It’s Mid-May already, and Zac Gallen (SP – ARI), Eduardo Rodriguez (SP – DET), and Clayton Kershaw (SP – LAD) are our top-rated fantasy starters so far this season. Go figure. Gallen and Kershaw aren’t huge surprises, but Rodriguez? He usually doesn’t even crack our Top 50, though perhaps that’s about to change. If you are new to this series, we rank the top 50 starters for the following week every Friday based on their ability, matchups, and number of scheduled starts. Today’s rankings are for the week of Monday, May 15, through Sunday, May 21.
More Week 7 Advice:
- Two-Start SP Rankings, Tiers & Targets
- Fantasy Baseball Category Pickups
- Fantasy Baseball Streaming Pitchers
- Deep Sleepers & Waiver Wire Pickups
- Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire FAAB Report
- Fantasy Baseball Week 7 Waiver Wire Targets
Top 50 Starting Pitcher Rankings: Week 7
As always, our planning starts with the Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) and is adjusted based on the Pitcher Planner. As rotations change frequently, make sure you double-check the planner before setting your lineup. 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
Justin Verlander (SP – NYM) has made only two starts this season, but he vaults up our rankings as he’s scheduled to face the Nationals on the road and the Guardians at home. Down the list, Lance Lynn (SP – CWS), who’s pitched better than his ERA would indicate, gets the Guardians and Royals at home. Perhaps he’ll get that ERA back in line with these matchups. Josiah Gray (SP – WSH) cracks the top 50 as he has arguably the best schedule on paper – the Marlins in Miami and the Tigers at home.
Two-Start Starters with the Worst Matchups
We love two-start weeks, but we don’t love what’s ahead for Pablo Lopez (SP – MIN), George Kirby (SP – SEA), Hunter Greene (SP – CIN), and Grayson Rodriguez (SP – BAL). Lopez gets the L.A. double-header, facing the Dodgers and the Angels in SoCal next week. Kirby must take on the red-hot Red Sox and Braves on the road. Greene travels to Denver for his first start, then gets the Yanks at home, which isn’t too terrible. Rodriguez will face the Halos in Baltimore before heading north of the border to finish the week in Toronto.
Solo-Start Starters with the Best Matchups
Among our solo starters, several will square off against the Royals at home, which is about as good as it gets. The Padres’ Yu Darvish (SP – SD) and Blake Snell (SP – SD) get Kansas City to start the week, while Chisox teammates Dylan Cease (SP – CWS) and Lucas Giolito (SP – CWS) should start during the weekend series. Elsewhere, Logan Webb (SP – SF) managers can rejoice as he’ll face the Marlins in San Francisco.
Solo-Start Starters with the Worst Matchups
Gerrit Cole (SP – NYY) has been great this year, but his start against the Blue Jays in Toronto makes us nervous. The same goes for his teammate, Nestor Cortes Jr. (SP – NYY), who has yet to find his 2022 magic. Logan Gilbert (SP – SEA), Freddy Peralta (SP – MIL), and Sonny Gray (SP – MIN) are off to strong starts, but we’re not excited about their upcoming road matchups. Gilbert will take on the Braves, Gray the Dodgers, and Peralta, the Tampa Bay juggernaut.
| Rank | Player | Matchup(s) |
| 1 | Shohei Ohtani (SP,DH – LAA) | @BAL, MIN (two starts) |
| 2 | Kevin Gausman (SP – TOR) | NYY, BAL (two starts) |
| 3 | Shane Bieber (SP – CLE) | @CWS, @NYM (two starts) |
| 4 | Justin Verlander | @WSH, CLE (two starts) |
| 5 | Framber Valdez (SP – HOU) | CHC, OAK (two starts) |
| 6 | Shane McClanahan (SP – TB) | MIL |
| 7 | Gerrit Cole | @TOR |
| 8 | Corbin Burnes (SP – MIL) | @STL |
| 9 | Spencer Strider (SP,RP – ATL) | @TEX |
| 10 | Zac Gallen | @PIT |
| 11 | Sandy Alcantara (SP – MIA) | @SF |
| 12 | Luis Castillo (SP – SEA) | @BOS |
| 13 | Aaron Nola (SP – PHI) | CHC |
| 14 | Dylan Cease | KC |
| 15 | Julio Urias (SP – LAD) | @STL |
| 16 | Zack Wheeler (SP – PHI) | @SF |
| 17 | Alek Manoah (SP – TOR) | NYY, BAL (two starts) |
| 18 | Max Scherzer (SP – NYM) | CLE |
| 19 | Yu Darvish | KC |
| 20 | Pablo Lopez | @LAD, @LAA (two starts) |
| 21 | George Kirby | @BOS, @ATL (two starts) |
| 22 | Cristian Javier (SP,RP – HOU) | CHC |
| 23 | Logan Webb | MIA |
| 24 | Clayton Kershaw | MIN |
| 25 | Hunter Greene | @COL, NYY (two starts) |
| 26 | Charlie Morton (SP – ATL) | @TEX, SEA (two starts) |
| 27 | Joe Ryan (SP – MIN) | @LAA |
| 28 | Lance Lynn | CLE, KC (two starts) |
| 29 | Nestor Cortes Jr. | @TOR |
| 30 | Blake Snell | KC |
| 31 | Jesus Luzardo (SP – MIA) | WSH, @SF (two starts) |
| 32 | Logan Gilbert | @ATL |
| 33 | Joe Musgrove (SP – SD) | BOS |
| 34 | Drew Rasmussen (SP – TB) | @NYM |
| 35 | Freddy Peralta | @TB |
| 36 | Lucas Giolito | KC |
| 37 | Chris Bassitt (SP – TOR) | NYY |
| 38 | Jordan Montgomery (SP – STL) | MIL |
| 39 | Dustin May (SP – LAD) | MIN |
| 40 | Nick Lodolo (SP – CIN) | NYY |
| 41 | Sonny Gray | @LAD |
| 42 | Alex Cobb (SP – SF) | PHI |
| 43 | Andrew Heaney (SP – TEX) | COL |
| 44 | Hunter Brown (SP,RP – HOU) | OAK |
| 45 | Chris Sale (SP – BOS) | @SD |
| 46 | Merrill Kelly (SP – ARI) | @OAK, @PIT (two starts) |
| 47 | Eduardo Rodriguez | PIT |
| 48 | Jack Flaherty (SP – STL) | MIL, LAD (two starts) |
| 49 | Grayson Rodriguez | LAA, @TOR (two starts) |
| 50 | Josiah Gray | @MIA, DET (two starts) |
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