In Arizona and Florida, baseball players are arriving with bags of gear and smiles on their faces as Spring Training begins across Major League Baseball. Soon, we’ll be able to watch games and argue about which prospects are going to be stars and which stars have slipped past their prime.
On Monday, we broke down the top 10 infielders by position. On Tuesday, we discussed the top 10 outfielders and designated hitters. With the bats out of the way, let’s go to the bump. Who are the top starting pitchers and closers heading into the 2025 season?
There are two big names that don’t appear on our starting pitcher list, so we’ll start the discussion there. Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers and Jacob DeGrom of the Rangers are both coming back from injuries. If they’re back to the pitchers they were a couple of years ago, they would easily rank among the best in the game. But because of the health concerns, we’re keeping them out of our top 20 for now.
We are also not (yet) including Roki Sasaki, the phenom who signed with the Dodgers this winter. Based on what we’ve seen from him at the World Baseball Classic, he might be in the top 15 by the middle of the season.
Top 20 Starting Pitchers
- Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers
- Zack Wheeler, Philadelphia Phillies
- Gerritt Cole, New York Yankees
- Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates
- Garrett Crochet, Boston Red Sox
- Blake Snell, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Logan Gilbert, Seattle Mariners
- Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves
- Max Fried, New York Yankees
- Cole Ragans, Kansas City Royals
- George Kirby, Seattle Mariners
- Dylan Cease, San Diego Padres
- Michael King, San Diego Padres
- Corbin Burnes, Arizona Diamondbacks
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Justin Steele, Chicago Cubs
- Pablo Lopez, Minnesota Twins
- Shota Imanaga, Chicago Cubs
- Aaron Nola, Philadelphia Phillies
- Luis Castillo, Seattle Mariners
We’ve got some familiar names on this list and a few new ones from this time last year, as well as some that have changed jerseys since the start of spring training 12 months ago. Notably, the skyrocketing profile of Skenes in Pittsburgh as one of the game’s most dominant starters has been remarkable to watch. He could start a run on National League Cy Young Awards this season if things go to plan.
Two-time Cy Young Award winner Snell signed with the Dodgers after spending last year in San Francisco. Crochet moved from the White Sox to the Red Sox, Fried moved from the Braves to the Yankees, and Burnes moved from the Orioles to the Diamondbacks this winter. Those are three big names in new places to watch this season. And there are rumors Cease might be the next stud to find a new home.
Top 10 Closers
- Emmanuel Clase, Cleveland Guardians
- Mason Miller, Oakland A’s
- Devin Williams, New York Yankees
- Josh Hader, Houston Astros
- Edwin Diaz, New York Mets
- Raisel Iglesias, Atlanta Braves
- Andres Muñoz, Seattle Mariners
- Jhoan Duran, Minnesota Twins
- Tanner Scott, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Ryan Pressly, Chicago Cubs
Like the starters, the guys handling the ninth-inning duties have a few notable names in new places. Williams moves from the Brewers to the Yankees, Scott trades his Padres jersey for the Dodgers, and Pressley joins the Cubs after a good run with the Astros.
But the head of the class are two guys who are almost untouchable. Clase is dominant in Cleveland and Miller’s fastball is record-breaking. Add the movement on the pitches of Hader and Diaz and lots of teams are going to need a lead in eight innings if they want a chance this season.
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