Baseball is back, with every team’s regular season now officially underway. That means the daily fantasy slate is jam-packed as well, so 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 seven-game Friday night contest.
Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $300K Perfect Game ($100K to 1st)
1. LHP Chris Sale, ATL (vs. KC)
Salary: $9,700
2025 Stats: 21 G, 20 GS, 125.2 IP, 2.58 ERA, 7-5, 1.07 WHIP, 165 K, 32 BB, 4.0 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 28 G, 28 GS, 169.0 IP, 3.18 ERA, 12-8, 1.09 WHIP, 206 K, 44 BB, 4.3 WAR (Steamer)
2. RHP George Kirby, SEA (vs. CLE)
Salary: $8,500
2025 Stats: 23 G, 23 GS, 126.0 IP, 4.21 ERA, 10-8, 1.19 WHIP, 137 K, 29 BB, 2.4 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 31 G, 31 GS, 180.0 IP, 3.51 ERA, 12-10, 1.12 WHIP, 176 K, 34 BB, 3.5 WAR (Steamer)
3. LHP Cole Ragans, KC (@ ATL)
Salary: $9,000
2025 Stats: 13 G, 13 GS, 61.2 IP, 4.67 ERA, 3-3, 1.18 WHIP, 98 K, 20 BB, 2.1 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 29 G, 29 GS, 172.0 IP, 3.31 ERA, 12-8, 1.18 WHIP, 211 K, 62 BB, 4.1 WAR (Steamer)
4. LHP Framber Valdez, DET (@ SD)
Salary: $8,800
2025 Stats: 31 G, 31 GS, 192.0 IP, 3.66 ERA, 13-11, 1.24 WHIP, 187 K, 68 BB, 4.0 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 31 G, 31 GS, 189.0 IP, 3.43 ERA, 12-10, 1.27 WHIP, 175 K, 62 BB, 3.7 WAR (Steamer)
5. RHP Michael King, SD (vs. DET)
Salary: $7,700
2025 Stats: 15 G, 15 GS, 73.1 IP, 3.44 ERA, 5-3, 1.20 WHIP, 76 K, 26 BB, 0.8 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 29 G, 29 GS, 165.0 IP, 3.79 ERA, 10-10, 1.25 WHIP, 172 K, 58 BB, 3.0 WAR (Steamer)
6. RHP Gavin Williams, CLE (@ SEA)
Salary: $8,000
2025 Stats: 31 G, 31 GS, 167.2 IP, 3.06 ERA, 12-5, 1.27 WHIP, 173 K, 83 BB, 1.4 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 31 G, 31 GS, 176.0 IP, 4.09 ERA, 10-11, 1.35 WHIP, 180 K, 76 BB, 2.1 WAR (Steamer)
7. RHP Kevin Gausman, TOR (vs. ATH)
Salary: $8,300
2025 Stats: 32 G, 32 GS, 193.0 IP, 3.59 ERA, 10-11, 1.06 WHIP, 189 K, 50 BB, 4.1 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 31 G, 31 GS, 185.0 IP, 3.97 ERA, 11-10, 1.24 WHIP, 206 K, 44 BB, 2.8 WAR (Steamer)
8. RHP Emmet Sheehan, LAD (vs. ARI)
Salary: $7,800
2025 Stats: 15 G, 12 GS, 73.1 IP, 2.82 ERA, 6-3, 0.97 WHIP, 89 K, 22 BB, 2.1 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 44 G, 24 GS, 156.0 IP, 3.94 ERA, 10-8, 1.22 WHIP, 176 K, 55 BB, 2.3 WAR (Steamer)
9. LHP Yusei Kikuchi, LAA (@ HOU)
Salary: $7,000
2025 Stats: 33 G, 33 GS, 178.1 IP, 3.99 ERA, 7-11, 1.42 WHIP, 174 K, 74 BB, 2.5 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 31 G, 31 GS, 177.0 IP, 4.10 ERA, 10-11, 1.29 WHIP, 181 K, 63 BB, 2.4 WAR (Steamer)
10. RHP Sandy Alcántara, MIA (vs. COL)
Salary: $7,500
2025 Stats: 31 G, 31 GS, 174.2 IP, 5.36 ERA, 11-12, 1.27 WHIP, 142 K, 57 BB, 1.7 WAR
2026 FanGraphs Projections: 31 G, 31 GS, 187.0 IP, 4.16 ERA, 10-12, 1.32 WHIP, 159 K, 56 BB, 2.5 WAR (Steamer)
