After years of Nick cajoling me, I finally gave in and made my first ever top 100 list. The process was a surprisingly arduous one but after two weeks of staring at spreadsheets and creating a google doc with over 50 pages of notes (including a TL;DR for each pitcher), I think, I’m finally ready to share it with you.

A quick word about how I made the list: I created a spreadsheet with a 10 different metrics that I felt encapsulated an SP’s performance in 2019. I used that as a baseline to dive in. For example, was there a large disparity between a pitchers SIERA and CSW? Do their SwSt and K% look like they correlate? Are there glaring issues with their BABIP or WHIP? From there I would break a pitcher down on a pitch-by-pitch basis. I looked at how pitches performed when they were put in play as well as plate discipline metrics. I took into consideration how frequently they were able to get ahead, whether they were able to get whiffs in and out of the zone, the depth of their arsenal and more.

Two important caveats:

This list was created with 12 team 5×5 category leagues in mind. If you want my opinion on where I’d move a pitcher up and down relative to your league, don’t hesitate to ask.

I don’t intend this list to be set in stone. If anything, I intend for it to be a conversation piece for any willing to talk to me about it. I strive to not be an analyst who is stuck in his ways, so if you disagree with one of my rankings, reach out to me in the comments section or on Twitter and let me know why I should change my mind. I’ll be revisiting the list again once spring training games begin, and then once more in the middle of March.

For a more in depth breakdown of my rankings, check out episode number 178 of our podcast On The Corner.