Top-10 Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitchers for 2025: Tarik Skubal, Paul Skenes, Zack Wheeler, Dylan Cease, George Kirby and More

There’s still plenty of MLB offseason left, but it’s never too early to start diving into the upcoming season.

I’m going to start a fantasy baseball series in which I unveil my top-10 players at each position. I’ll approach things from a points league perspective. We’ll begin with starting pitchers - check back soon for more!

One last note before we start: I’m not including Shohei Ohtani here - he’ll be on the designated hitter list.

Explore the best in-season tool to manage lineup/start decisions including waiver pickups, projections, trade suggestions, trade value charts, rest of season rankings, power rankings, and tons more with Fantasy Assistant. Now, with revolutionary AI Expert help. Use our fantasy baseball trade analyzer and trade value charts to break down trade scenarios.

1. Tarik Skubal

I have Skubal as my top pitcher for 2025, even though I think he and my No. 2 guy are going to be very close. 

Skubal went 18-4 with a 2.39 earned run average last season across 31 starts and 192 innings. He struck out 228 batters and had a WHIP of 0.92. In other words, Skubal was a stud.

Skubal just turned 28, and I don’t think he’s hit his prime yet. He only has 571 1/3 innings under his best in five seasons, so I think he could remain one of the top fantasy pitchers in the game if he can remain healthy.

2. Paul Skenes

Skenes is my No. 2 guy, but I think he or Skubal are good first SP options.

Skenes was great in his 23 starts last season after being called up. He went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA across 133 innings. Skenes struck out 170 batters and had a 0.95 WHIP.

He’d be my No. 1 SP if he wasn’t so young, meaning he might not be quite ready to top out around 200 innings. His strikeout potential mixed with the low ERA and WHIP still makes Skenes a top-end fantasy pitcher.

3. Zack Wheeler

Wheeler is in the SP1 conversation going into 2025, but I have him a bit behind Skubal and Skenes.

Wheeler is 34 years old, but just continues to deliver. He was 16-7 with a 2.57 ERA across 200 innings and 32 starts in 2024. Wheeler had a 0.96 WHIP and struck out 224 batters.

He’s been about as reliable as any top-end fantasy starting pitcher over the past several seasons. At some point, he’ll fall off, but it’s anybody’s guess when that might be. I don’t think it will be this season, and that’s why he continues to rank high for me.

4. Gerrit Cole

Cole is my fantasy SP4 and should remain a top-end fantasy pitcher as long as injuries don’t derail him.

He got in 17 starts last season, going 8-5 with a 3.41 ERA across 95 innings. Cole struck out 99 batters and had a 1.13 WHIP.

Coming off an injury-riddled season, some fantasy owners might be scared off Cole. I look at it as somewhat of a positive, with him having more gas in the tank after a pretty low inning load last season,

5. Logan Gilbert

Gilbert checks in fifth for me and is definitely a fantasy pitcher you could build around. He’s just 27 years old and is coming off his best season yet (despite what some stats say).

He was 9-12 across 33 starts and 208 2/3 innings. Gilbert had a 3.23 ERA and 220 strikeouts, along with a 0.89 WHIP.

That WHIP figure and high strikeout number really stand out, and the big workload is definitely what fantasy owners are after. I still think he hasn’t pitched his best, and if that season comes in 2025, he could absolutely challenge for being the top fantasy pitcher.

6. Chris Sale

Sale had a resurgent 2024 season - not because he had been pitching poorly in previous seasons, but instead because he’s barely been pitching with a multitude of injuries.

Sale went 18-3 with a 2.38 ERA last season. He made 29 starts and struck out 225 batters across 177 2/3 innings. Sale had a 1.01 WHIP.

I’m a bit skeptical of Sale with his injury history and him now being 35 years old, but it’s hard to argue with last season’s numbers. You might be able to nab him later than SP6 in fantasy drafts, but he’s definitely capable of finishing that high by the end of the season.

7. Corbin Burnes

Burnes pitched well in his lone season in Baltimore and is now a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He was 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA across 194 1/3 innings and 32 starts last season. Burnes struck out 181 batters and had a 1.10 WHIP.

I think Burnes might have already peaked as a pitcher, but because he’s only 29 years old and joining a new organization, I’m still willing to draft him pretty early. He has been durable, and with a good ERA and high strikeout marks, Burnes is a fantasy pitcher to keep building around.

8. Dylan Cease

Cease pitched his first season with the Padres in 2024 and had a good showing.

In 33 starts and 189 1/3 innings, Cease had a 14-11 record and 3.47 ERA. He struck out 224 batters and had a 1.07 WHIP.

He just turned 29 years old, and now should be more settled in after a season in San Diego. As long as he gets in a full season of starts, I have a hard time believing Cease won’t be a top-10 fantasy pitcher.

9. Cole Ragans

Ragans might be a surprise to some of you, but he really shouldn’t be after being a top-10 pitcher last season. He’s just 27 years old and is still getting better.

In his first full season with the Royals, Ragans went 11-9 with a 3.14 ERA. He had 223 strikeouts over 186 1/3 innings and posted a 1.14 WHIP.

Now that he’s got a full season under his belt, and with not a ton of innings already logged, I think Ragans is a pretty safe pick. He’s got a high fantasy ceiling and could compete for the top fantasy pitcher spot if he hits 200 innings.

10. George Kirby

I have Kirby in my last top-10 slot. He’s only 26 years old and has been extremely consistent in his three MLB seasons.

In 33 starts last season, Kirby went 14-11 with a 3.53 ERA. He struck out 179 batters over 191 innings and also had a 1.07 WHIP.

His ERA last year was actually his worst in three MLB seasons, and it still was pretty good. He strikes out a healthy amount of batters, limits baserunners and eats innings - it’s exactly what fantasy owners should be after.

Honorable Mentions

There’s a number of other pitchers I could have taken inside my top 10. I wanted to point out a few of the near misses.

Garrett Crochet, Blake Snell, Shota Imanaga, Bryce Miller, Aaron Nola, Michael King, Framber Valdez and Yoshinobu Yamamoto are on that list. 

I wanted to throw a couple more other names at you: Shane McClanahan, Jacob deGrom, Roki Sasaki, Tyler Glasnow, Max Fried, Pablo Lopez, Grayson Rodriguez, Spencer Schwellenbach.

There’s a bunch of other intriguing players who could streak into the top 10 with breakout seasons, but we’ll get into a few of those guys in other fantasy baseball stories before the season kicks off. Be sure to check back for those!