Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitcher Rankings: Yusei Kikuchi, Luis Castillo, Kyle Bradish (2023)

Some pitchers who struggled by their standards have turned things around since the All-Star break; notably, Corbin Burnes (SP – MIL), Freddy Peralta (SP – MIL), Brady Singer (SP – KC), and Yusei Kikuchi (SP – TOR).

Burnes and Peralta have been spectacular for the Brew Crew, posting ERAs in the mid-2.00 range with a ton of strikeouts. Singer has posted a 2.85 ERA after an unsightly 5.80 pre-break, while Kikuchi has a remarkable 1.29 ERA over his last 35 innings. Singer didn’t make our Top 50 this week, but he may be a factor down the stretch if he continues to pitch this well.

Top-50 Starting Pitchers: Aug. 21 – 27

As always, we began our weekly ranking planning with FantasyPro’s rest-of-season Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) and adjusted them based on the Pitcher Planner, the players’ season-to-date stats, and recent performance. As rotations change often, double-check the planner before setting your lineup.

Let’s review some of next week’s more intriguing matchups before jumping into the list below.

Two-Start SPs

We’ve consolidated this section as only eight of the 50 pitchers on our list are slated for two starts next week, and a few of them may get bumped down to one. The dog days of August bring more schedule breaks than usual, and several teams are using six-man rotations currently, which limits the two-start opportunities.

Of the eight, Luis Castillo (SP – SEA), who sports the top spot this week, has the best schedule. He’s slated to face the White Sox in Chicago and KC at home, two Central Division also-rans who struggle to score runs. Blake Snell (SP – SD) also has promising matchups, including Miami at home and Milwaukee on the road.

Zack Wheeler (SP – PHI), Jordan Montgomery (SP – TEX), Yusei Kikuchi (SP – TOR), and Andrew Abbott (SP – CIN) face neutral foes. Wheeler will square off against the Giants and Cardinals in Philly. Montgomery has two road games against the D’Backs and Twins. Kikuchi gets the Orioles in Baltimore before taking on the Guardians at home, and Abbott will face the Angels and Diamondbacks at the Great American Ballpark in Cincy.

Clayton Kershaw (SP – LAD) has a mixed slate, starting with a relatively easy matchup against Cleveland at home, followed by the Red Sox in Fenway, where they are tough. The worst schedule probably goes to Bailey Ober (SP – MIN), who really only has one challenging game. Ober will start the week in Milwaukee, which isn’t bad, but then take on the Rangers at home.

Single-Start SPs With Appealing Matchups Next Week

We love home matchups against the A’s, Royals, and Rockies, and five of our Top 50 fall into this category. Logan Gilbert (SP – SEA) and Bryce Miller (SP – SEA) of the Mariners square off against the Royals, while Zach Eflin (SP – TB) and Kyle Bradish (SP – BAL) get the road Rockies, and Dylan Cease (SP – CWS) faces the A’s.

Starters with appealing road matchups next week include Framber Valdez (SP – HOU) and Hunter Brown (SP – HOU) of the Astros and the Cubs’ Justin Steele (SP – CHC). The Houston duo will be in Detroit while Steele and the Cubbies take on the division-rival Pirates.

Single-Start SPs With Unappealing Matchups Next Week

The flip side of the matchup equation typically involves the likes of the Braves, Dodgers, Rangers, and Boston/Colorado on the road. Next week, six members of our list will have the unfortunate task of facing some of these teams.

Kodai Senga (SP – NYM) and Logan Webb (SP – SF) will take on Atlanta with Senga’s matchup in Atlanta and Webb’s at home. Zac Gallen (SP – ARI) and Twins’ teammates Pablo Lopez (SP – MIN) and Sonny Gray (SP – MIN) all get the Rangers at home. Last, Julio Urias (SP – LAD) and the Dodgers will travel to Boston to face the Red Sox in Fenway Park.

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