The only positional preview left is pitcher. That is exactly where we are heading with this article. Pitchers are fickle and impossible to figure out for fantasy baseball managers. If you invest early, it seems like all of the high draft picks get injured. If you wait, you are left scraping the bottom of the waiver wire each week, trying to piece together some semblance of a rotation. Well, the goal of this article is to help create a guide to the position in 2026 by looking at elite picks, sleeper selections, and players worth avoiding.
If you want to check out the 2025 recap article, you can do so here.
2026 Fantasy Baseball Pitcher Preview
The Elite Fantasy Baseball Picks
Tarik Skubal – Detroit Tigers
With the off-season in full swing, the rumors of the Tigers potentially trading Tarik Skubal have already started to swirl. While the Tigers would be foolish to trade Skubal, their ultimate decision should have no impact on his fantasy baseball value. Skubal is elite, regardless of where he pitches his home games.
In 31 starts, Skubal managed to improve his elite numbers from 2024. He finished the year with a 2.21 ERA, a 2.45 FIP, struck out 32.2% of the batters he faced, and lowered his walk rate to 4.4%. Skubal posted a whiff rate north of 25% on four different pitches. His changeup led the way with a 46.8% whiff rate. He is as elite as they come for fantasy baseball managers.
Assuming health, Skubal is a safe bet to repeat this performance again in 2026.
Paul Skenes – Pittsburgh Pirates
For those looking at traditional stats, Paul Skenes’ 10-10 record undersells how dominant he was on the mound last season. Skenes has wasted no time asserting himself as one of baseball’s top arms.
In 32 starts last season, Skenes posted an immaculate 1.97 ERA with a 2.36 FIP. He proved he was capable of maintaining elite levels of success over the course of a full Major League season.
From a fantasy baseball perspective, Skenes has everything you can ask for. Elite strikeout rates, strong walk rates, and an ability to accumulate innings. The wins will come (hopefully) as Pittsburgh improves.
He is arguably the best pitcher in baseball and is a locked-in first-round pick for fantasy baseball drafts in 2026.
Fantasy Baseball Sleeper Candidates
Emmett Sheehan – Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers’ utilization of starting pitchers in relief roles was one of the keys to their success in the 2025 playoffs. Emmett Sheehan, who made 12 starts for the Dodgers during the regular season, turned into one of Dave Roberts’ high-leverage arms in October.
The fact that Sheehan was not in the starting rotation was no fault of his own. Just simply based on the Dodgers having too many starting pitchers. With Clayton Kershaw now retired, Sheehan should have the inside edge on grabbing the fifth spot in the Dodgers’ rotation next season.
If he can accomplish this, Sheehan could turn into an excellent fantasy baseball asset. His fastball, slider, and changeup all profile as plus offerings. Both his chase and whiff rates ranked above the 90th percentile in baseball. Do not be surprised if Sheehan is one of 2026’s biggest breakout pitchers.
Troy Melton – Detroit Tigers
Troy Melton’s dominant season in the Minor Leagues earned him a bullpen spot down the stretch in 2025. In 16 appearances (four starts), Melton posted a 2.76 ERA across 45.2 innings pitched.
Melton will be given the chance to compete for a rotation spot in 2026 and is an excellent target late in fantasy baseball drafts. Already sitting at 97 mph, Melton’s fastball plays even faster than that thanks to his 87th percentile extension. While the fastball is a plus offering, Melton stands out thanks to his five other secondary offerings. The cutter, slider, and sinker all ranked as plus offerings according to PLV and help to keep opposing batters off balance.
Melton will get to pitch his home parks at the pitcher-friendly Comerica Field and is another young pitcher likely to break out in 2026.
2025 Seasons to be Wary Of
Trevor Rogers – Baltimore Orioles
The easy headline was “How could the Orioles have traded Kyle Stowers away to Miami?”. Trevor Rogers’ season was delayed due to injury, but his return was dominant in 18 starts last season, finishing the year with a sparkling 1.81 ERA.
The Orioles tweaked his arsenal, decreasing the usage of his sinker and slider while adding a sweeper. While this tweak certainly helps, it does not fully explain Rogers’ success. A significant portion of his success stemmed from improved luck. Last season, Rogers stranded 84.2% of runners on base. After entering the year with a career 10.2 HR/FB%, Rogers saw this number dip to 5.5%.
For fantasy baseball managers, Rogers’ strikeout rate remained at a pedestrian 24.3% limiting his upside. Proceed with caution when targeting Rogers in 2026 fantasy baseball drafts.
Noah Cameron – Kansas City Royals
As a seventh-round pick back in 2021, Noah Cameron worked hard to earn his way to the Major Leagues last season. Cameron was dominant in 24 starts, finishing the year with a 2.99 ERA.
All of last season, people in the fantasy baseball community seemed to expect Cameron to start struggling. Now, looking ahead to 2026, fantasy baseball managers need to proceed with caution.
For starters, Cameron finished the season with a 4.18 FIP and 4.10 xFIP. His .241 BABIP allowed was well below the league average, while his 84% left-on-base rate was well above the league average. While his secondary pitches are intriguing, his four-seam fastball is a below-average pitch and was hit hard last season. Righties also hit Cameron much better than lefties did.
There are a lot of red flags in Cameron’s profile that fantasy managers should consider when drafting next season.
Prospects Set to Make a Fantasy Baseball Impact
Andrew Painter – Philadelphia Phillies
The expectation from many was that Andrew Painter would make his Major League debut in 2025. As Painter struggled to shake off the rust in Triple-A, the Phillies’ Major League rotation dominated throughout the 2025 season. Now, the Phillies will likely be without Zack Wheeler to start the season, and Ranger Suarez is heading elsewhere in free agency.
Fantasy baseball managers should expect the team’s top prospect to make his debut early in 2026. Although Painter struggled with a. 5.26 ERA in Triple-A last season, his stuff still had the look of a future ace. He throws a hard fastball with an excellent slider. He also mixes in a changeup, curveball, and cutter.
Another full off-season removed from Tommy John Surgery should help Painter reclaim his dominant form next season.
Robby Snelling – Miami Marlins
The Marlins have quietly put together a strong track record of pitching development. The team seemingly “bought low” on Snelling during the 2024 season, acquiring him from San Diego. Since joining the Marlins organization, the team has emphasized expanding Snelling’s arsenal and helping him reclaim fastball velocity.
Everything seemed to click in 2025 as Snelling posted a 2.51 ERA across 25 starts. Snelling improved as the season moved along and the competition got tougher. In 11 Triple-A starts to end the season, Snelling struck out 32.9% of the batters he faced with both his fastball and curveball, generating whiff rates north of 35%.
Miami has a log-jam of pitchers but some trades this off-season should help clear a path for Snelling to make his Major League debut. He is an under-the-radar arm to target late in fantasy baseball drafts.
Pay Attention to the Offseason
How many spots are open in the Marlins’ rotation?
The above section on Robby Snelling kind of starts to hit on this point. Miami is flush with pitching. That is never a bad thing for a Major League organization, but something is going to have to give.
The projected five starters for the team next season are Sandy Alcantara, Edward Cabrera, Eury Perez, Ryan Weathers, and Braxton Garrett. That leaves Adam Mazur, Robby Snelling, Max Meyer, Thomas White, and Janson Junk all on the outside looking in. White and Snelling are arguably the two top left-handed pitching prospects in all of baseball.
Meyer is the team’s former first overall pick, and Junk looked like he could hold his own in 16 starts last season. Paying attention to what trades Miami makes this winter will be critical to determining which pitchers to target in fantasy baseball drafts next spring.
Do the Padres move Mason Miller back into the rotation?
This seems outlandish. Mason Miller has been dominant in a relief role over the past two seasons. He owns a 2.56 ERA out of the pen since the start of 2024 and should easily transition into the closer role vacated by Robert Suarez opting out.
However, there are rumblings that the team is considering stretching Miller out as a starter this winter. The Mets did this with Clay Holmes last year, and it seemed to work out well for them.
However, this would completely change the fantasy baseball outlook on Miller next season. We have not seen how Miller’s stuff plays over multiple innings at the Major League level very often. How will his arm hold up? Will he struggle to adjust to a new routine?
The transition would turn Miller from a dominant closer selection into a wild-card pick in fantasy baseball drafts.
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