2026 MLB Power Rankings: Who is Each Team’s Early Season Standout Starter?

Before last weekend, the fastest pitch from a starter in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008) belonged to Jordan Hicks at 103.2 mph. On Friday night, Jacob Misiorowski set that record ablaze. The Brewers’ 24-year-old flamethrower introduced himself to the Yankees by striking out 11 batters over six scoreless innings while maxing out at 103.6 mph three times in a 6-0 win. Misiorowski threw 10 pitches at 103 mph or faster and is now responsible for 16 of the 18 fastest pitches from a starting pitcher in the pitch-tracking era. “Miz” has only allowed two hits in 11.1 innings this month, and he’s the MLB leader in strikeouts (70) despite ranking outside the top 45 in innings pitched. In honor of Misiorowski’s record-setting performance, this week’s power rankings include every team’s standout starter to begin the year. Chase Dollander’s role has varied, but he has started in two of his last three appearances and has nearly twice as many strikeouts (47) as the next closest pitcher on the team (Kyle Freeland: 28). Dollander’s missing a lot more bats to start his second season, which is an encouraging sign under new pitching coach Alon Leichman. He no longer looks like the best pitcher in the league, but the fact we were talking about José Soriano that way through the end of April is a testament to his sensational start. He had an ERA under 1.00 through his first seven starts and still ranks in the top three in the category among qualified starters (1.66). The offense is still a mess — the Mets rank last in every slash line category — but Nolan McLean gives the team a chance every time he’s on the mound. He has held his opponent to three runs or fewer in each of his eight starts and ranks fourth among all qualified starters in strikeout rate. Opponents are hitting .038 with 19 strikeouts against his curveball. It’s been an uphill battle all year for their shorthanded rotation, which ranks 29th in ERA and is still missing its most important pieces, but Peter Lambert has done his best to assist. The 29-year-old never had an ERA under 5.00 or a strikeout rate over 19% in any of his four seasons in Colorado; he has a 2.42 ERA and a 24.7 K% in four starts in Houston this year. He hasn’t allowed a home run, and opponents are hitting just .125 against his four-seamer. Landen Roupp not only has seen his strikeout rate rise 7% from last year, he also has the lowest hard-hit rate of any qualified MLB starter. In eight starts, he hasn’t allowed a single barreled ball. It’ll be interesting to see how the pitching staff handles the departure of defensive whiz Patrick Bailey, who was traded to Cleveland. With Taj Bradley the latest Twins starter to hit the injured list, we’ll highlight Joe Ryan. It looked like he, too, might be lost for a while. But after leaving his May 3 start with elbow soreness, Ryan returned Saturday and fired six innings of one-run ball on 107 pitches. His ERA this year (3.43) is nearly identical to what it was last year (3.42), but it’s worth noting that his velocity and whiff rate are both down a tick. After an inauspicious start to his Boston tenure, Ranger Suárez has a 1.17 ERA over his last five starts and held his opponent scoreless in four of them. He left his last start early with hamstring tightness but appears to be fine. Returning stateside after three years in Japan, Foster Griffin (2.12) has a nearly identical ERA to Cristopher Sánchez (2.11) and the same WHIP as Joe Ryan (1.03). He has allowed one earned run in 20 innings over his last three starts. From Tommy John surgery in 2022 to season-ending hip surgery last July, staying on the field hasn’t been easy for 2020 first-round pick Max Meyer. Through eight starts this year, though, he has a career-best 2.79 ERA. His sweeper has been a difference-maker, and his .197 opponents’ batting average ranks in the top 20 among qualified starters. Trevor Rogers has a 4.75 ERA, and that’s the best mark of any Orioles pitcher with at least five starts this year. Baltimore starters have allowed more runs than any rotation in MLB, and the Orioles have lost eight of their last 11 games. It’s not an exaggeration to say that Davis Martin has been one of the best pitchers in the sport this season. Among qualified MLB starters, the 29-year-old has the second-lowest ERA (1.62) and fifth-lowest walk rate (4.7%). The White Sox have won seven of his eight starts this year. Dylan Cease has given the Blue Jays all they could have asked for when they gave him $210 million this offseason. He ranks third in MLB in strikeouts and has the highest whiff rate among qualified AL starters. His 34.6% strikeout rate is the highest of his career. Woof. Between Tarik Skubal undergoing an elbow procedure and Framber Valdez unraveling and getting suspended, it was a brutal week in Detroit. Skubal, Casey Mize, Justin Verlander and Troy Melton are all sidelined (not to mention Jackson Jobe and Reese Olson, who haven’t pitched all year), but at least it sounds like Skubal could return sooner than many anticipated. He is, obviously, the Tigers’ standout. Keider Montero has allowed one run in each of his last two starts, and they’ll need him to help keep the ship afloat. Michael Wacha leads the Royals in wins (four) and ERA (2.63). He has gone seven innings in each of his first two starts of May, allowing a combined two runs over those appearances. Opponents are hitting just .164 against his four-seamer and .136 against his changeup. He’s helping the Royals crawl back toward AL Central relevance (it doesn’t take much). Prior to his five-run outing against the White Sox over the weekend, Emerson Hancock was coming off a 14-strikeout performance against the Royals. The difficult outing Friday brought his ERA up over 3.00 for the first time all year, but he has been an important cog for a Mariners rotation that hasn’t dominated the way many expected. After the Rangers lost four straight series, Jacob deGrom put an end to the skid by striking out 10 Cubs batters in seven scoreless innings Sunday. The two-time Cy Young Award winner has a 2.62 ERA with 57 strikeouts and eight walks in 44.2 innings, but no one else in the Rangers rotation has an ERA under 4.00. This feels like a team that’s just going to hover around .500 all year…but maybe that isn’t the worst thing in the American League? Cristopher Sánchez’s ERA is down to 2.11 after throwing eight scoreless innings on May 5 against the Athletics and then adding seven more scoreless frames Sunday against the Rockies, moving the Phillies to 10-3 in the Don Mattingly era. After finishing as the Cy Young runner-up last year, Sánchez should be in the mix for the award again. Eduardo Rodriguez is 4-0 with a 2.25 ERA after coming two outs short of a complete game Sunday against the Mets. It has been a bounceback year for the veteran lefty, who had an ERA over 5.00 in each of his first two seasons in Arizona. He’ll be a longshot considering the strength of this year’s rookie class, but Parker Messick has to at least be in the American League Rookie of the Year conversation. Among qualified AL starters, the 25-year-old lefty ranks fifth in ERA (2.30) and WHIP (0.98) and has the lowest hard-hit rate. Chase Burns ranks third among qualified NL starters with a 2.11 ERA; every other Cincinnati starter’s ERA is more than double that total. The 23-year-old has the fifth-highest whiff rate among all qualified MLB starters, and he has a 1.47 ERA over his last five starts. His slider is a serious weapon. The decision to add Aaron Civale in February was a prudent one; the veteran righty leads the team in wins (four) and ERA (2.59). He has surrendered just one run over his last three starts. If you were worried about Paul Skenes after his first start of the year, don’t be. Since that blow-up outing to start the season, he has a 1.31 ERA with 45 strikeouts and five walks over his last seven starts. He has held his opponent to one or no runs in six of his last seven starts, and he leads all qualified starters in WHIP (0.71) and opponents’ average (.156). The only qualified MLB starters with a lower WHIP than Michael McGreevy (0.86) are Paul Skenes (0.71) and Cam Schlittler (0.81). McGreevy has a 2.18 ERA on the year and held the Dodgers and Padres scoreless over six innings in his last two starts. Scroll back to the top for more on Misiorowski, who has a 39.5 strikeout rate. That’s the highest mark among MLB starters and would be the highest mark of any starter in a full season since Gerrit Cole in 2019 (39.9%). Jackson Chourio and Andrew Vaughn are back, and the Brewers are picking up steam after an impressive weekend sweep of the Yankees. With Nick Pivetta sidelined, the Padres need Michael King to carry the load. He’s doing his best, holding his opponent to two runs or fewer in six of his eight starts this year. King’s .182 opponents’ batting average ranks in the top 10 among qualified MLB starters. We’re far enough into the year that it’s time to talk about the Rays. They’re 14-2 over their last 16 games, and their starters have the third-lowest ERA in MLB. Veteran Nick Martinez ranks fourth among MLB starters with a 1.70 ERA and hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any of his eight starts. The Dodgers could really use Shohei Ohtani’s bat to start heating up. Since jumping out to a 15-4 record, they’ve lost 12 of their last 21 games. Over that 9-12 stretch, Ohtani is hitting .219 with one home run. On the mound, however, he is thriving. Ohtani is the only pitcher who has thrown at least 30 innings with an ERA under 1.00 this year. The Yankees were swept this weekend by the Brewers despite Cam Schlittler holding Milwaukee scoreless for six innings Saturday. His 1.35 ERA is the best mark of any qualified starter, and he has only surrendered one homer in 53.1 innings. By fWAR, he has been the most valuable pitcher in MLB. Shota Imanaga has the highest chase rate among all qualified MLB starters and ranks in the top 10 in WHIP (0.93) and opponents’ average (.179). His work is vital as the Cubs deal with a plethora of pitching injuries, though they still managed to win 10 games in a row before dropping their series this weekend in Texas. They’re 18-5 at home this year. The Braves maintain top billing after taking the series this weekend in Los Angeles thanks to 5.2 scoreless innings Sunday from Bryce Elder, whose magical season continues. Elder’s 1.81 ERA ranks fifth among qualified MLB starters.