Starting Pitcher Power Rankings: Hot streaks keep aces in place

The Starting Pitcher Power Rankings tend to see a lot of movement as fortunes rise and fall. It’s hard to get there … and it’s hard to stay there, too.

But not this time. The 10 pitchers who made our previous edition, two weeks ago, have gone a combined 14-3 with a 1.97 ERA and 188 strikeouts over 168 2/3 innings since then. Not one posted an ERA above 3.60, and nine of the 10 made it back this time around, with only Chris Sale dropping out, due to injury.

These rankings are based on a formula constructed by MLB.com’s data team, which considers performance over the past 365 days but places greater weight on season-long and recent performance.

(All stats below are through Tuesday’s games.)

1. Tarik Skubal, Tigers (Previously: 1)
This is a great pitcher operating at his peak right now. Skubal has five starts this season with at least 11 strikeouts and no more than one walk -- two more than any other pitcher. That includes a pair of 13-K efforts over his past seven starts: a shutout of the Guardians on May 25 and a seven-inning, one-hit master class against the Twins on the most recent edition of Sunday Night Baseball. Those account for the two best starts of Skubal’s career by Game Score.

2. Zack Wheeler, Phillies (3)
Wheeler just capped off a ridiculous June with a scoreless, eight-inning gem against the Padres on Monday. His numbers for the month: 31 innings, 20 hits, two earned runs (0.58 ERA), seven walks, 42 strikeouts. That put him in the NL lead for strikeouts (136) and WHIP (0.91).

3. Hunter Brown, Astros (4)
For all the greatness the two pitchers above him on this list have displayed, it’s actually Brown who led the Majors in ERA (1.74) and ERA+ (232) heading into Wednesday night’s outing at Coors Field (in which he allowed two runs in six innings to get the win). The ultra-consistent right-hander allowed no more than two earned runs in 14 of his first 16 outings, including six scoreless starts.

4. Paul Skenes, Pirates (2)
By his sky-high standards, Skenes has not been especially dominant of late. He’s averaged just five innings over his past four starts, walking 10 batters over those 20 innings. Even still, we’re talking about a stretch when he’s posted a 2.70 ERA and 2.44 FIP. Despite his highly misleading record (4-7), Skenes still leads the NL with a 2.03 ERA and 209 ERA+ for the season, holding opponents to a .278 slugging percentage.

5. Max Fried, Yankees (5)
Where would the Yankees be without Fried? They have won 13 of the left-hander’s 18 starts, and he’s given the team at least six innings 14 times. His cutter has been the star of the show, leading the Majors in run value and generating a .175 opponents’ average and .266 SLG.

6. Framber Valdez, Astros (6)
Speaking of “Where would Team X be without Pitcher Y” comments … the Astros have won 10 straight games started by Valdez, a stretch during which they vaulted from four games out of the AL West lead to seven games ahead. Valdez posted a 1.72 ERA during that run, capping it with a pair of scoreless outings.

7. Garrett Crochet, Red Sox (8)
This is why Boston gave up a prospect haul to acquire Crochet from the White Sox over the offseason. One year after making a successful transition to the starting rotation in Chicago, the 6-foot-6 lefty with a 2.26 ERA now leads the Majors in innings (115 1/3) and strikeouts (144). He ranks third in K’s on each of three different pitch types: four-seam fastballs (57), sweepers (46) and cutters (31).

8. Logan Webb, Giants (9)
Surprise, surprise: Webb leads the Majors this season with 14 quality starts. (He also has 77 of them going back to the start of the 2022 season, the most in MLB in that span.) Webb is tracking toward leading the NL in innings for the third straight year, and it’s not like he’s just eating innings out there, with a 2.61 ERA in 2025.

9. Jacob deGrom, Rangers (10)
From 2018-21, deGrom was about as dominant -- on a per-inning basis, at least -- as any starter has ever been. The deGrom we’re seeing in 2025 isn’t that deGrom, but he’s certainly getting the job done. The 37-year-old has a 2.13 ERA in 17 starts and has logged 14 straight with no more than two runs allowed, the longest streak of his career. Take that, Peak deGrom.

10. Ranger Suárez, Phillies (not ranked)
If you thought Wheeler was the only Phillies starter riding an absolutely torrid stretch, think again. After beating the Braves with seven strong innings on Sunday, Suárez has a 0.99 ERA over his past eight starts and 1.19 over his past 10. (That run began immediately after Suárez was lit up for seven runs in his season debut on May 4, following a stint on the injured list.) It’s all the more impressive considering that Suárez’s fastball velocity ranks in the ninth percentile.

Honorable mentions: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Dodgers), Andrew Abbott (Reds), Cristopher Sánchez (Phillies), Carlos Rodón (Yankees), Sonny Gray (Cardinals), Seth Lugo (Royals), Clarke Schmidt (Yankees), Kris Bubic (Royals), MacKenzie Gore (Nationals), Joe Ryan (Twins)