Latest fantasy baseball pitcher rankings lineup advice tips mlb daily notes may24 games

ESPN FantasyMay 23, 2026, 04:55 PM ET
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Check out all of our starting pitcher rankings and other lineup selection tools here to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions. All fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

Note: All information is accurate as of the time of publication. For updates, as well as any breaking news that might impact today's MLB slate, be sure to check out the latest fantasy baseball buzz.

Other resources: RP depth chart | Start new league
ESPN's 2026 Draft Guide | Betting notes for Sunday

STARTING PITCHERS FOR SUNDAY

Pitchers are ranked in order of their Forecaster/Daily Notes projected fantasy points (FPTS), using ESPN's standard scoring system (2 points per win, minus-2 per loss, 3 per inning, 1 per K, minus-1 apiece per hit or walk allowed, minus-2 per earned run allowed).

T: The pitcher's handedness. OPP: Opposing team. RST%: The pitcher's roster percentage in ESPN leagues. W%: The individual starting pitcher's win probability using ESPN projections. IP: Projected innings pitched. H+BB: Projected hits plus walks allowed. ER: Projected earned runs allowed. K: Projected strikeouts.

If a team is planning on using an "opener" to start their game, but will rely on a "bulk pitcher" to follow him on the mound after 1-2 innings, the bulk pitcher is listed and indicated with an asterisk.

FPTS	Pitcher	T	Opp	Rst%	W%	IP	H+BB	ER	K
13.8	Michael King	R	ATH	89.8%	43%	6.1	7.2	2.1	6.6
12.9	Dylan Cease	R	PIT	98.9%	39%	6.0	7.4	2.4	7.0
12.5	Bryan Woo	R	@KC	98.8%	50%	6.5	7.5	2.9	5.8
12.2	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	R	@MIL	99.8%	35%	5.7	6.8	2.2	6.2
12.2	Foster Griffin	L	@ATL	31.2%	40%	6.2	7.1	2.6	5.8
11.9	Peter Lambert	R	@CHC	12.9%	36%	5.7	6.9	2.0	5.6
11.7	Parker Messick	L	@PHI	90.8%	34%	5.5	6.4	2.2	6.0
10.7	Will Warren	R	TB	74.7%	34%	5.6	7.1	2.4	5.7
10.7	Shota Imanaga	L	HOU	92.0%	28%	5.8	6.9	2.6	5.5
10.5	Ryne Nelson	R	COL	13.4%	38%	5.9	7.3	2.8	5.5
10.0	Robbie Ray	L	CWS	66.3%	28%	5.4	6.7	2.2	5.1
10.0	Mitch Keller	R	@TOR	42.9%	29%	5.7	6.9	2.4	4.8
9.8	Noah Schultz	L	@SF	10.8%	28%	5.2	6.4	1.9	4.6
9.8	Christian Scott	R	@MIA	3.9%	32%	5.3	6.9	2.3	5.3
9.6	Jacob Lopez	L	@SD	0.8%	20%	5.1	6.4	1.9	5.0
8.7	Shane McClanahan	L	@NYY	65.6%	19%	4.8	6.1	2.1	4.7
8.5	Brady Singer	R	STL	6.2%	31%	5.4	7.0	2.9	5.1
8.4	Martin Perez	L	WSH	5.0%	23%	5.1	6.4	2.3	4.4
8.3	Reid Detmers	L	TEX	16.5%	32%	5.8	8.1	3.4	5.8
8.1	Seth Lugo	R	SEA	34.7%	30%	6.0	8.1	3.3	5.1
7.8	Sonny Gray	R	MIN	83.5%	31%	4.9	6.5	2.9	5.2
7.5	Brandon Sproat	R	LAD	2.1%	24%	4.8	6.4	2.4	4.2
7.4	Dax Fulton	L	NYM	0.0%	19%	4.7	6.8	2.1	4.5
7.4	Bailey Ober	R	@BOS	34.3%	24%	5.2	6.8	3.0	4.8
7.2	MacKenzie Gore	L	@LAA	57.4%	26%	5.0	7.4	2.9	5.3
7.1	Trevor Rogers	L	DET	33.3%	21%	4.6	6.3	2.3	4.3
6.2	Troy Melton	R	@BAL	1.6%	14%	4.2	5.6	2.4	4.2
5.9	Andrew Painter	R	CLE	10.6%	12%	4.4	6.1	2.4	3.8
5.6	Jose Quintana	L	@ARI	0.6%	19%	4.7	6.7	2.5	3.6
5.5	Matthew Liberatore	L	@CIN	4.4%	19%	4.8	7.2	3.1	4.8

Pitchers to stream on Sunday

Ryne Nelson has posted a 2.73 ERA and 0.87 HIP this month, with a respectable 22 strikeouts in 26 1/3 innings. He's in a great spot to build on a strong May when the Arizona Diamondbacks host the Colorado Rockies. As usual, the Rockies are struggling on the road, as they tote the fifth-lowest wOBA versus left-handers to the desert. And they're without their most productive player after Mickey Moniak was placed on the IL last week, joining fellow outfielders Brenton Doyle and Jordan Beck.
MacKenzie Gore's rostership is a tad above the normal 50% cutoff, but with this being the last day of the scoring period, let's make an exception due to the extreme strikeout potential of this matchup against the Los Angeles Angels. The Texas Rangers left-hander continues to exhibit lapses in control, but his strikeout rate is near-elite and the Angels fan at an elevated clip.
Reid Detmers will take the hill for the Angels against Gore and the Rangers. He's not quite as dominant as Gore, but Detmers exhibits better control and will take on a lineup that's missing Corey Seager, Wyatt Langford and Josh Smith. As a group, the Rangers have the third-worst strikeout rate in the league facing left-handers.
Noah Schultz's 14.2% walk rate is out of control, but he faces the least patient lineup over the past month versus southpaws when the Chicago White Sox visit the San Francisco Giants. In May, the Giants sport the lowest wOBA in the league against left-handers.

Hitters to stream on Sunday

Doubleheaders usually offer a few batters a chance to appear in two games, but both the Baltimore Orioles and Detroit Tigers are set to start one game with a lefty and the other with a righty, minimizing chances for extra at-bats. Even so, there are a couple of targets with a chance to pull extra duty. For the Orioles, Taylor Ward is available in 20% of ESPN leagues. Coby Mayo also might play both ends. For the Tigers, Spencer Torkelson, Matt Vierling and Wenceel Perez are the chief targets.