2026 Fantasy On SI Top 10 Projected Starting Pitchers Ranked by FPGscore
In this story:
1 - Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates
Fantasy Outlook: Skenes won’t be a free agent until 2030, and I doubt the Pirates will pay him an elite ace salary. Based on this, Pittsburgh should ride him as much as possible over the next four years. He is a beast of a man who brings a workhorse profile on the mound. Many fantasy teams will shy away from him due to concerns about wins. Only 11 pitchers had 14 wins or more in 2025, seven of whom had an ERA over 3.00, and six pitchers had a WHIP of 1.10 or higher. So what is the value of a win?
The key stat for Skenes to approach 250+ strikeouts is his first-pitch strike rate (60.8%). If he throws 67% first-pitch strikes or more, he’ll make a run at 300 or more Ks. I’m shoving on him whenever possible because I see his edge and ceiling. His next challenge is catching Tarik Skubal in WHIP.
Projections: 15-7 with a 2.24 ERA, 0.931 WHIP, and 256 strikeouts over 195.1 innings
With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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