2023 starting pitcher rankings: Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer give Mets two of the top 10
Ace starting pitchers made quite a splash on the free-agent market this offseason, with Jacob deGrom, Carlos Rodon and Justin Verlander all signing big-money deals with new teams. Now, can they deliver on the high expectations that come with it?
Overall, most of the game's high-end starters (seven of our top nine) pitch in the National League. However, the American League seems to have greater overall depth.
MLB's move to a more balanced schedule should, in theory, help pitchers in the toughest divisions because they won't face those division opponents as often. Go ahead and give a slight boost to pitchers on AL East, NL East and NL West teams, but remember radom variance often overrides everything.
Only eight pitchers reached the 200-inning mark last season, but 11 of them topped 200 strikeouts. Draft-day decisions may come down to a choice of quantity vs. quality.
FANTASY RANKINGS: Top 200 overall players for 2023
CHEAT SHEET: Fantasy baseball position by position rankings
Starting pitcher rankings
Corbin Burnes, Brewers NL1
Gerrit Cole, Yankees AL1
Sandy Alcantara, Marlins NL2
Spencer Strider, Braves NL3
Justin Verlander, Mets NL4
Aaron Nola, Phillies NL5
Shohei Ohtani, Angels AL2
Brandon Woodruff, Brewers NL6
Shane McClanahan, Rays AL3
Max Scherzer, Mets NL7
Jacob deGrom, Rangers AL4
Kevin Gausman, Blue Jays AL5
Shane Bieber, Guardians AL6
Dylan Cease, White Sox AL7
Max Fried, Braves NL8
Yu Darvish, Padres NL9
Zack Wheeler, Phillies NL10
Alek Manoah, Blue Jays AL8
Julio Urias, Dodgers NL11
Luis Castillo, Mariners AL9
Cristian Javier, Astros AL10
Zac Gallen, Diamondbacks NL12
Framber Valdez, Astros AL11
Carlos Rodon, Yankees AL12
Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers NL13
Robbie Ray, Mariners AL13
Logan Gilbert, Mariners AL14
Logan Webb, Giants NL14
Blake Snell, Padres NL15
Hunter Greene, Reds NL15
Freddy Peralta, Brewers NL17
George Kirby, Mariners AL15
Lance Lynn, White Sox AL16
Joe Ryan, Twins AL17
Joe Musgrove, Padres NL18
Jordan Montgomery, Cardinals NL19
Lucas Giolito, White Sox AL18
Tyler Glasnow, Rays AL19
Nestor Cortes, Yankees AL20
Luis Severino, Yankees AL21
Chris Bassitt, Blue Jays AL22
Chris Sale, Red Sox AL23
Kyle Wright, Braves NL20
Brady Singer, Royals AL24
Reid Detmers, Angels AL25
Kodai Senga, Mets NL21
Nick Lodolo, Reds NL22
Dustin May, Dodgers NL23
Jeffrey Springs, Rays AL26
Tony Gonsolin, Dodgers NL24
Jesus Luzardo, Marlins NL25
Drew Rasmussen, Rays AL27
Pablo Lopez, Twins AL28
Luis Garcia, Astros AL29
Jack Flaherty, Cardinals NL26
Charlie Morton, Braves NL27
Triston McKenzie, Guardians AL30
Patrick Sandoval, Angels AL31
Grayson Rodriguez, Orioles AL32
Nathan Eovaldi, Rangers AL33
Jon Gray, Rangers AL34
Jameson Taillon, Cubs NL28
Marcus Stroman, Cubs NL29
Zach Eflin, Rays AL35
Alex Cobb, Giants NL30
Sonny Gray, Twins AL36
Tyler Anderson, Angels AL37
Miles Mikolas, Cardinals NL31
Aaron Civale, Guardians AL38
Hunter Brown, Astros AL39
Tyler Mahle, Twins AL40
Carlos Carrasco, Mets NL32
Edward Cabrera, Marlins NL33
Kenta Maeda, Twins AL41
Sean Manaea, Giants NL34
Lance McCullers, Astros AL42
Andrew Heaney, Rangers AL43
Trevor Rogers, Marlins NL35
Merrill Kelly, Diamondbacks NL36
Ross Stripling, Giants NL37
Jose Urquidy, Astros AL44
Roansy Contreras, Pirates NL38
Taijuan Walker, Phillies NL39
Cal Quantrill, Guardians AL45
Eduardo Rodriguez, Tigers AL46
Clarke Schmidt, Yankees AL47
Jared Schuster, Braves NL40
Michael Kopech, White Sox AL48
Jose Berrios, Blue Jays AL49
Kyle Bradish, Orioles AL50
Hayden Wesneski, Cubs NL41
Justin Steele, Cubs NL42
Ranger Suarez, Phillies NL43
Ken Waldichuk, A's AL51
Eric Lauer, Brewers NL44
Steven Matz, Cardinals NL45
Alex Wood, Giants NL46
Mitch Keller, Pirates NL47
Graham Ashcraft, Reds NL48
Jose Suarez, Angels AL52
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fantasy baseball rankings: Top 100 starting pitchers for 2023
