The 2026 MLB regular season is in full-swing. There’s a bit of a top-heavy slate on the books for Wednesday, but there is no better time to dive right into the action. Pitchers are already ranked by price, with the ones who are projected to perform better eating up more of your budget, but I am here to add my two cents. I’ll be sharing my own rankings for the top 10 starting pitchers for DFS in the eight-game Wednesday night contest that locks at 7:05 p.m. ET.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $300K MEGA $8’s ($100K to 1st)
Note: LAD RHP Shohei Ohtani is pitching Wednesday night and will not accrue hitting fantasy points.
1. RHP Dylan Cease, TOR (@ MIL)
Salary: $9,700
2025 Stats: 32 G, 32 GS, 168.0 IP, 8-12, 4.55 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 215 K, 71 BB, 3.4 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 3 GS, 14.2 IP, 0-0, 2.45 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 26 K, 9 BB, 0.6 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 28 G, 28 GS, 159.0 IP, 11-8, 3.48 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 193 K, 63 BB, 3.5 WAR (Steamer)
2. RHP Shohei Ohtani, LAD (vs. NYM)
Salary: $9,500
2025 Stats: 14 G, 14 GS, 47.0 IP, 1-1, 2.87 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 62 K, 9 BB, 1.9 WAR
2026 Stats: 2 G, 2 GS, 12.0 IP, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 8 K, 4 BB, 0.4 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 20 G, 20 GS, 106.0 IP, 8-5, 3.49 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 120 K, 35 BB, 2.4 WAR (Steamer)
3. RHP Emerson Hancock, SEA (@ SD)
Salary: $8,500
2025 Stats: 22 G, 16 GS, 90.0 IP, 4-5, 4.90 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 64 K, 31 BB, 0.0 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 3 GS, 17.2 IP, 2-1, 2.04 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 19 K, 3 BB, 0.6 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 43 G, 6 GS, 69.0 IP, 4-3, 4.12 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 59 K, 22 BB, 0.3 WAR (Steamer)
4. RHP Bryce Elder, ATL (vs. MIA)
Salary: $8,300
2025 Stats: 28 G, 28 GS, 156.1 IP, 8-11, 5.30 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 131 K, 51 BB, 0.9 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 3 GS, 17.2 IP, 1-1, 1.02 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 16 K, 5 BB, 0.4 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 20 G, 20 GS, 113.0 IP, 7-7, 3.66 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 94 K, 41 BB, 2.7 WAR (Steamer)
5. RHP Clay Holmes, NYM (@ LAD)
Salary: $8,700
2025 Stats: 33 G, 31 GS, 165.2 IP, 3.53 ERA, 12-8, 1.30 WHIP, 129 K, 66 BB, 1.9 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 3 GS, 18.0 IP, 2-1, 1.50 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 12 K, 8 BB, 0.2 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 24 G, 24 GS, 138.0 IP, 3.89 ERA, 9-8, 1.41 WHIP, 115 K, 60 BB, 1.6 WAR (Steamer)
6. RHP Randy Vásquez, SD (vs. SEA)
Salary: $8,000
2025 Stats: 28 G, 26 GS, 133.2 IP, 6-7, 3.84 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 78 K, 52 BB, 0.8 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 3 GS, 17.2 IP, 1-0, 1.02 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 19 K, 4 BB, 0.5 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 28 G, 28 GS, 137.0 IP, 7-9, 4.75 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 100 K, 53 BB, 0.8 WAR (Steamer)
7. RHP Chad Patrick, MIL (vs. TOR)
Salary: $7,700
2025 Stats: 27 G, 23 GS, 119.2 IP, 3-8, 3.53 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 127 K, 40 BB, 2.6 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 2 GS, 12.1 IP, 1-0, 0.73 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 7 K, 5 BB, 0.1 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 23 G, 23 GS, 132.0 IP, 7-9, 4.49 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 118 K, 47 BB, 1.1 WAR (Steamer)
8. RHP Sean Burke, CHW (vs. TB)
Salary: $6,500
2025 Stats: 28 G, 22 GS, 134.1 IP, 4-11, 4.22 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 133 K, 63 BB, 0.7 WAR
2026 Stats: 3 G, 2 GS, 15.0 IP, 0-1, 3.60 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 15 K, 3 BB, 0.6 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 23 G, 23 GS, 129.0 IP, 6-9, 4.67 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 117 K, 59 BB, 1.0 WAR (Steamer)
9. RHP Luis Gil, NYY (vs. LAA)
Salary: $7,200
2025 Stats: 11 G, 11 GS, 57.0 IP, 4-1, 3.32 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 41 K, 33 BB, 0.6 WAR
2026 Stats: 1 G, 1 GS, 4.0 IP, 0-1, 6.75 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 2 K, 3 BB, -0.1 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 37 G, 10 GS, 82.0 IP, 5-5, 4.36 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 85 K, 41 BB, 0.5 WAR (Steamer)
10. LHP José Quintana, COL (@ HOU)
Salary: $6,000
2025 Stats: 24 G, 24 GS, 131.1 IP, 11-7, 3.96 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 89 K, 50 BB, 0.8 WAR
2026 Stats: 1 G, 1 GS, 4.1 IP, 0-0, 4.15 ERA, 1.85 WHIP, 2 K, 4 BB, 0.0 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 25 G, 25 GS, 144.0 IP, 6-11, 5.42 ERA, 1.60 WHIP, 102 K, 60 BB, 1.0 WAR (Steamer)
