. The complete top 50 is below, but first, let’s review some of the best and worst matchups on paper next week.

Two-Start Starters with the Best Matchups

There aren’t any two-start pitchers with two great matchups next week. The best we get is a few with two neutral matchups. Luis Garcia (SP – HOU) gets the Giants at home and the Mariners on the road, while Tyler Mahle (SP – MIN) gets home games against the White Sox and Guardians. Perhaps the most intriguing starter this week is Jose Berrios (SP – TOR), who is coming off three strong starts in a row, including seven shutout innings against the White Sox on Tuesday. Berrios is suddenly fantasy relevant again and is scheduled to face the Red Sox in Boston and the Pirates in Pittsburgh.

Two-Start Starters with Mixed Matchups

There aren’t any starters with two terrible matchups next week either, but there are several with one good (or at least neutral) and one tough one. Sandy Alcantara (SP – MIA) hasn’t inspired much confidence in fantasy managers this season and will start the week against the Braves. At least the game is at home. After that, the reigning Cy Young winner travels to Chicago to take on the Cubbies.

Max Scherzer (SP – NYM) returns from his ten-game suspension on Monday and could face the Braves in the finale of their homestand. No announcement has been made yet, however, so double-check the planner before setting your lineup. If he does return Monday or Tuesday, which would be better since he’ll get Detroit instead, he’ll have a two-start week with the second game at home against the Rockies.

Other intriguing two-start matchups next week include Logan Gilbert (SP – SEA), who gets the A’s at home but then has to travel to Houston; Blake Snell (SP – SD), who will face the Reds and Dodgers at home; and Kyle Wright (SP – ATL), who starts the week in Miami then comes home to take on the red-hot Orioles.

Best Matchups for One-Start Starters

This category could be renamed “good starters who get to face the A’s, Royals, Marlins, Tigers, or Nationals next week.” Spencer Strider (SP, RP – ATL), Max Fried (SP – ATL), and Justin Steele (SP – CHC) get the Marlins, with Steele’s being a home game. I wonder what the over/under is on strikeouts for Strider in that game? Luis Castillo (SP – SEA) and George Kirby (SP – SEA) face the floundering A’s offense in Oakland, while Grayson Rodriguez (SP – BAL) will try to build on the five shutout innings from his last start against the Royals in Kansas City. Marcus Stroman (SP – CHC) travels to D.C. to take on the Nats, while Jordan Montgomery (SP – STL)  and Kodai Senga (SP – NYM) will attempt to tame the Tigers.

Worst Matchups for One-Start Starters

On the flip side, Aaron Nola (SP – PHI), Yu Darvish (SP – SD), and Joe Musgrove (SP – SD) have to face the Dodgers next week, who will have Max Muncy (2B,3B, DH – LAD) and possibly Will Smith (C – LAD) back. At least the San Diego hurlers will face them at home. Elsewhere, Logan Webb (SP – SF) takes on the red-hot Astros in Houston, Freddy Peralta (SP – MIL) travels to Denver, and Nestor Cortes Jr. (SP – NYY) will try to cool off the Rays in Tampa.

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