It’s Spring Training, which means it’s time for DraftKings to fire up another exciting season of MLB Best Ball contests. Whether you’re working on your draft prep or already in the middle of draft season, this post will help you identify some of the top options to look for as pitcher Best Ball Targets in 2025 from the American League
The Best Ball Lobby on DraftKings includes contests at a wide variety of price points and several different league sizes. If you’re unfamiliar with the Best Ball format on DraftKings, check out this helpful information sheet that explains all the ins and outs of both Tournaments and Sit & Go’s. Most of the biggest contests are 12-player leagues, but there are also three-player and six-player Sit & Go’s if you just want a shallower and quicker draft.
However you decide to get in on the Best Ball action, check out these three pitchers from the American League that I’m targeting at their current ADP. If you’re looking for more starting pitcher coverage, check out my AL SP Breakouts, AL SP Sleepers, NL SP Breakouts and NL SP Sleepers from earlier this spring.
George Kirby, Seattle Mariners (ADP: P23, 59.8 overall)
The Mariners pitchers are sliding in ADP this Spring Training. Logan Gilbert is barely an SP1 in 12-player leagues by ADP, while George Kirby is an SP2 in that format as the 23rd pitcher being drafted.
Kirby has been extremely reliable over the last three seasons since joining the Mariners’ rotation. He has made at least 25 starts each year with an ERA between 3.30 and 3.60, and a solid K/9 over 8.0.
In 2024, he set a career-high with 14 wins and worked over 190 innings for the second straight year. He lowered his xERA significantly and did increase his K/9 to 8.4 from 8.1 in 2023. He had a dominant stretch in June and July, but then struggled in August before righting the ship in September.
While his totals have been consistently solid but not spectacular, his superpower has been his outstanding control. In 511 2/3 innings in his career, Kirby has totaled 484 strikeouts while issuing just 64 walks. He led the MLB in K/BB the last two seasons.
The 27-year-old’s elite control gives him a high floor, and reports from Spring Training indicate he added a cutter to his arsenal for this year. During stretches, he has shown glimpses of being able to take it to the next level, but even if he doesn’t, he remains one of the most reliable starters in the majors over the past few years.
While Kirby doesn’t have the elite strikeout upside of the top options in ADP, he’s much better than this slot. His consistency alone is worth drafting much earlier than this since he allows you to swing for the fences with high-risk plays later in your roster since you know you’ll have Kirby to anchor things and contribute solid numbers.
Max Fried, New York Yankees (ADP: P20, 56.3 overall)
Fried signed a record-setting $218 million contract this past offseason, making him the highest-paid left-handed pitcher in MLB history. Somehow, I don’t think he’s only the 20th best pitcher in baseball right now. There is obviously room for some concern due to him moving to Yankee Stadium and his struggles to stay healthy the last few seasons, but getting him as your P2 in 12-player leagues is a great strategy, and he’s worth a look closer to the 12-to-15 range for smaller contests as well.
Fried went 11-10 in 29 starts in 2024 with a 3.25 ERA and 3.33 FIP. His ERA was under 3.10 in each of the last four seasons, although he was limited to under 80 innings in two of those seasons. Fried’s strikeout rate dropped slightly from 9.3% last season to 8.6% last year, but that’s still a very serviceable number over 174 1/3 innings in 29 starts.
Pitching at Yankee Stadium will likely cause Fried’s ERA to rise this year, but his wins also have the potential to increase with such a strong team around him.
There has been so much attention paid to Fried’s move and risk that his “bust” tag is pushing his price low enough to the point that he’s one of my top Best Ball targets… as long as his ADP stays this low.
Bowden Francis, Toronto Blue Jays (ADP: P82, N/A overall)
Francis isn’t even being drafted in most leagues. He’s a fringe pick in 12-player leagues, where teams will carry 5-7 pitchers. Francis does have huge upside, though, so as a late-round flier he’s another one of my Best Ball targets.
Last season, Francis got his first shot to hold down a regular rotation spot for the Blue Jays. He went 8-5 in his 27 games with a 3.30 ERA, 4.36 FIP and 8.0 K/9. He started each of his last nine games in August and September, going 4-2 with a 1.53 ERA, 3.42 FIP and 8.5 K/9. The 28-year-old righty allowed a total of just 24 hits and seven walks in 59 innings and totaled 56 strikeouts. He got some attention for near no-hitters, and even though he didn’t ever quite finish a no-hitter, he allowed three hits or fewer in seven of those nine starts.
The fantasy baseball community at large seems to have chalked up Francis’ success to a nice run, but something that he won’t sustain at all this season. He’s going basically undrafted in most formats across the industry, and his DraftKings Best Ball ADP lines up with that consensus.
However, I’d much rather Francis than many of the other options in this range. He has already shown he can dominate and stack up quality starts. I get being skeptical of his breakout to a point, but the underlying metrics are strong enough that I’m in on him to round out my pitchers in 12-player leagues.
