Major League Baseball starts on April 7, 2022, but beyond the first game the most important thing is that the teams have their lineups ready, especially their rotations to defend the mound. A lot is expected of big pitchers this season, but pitchers don’t win games on their own.
Veterans like Verlander is one of the big pitching names for the upcoming season, but other young pitchers also hope to debut in the regular season. Most rotations in the MLB will be led by well-known pitchers like deGrom, Buehler and Julio Urias.
The list of the top 10 pitchers comes from a recent list of the 100 best baseball players for the 2022 MLB season, that list was published on April 1 by Manny Randhawa, the list includes not only pitchers but all types of baseball players.
Top 10 pitchers for the upcoming 2022 MLB regular season
1. Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Angels): Apart from being a good pitcher, Ohtani is good at bat, he is a designated pitcher and hitter and in the four seasons with the Angels he has shown his high value for the team.
2. Jacob deGrom (New York Mets): The Mets have a tough guy in their rotation, but sadly deGrom will miss the first month of the regular season due to a scapula injury.
3. Max Scherzer (New York Mets): Another Mets big name, Scherzer will play this year with the Mets but there are still questions about Scherzer’s health for the start of the regular season, he is not in the rotation projections.
4. Walker Buehler (Los Angeles Rodgers): This pitcher is number one in the Dodgers rotation, they have a strong lineup and mostly left handed pitchers to defend the mound, and this is Buehler’s first year as a Ace.
5. Corbin Burnes (Milwaukee Brewers): Last season was the best yet for Burnes at 11-5 with a 2.43 ERA. Burnes is in the Brewers’ projected rotation for the upcoming 2022 MLB season.
6. Zack Wheeler (Philadelphia Phillies): The Phillies’ hope for the 2022 MLB season is Wheeler since he finished last season with good numbers of 14-10 and 2.78 ERA.
7. Shane Bieber (Cleveland Guardians): Four seasons with the Guardians and his two best seasons were in 2019 at 15-8 and 2020 at 8-1 overall. In 2021 Bieber only started 16 games, far fewer compared to his first two years in Cleveland.
8. Brandon Woodruff (Milwaukee Brewers): Last season was relatively good for Woodruff with 30 starts and 9-10 overall for a 2.56 ERA. For the 2022 MLB season, the Brewers are confident that Woodruff will be a fundamental part of their rotation.
9. Robbie Ray (Seattle Mariners): The Mariners jumped at the chance to sign Robbie Ray after his good year with the Blue Jays and going 13-7 overall for a 2.84 ERA. The Mariners’ rotation includes Ray as a key player.
10. Max Fried (Atlanta Braves): Charlie Morton is no longer the top pitcher for the Braves, now Fried is the Ace of the franchise. Last season, 2021, was a good one for Fried with a 14-7 overall and a 3.04 ERA.