Welcome to the SP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every starting pitcher’s performance from every Friday game. I apologize for the jokes written in my delirium in advance. Have questions? Ask me during my office hours on Twitch.tv weekday mornings from 10 am-12 pm ET.
Note from Nick: Please welcome Jake Crumpler as our new SP Roundup author for Saturdays! I wrote about this major change here and I couldn’t be more excited for everyone to enjoy the Jake Crumpler experience.
Gerrit Cole (NYY) vs TBR (ND) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 72 pitches.
The King hath returned! The originator of the King Cole hasn’t made a big league start since the final week of the 2024 campaign after undergoing Tommy John surgery (including internal bracing). Offseason questions centered on when he’d make his season debut and what he’d look like when he got back on a big league mound.
The former question was answered as Gerrit Cole made his long-awaited first start of the 2026 campaign in front of his home crowd against the Rays, returning 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 3 BBs, 2 Ks – 5 whiffs, 33% CSW, 72 pitches (ND). Now we can go about answering the latter question.
At 35-years-old and a year and a half removed from his last outing, there was no guarantee we’d see the slightly diminished 2024 iteration of Cole (3.41 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 25.4% K%), let alone the 2023 Cy Young Award-winning version of himself. The thought was that his most recent version was limited due to his compromised elbow, leaving a glimmer of hope that he could return to his mid-career form. However, even at his worst, he had the makings of an elite Holly.
I’m happy to report that…the verdict is unclear. Cole maintained his 2024 four-seamer, sitting 96 with 17-18″ of vert, a flat attack angle, and intent upstairs while displaying the ability to turn the velocity up to 98.6 mph with a whiff in the first. He paired it with a sinker displaying the same 98+ mph potential, as it averaged 96 mph and effectively jammed RHBs. You’re not dreaming, and it’s not 2017 (I’d still be in college!). Cole threw a sinker more than 10% of the time for the first time since his days with the Pirates.
On the secondary front, sliders looked the same but failed to nail the low-gloveside corner against RHBs. Changeups came in three mph slower at 85-86 mph with more drop and run, creating more separation from the fastballs. Curveballs were a tick down at 81 and had the same intent of stealing called strikes. Long gone is the cutter that held things together in years past.
With an elite pair of heaters, Cole has a foundation that automatically makes him a top 25 starter. However, there’s still work to do to shake off the rust of his secondaries. He needs to find the location that made his slider such a devastating pitch at his peak, and he needs to turn to it as a putaway pitch to both handedness (33% usage vs RHB and 0% vs LHB in 2-strike counts). Equally as important, we need to see much better command of slowballs, which flew above the zone on five of the eight he threw, leading to a 50% strike rate.
Can he fix those issues? Yes. Does it help that the issues are obvious? Yes. Could it take a couple of starts before he locks in? Yes. Should I stop asking myself questions I know the answer to? YES.
The aging monarch that once ruled the league still has plenty of fighting spirit left, and I have so much faith that with all his experience, he’ll make the necessary adjustments to restore the confidence of his subjects. We ride to Kansas City at dawn! Or May 27th for those managing fantasy teams, not living in a fantasy world. (View Game Card)
Let’s see how every other SP did Friday:
Cristopher Sánchez (PHI) vs CLE (ND) – 8.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 22 Whiffs, 36% CSW, 96 pitches.
Aces gonna ace. That’s now 37.2 consecutive scoreless frames from Sánchez (the second-longest streak in Phillies franchise history), as he earned a co-share of the Gallows Pole via excellent secondaries. The 11 changeup whiffs are expected, but the usually quiet and supportive slider took center stage, returning a season-high nine whiffs. Let’s keep this CS:GO-ing with SDP x2 up next. (View Game Card)
Gavin Williams (CLE) @ PHI (W) – 8.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 11 Ks – 17 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 99 pitches.
Okay, Gavin! The ups and downs of your season are making me a little seasick, but that’s what I get for rostering you without the proper amount of Dramamine (the Cherry Bomb flavor is the best). That’s five straight starts with a strike rate north of 70%, and while two of those have resulted in five earned runs each (the other three have resulted in two runs combined), this is exactly what we want to see from him. His stuff is overwhelming enough that we just want to see him live in the zone and force batters to battle him rather than watch him battle himself. (View Game Card)
Noah Cameron (KCR) vs SEA (ND) – 6.0 IP, 0 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 8 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 96 pitches.
With eight punchouts, Cameron set and tied his season and career highs, respectively. His changeup was impressive, coming in two ticks slower, but catching too much of the zone, and cutters made up for four-seamers failing to entice upstairs. However, the strikeout increase can be attributed to his curveball landing low, earning 53% CSW and producing an unsusatainable 63% per-pitch putaway rate. I knew it was too good to be true! With the Yankees up next and Great American Smallpark on deck, we can check back in with Cameron in a couple of weeks. (View Game Card)
Logan Gilbert (SEA) @ KCR (ND) – 5.2 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 2 BBs, 6 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 94 pitches.
Gilbert has rightfully earned the Cherry Bomb tag, pairing starts like this with the seven earned runs he allowed last time. Who gave him his sommelier certification? Please stop serving me orange juice with my toothpaste! (View Game Card)
Miles Mikolas (WSH) @ ATL (ND) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 3 Hits, 0 BBs, 3 Ks – 6 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 66 pitches.
Thank you for making my first Gold Star selection an easy choice. With Richard Lovelady opening with a scoreless first, Mikolas survived five frames for just the third time this year and did so while allowing fewer than two earned runs for the first time since July of 2025. He’s Miles away from being fantasy relevant. (View Game Card)
Logan Henderson (MIL) vs LAD (W) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 3 BBs, 7 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 36% CSW, 85 pitches.
After seeing what Henderson was capable of in his first four starts, I wasn’t afraid of starting him against the mighty, two-time-reigning champions. I really appreciate you making me look smart, Logan. With his first scoreless outing of the year, Henderson became the first pitcher in MLB history to begin his career by making 10 straight starts while allowing two or fewer earned runs in each of them. Enjoy being the envy of your league as you slot him into your fantasy roster every week. (View Game Card)
Spencer Arrighetti (HOU) @ CHC (W) – 5.0 IP, 0 ER, 2 Hits, 4 BBs, 5 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 89 pitches.
The Pasta Pirate strikes again, plundering the North Side of Chicago with effective canon- I mean curveballs, low and heaters upstairs. Regression is bound to hit at some point as he’s rocking a 1.32 ERA while gritting his gold-plated teeth through a 14.3% walk rate. Due to his Cherry Bomb nature, we have to keep starting him, knowing that his opponent doesn’t matter. Calm waters precede a storm on the high seas. (View Game Card)
Jonah Tong (NYM) @ MIA (ND) – 3.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 Hits, 1 BBs, 2 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 28 pitches.
In his season debut, Tong covered the final three frames after Tobias Myers and Sean Manaea combined for the opening five. It was a brief sample muddied by adrenaline and max-effort relief work, but Tong’s four-seamer looked awesome at 96 mph with 19″ of vert and 1.5 HAVAA. He still needs to work on his control and didn’t throw anything but fastballs (61% usage) and changeups (25%) more than 7% of the time. His breakers earned great stuff grades, and he teased one cutter that I’m tempted to get excited about. For now, he doesn’t have a spot in the rotation, and until we see him get a proper start and display the ability to pull off the BSB effectively, we can watch from afar. (View Game Card)
Kevin Gausman (TOR) vs PIT (W) – 6.2 IP, 1 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 8 Ks – 19 Whiffs, 38% CSW, 94 pitches.
That’s what I’m talking about! Gausman’s been surviving with diminished feel of his signature splitter, throwing it for strikes more than 60% of the time just once in his last seven starts. With a 68% strike rate here, the pitch helped him earn the King Cole, as he fanned more than five batters for the first time since April 1st (the latter start of back-to-back double-digit strikeout outings to begin the year). I love seeing his slider emphasized against RHBs as he maintained command of it low and gloveside, inducing plenty of chases and six whiffs. This is peak Timberwolves KG. (View Game Card)
Eury Pérez (MIA) vs NYM (W) – 6.1 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 0 BBs, 5 Ks – 14 Whiffs, 30% CSW, 86 pitches.
Huh. The Mets really are a cure for any pitcher. Pérez has been fighting his control all year, but avoided a free pass for the first time thanks to an aggressive Mets lineup. The lone blemish was a first-inning homer off the bat of Juan Soto. His RHB approach was excellent, as he jammed them with 98 mph sinkers, hunted for whiffs upstairs with 99 mph four-seamers, and forced batters to respect him with sliders and sweepers landing away. The LHB approach is rough as breakers and sinkers automatically become less effective, and his lack of changeup feel becomes more apparent. Outings like these remind us of his potential, but I’m worried this is a Dennis. The Mets have the worst OPS in the Majors, and these results are an outlier in a season of chaos. (View Game Card)
Michael Soroka (ARI) vs COL (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 4 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 14% CSW, 78 pitches.
Soroka just dominated the Rockies in Coors. Why did you think this would be any different with Rockie Road? You didn’t? Well, it was! The poor Rockies lineup and the solid results covered up the fact that Soroka was sitting 1+ mph down on everything and barely touched his game-changing cutter. Excellent pitch separation with four-seamers upstairs, curveballs gloveside, and changeups/sinkers armside allowed him to avoid barrels, leading to 80% weak contact and 16/20 outs on balls in play. Let’s hope this was an anomaly and that he gets it back together @SFG next so we can trust him vs LAD after. (View Game Card)
Bryce Elder (ATL) vs WSN (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 5 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 87 pitches.
I mean, wouldn’t we have been more surprised if the run ended? That’s a 1.98 ERA through 11 starts, as Elder’s improved slider and new cutter make all the difference. This Vargas Rule heads to Boston to face the Sawx next, and there’s no reason to start stopping him now. Wait, that’s wrong. Stop starting him*. No! I mean, keep starting him! (View Game Card)
Nick Martinez (TBR) @ NYY (ND) – 6.0 IP, 1 ER, 9 Hits, 1 BBs, 1 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 28% CSW, 94 pitches.
Martinez is right there with Elder, on an incredible and unsustainable run. Sounds like me attempting to complete a marathon. Martinez’s is much less believable and became even more so as he curried favor with Koufax to allow just one run despite 10 baserunners. I hope you like your MLB-leading 1.51 ERA with a side of unbuttered bread. HAISTBMBWT?! Ride this Vargas Rule until the wheels fall off. (View Game Card)
Bubba Chandler (PIT) @ TOR (L) – 5.0 IP, 1 ER, 2 Hits, 3 BBs, 11 Ks – 22 Whiffs, 34% CSW, 99 pitches.
YOOO! Where has this been all year, Chandler?? He’s struggled so much with his control that he’s become a universal drop, but that’s a co-share of the Gallows Pole as he set a career-high with 11 strikeouts. This is the potential that made him such a difficult drop when he was floundering in April. He didn’t have to take anything off to find the zone consistently, as his fastballs climbed to 99 mph on average and still combined for 62% strikes. Secondaries were competitive around the zone, all four of them inducing multiple whiffs apiece. The strikes, the whiffs, THE DOMINATION! I’m so down to jump back in and take the chance that this continues vs CHC next. (View Game Card)
Keegan Akin (BAL) vs DET (ND) – 1.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 Hits, 0 BBs, 2 Ks – 4 Whiffs, 39% CSW, 18 pitches.
Akin opened for Chris Bassitt, who returned 4.1 IP, 3 ER, 6 Hits, 0 BBs, 4 Ks – 5 whiffs, 24% CSW, 58 pitches (W). A 100% putaway rate in two-strike counts allowed Bassitt to fan four batters on just five whiffs. You don’t need me to tell you that’s unsustainable and that you shouldn’t be trusting him. Shoot! I’m sorry for telling you something you already knew. I’ll make up for it by telling you something you probably didn’t know. I’m shorter than Chris Bassitt. I know, I know, it’s disappointing. Not every Roundup writer can be a giant!
Tomoyuki Sugano (COL) @ ARI (ND) – 6.2 IP, 2 ER, 6 Hits, 1 BBs, 3 Ks – 5 Whiffs, 24% CSW, 97 pitches.
Props to you, fella! Sugano impressively has a 3.86 ERA through 10 starts as a Rockie. It’s not enough to get me to trust him in anything shallower than an NL-only league, but it’s cool seeing someone figure things out in those forgotten pinstripes. (View Game Card)
Payton Tolle (BOS) vs MIN (ND) – 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 4 Hits, 2 BBs, 9 Ks – 15 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 85 pitches.
I’m reminded of the legendary Eckhart Tolle whenever I review Payton, bringing me into the present moment with each mention. That’d be enough for me to appreciate him, but he also throws dope fastballs with elite extension. The nine strikeouts make the PQS more digestible. He went 74% four-seamers and sinkers, as the former sat above the zone to induce whiffs and the latter fell into it to steal called strikes. It’s sort of a reverse Canibal McSanchez with sinkers instead of cutters. Despite not having the best command or reliable secondaries, Tolle should keep dominating lineups, avoiding blowups because of his ability to induce weak contact when batters make rare contact. (View Game Card)
Walker Buehler (SDP) vs ATH (ND) – 5.0 IP, 3 ER, 5 Hits, 4 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 29% CSW, 85 pitches.
Buehler has allowed three or fewer runs in 80% of his games this year. Then how does he still have a 5.05 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP? Because he’s pitched into the sixth inning just three times and relies on Koufax to turn all his baserunners to dust. Don’t expect Buehler to star in the next “Now You See Me” sequel with PHI x2 next. (View Game Card)
Jack Flaherty (DET) @ BAL (L) – 3.1 IP, 3 ER, 8 Hits, 0 BBs, 7 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 78 pitches.
Flaherty’s four-seamer returned six strikeouts! You know what else it returned six of? Hits! This three-pitch mix isn’t going to magically start working any time soon. (View Game Card)
Jeffrey Springs (ATH) @ SDP (L) – 6.1 IP, 4 ER, 3 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 11 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 95 pitches.
Sunshine and rainbows are abundant in San Diego! Springs was a streaming candidate outside of Sacré Verde. He did everything right, including showcasing his best four-seamer with 17-18″ of vert and locating changeups low and armside beautifully to induce 10 whiffs. A PQS was all his until he was pushed into the seventh, where the second batter he faced launched a solo-shot. Careful, Icarus! Welp, it’s back to the wire as he heads back to Sacramento for the Mariners next. (View Game Card)
Davis Martin (CHW) @ SFG (W) – 5.2 IP, 4 ER, 6 Hits, 2 BBs, 7 Ks – 16 Whiffs, 33% CSW, 98 pitches.
GASP! Is this the end?? Martin allowed more than two earned runs for the first time since his first start of the year. Martin isn’t waiver wire fodder just yet. The increased extension and velo we saw in his last outing were gone here. However, he displayed whiffability that should lend itself to better performances in the future. He was Singled Out and nearly escaped the sixth with a PQS if it weren’t for a leadoff double and a pair of effectively placed groundouts. We’re going to need to see multiple starts north of three earned runs before pronouncing this Vargas Rule complete. (View Game Card)
Grayson Rodriguez (LAA) vs TEX (W) – 5.2 IP, 4 ER, 7 Hits, 2 BBs, 5 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 97 pitches.
Yeah, this ain’t it. I don’t trust the Angels to keep Rodriguez healthy or get the most out of his limited arsenal. Yes, he throws 96 mph four-seamers for strikes, but it’s Empty Velocity with 15″ of iVB. The locations and movement profiles of his secondaries can be described as inconsistent. Don’t get me wrong! I want nothing more than for GrayRod to be dope. He’s just not doing much to inspire confidence within me. (View Game Card)
Jameson Taillon (CHC) vs HOU (L) – 4.2 IP, 4 ER, 8 Hits, 1 BBs, 5 Ks – 12 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 90 pitches.
Just like me watching YouTube videos while getting dressed for a wedding, I can’t get this Taillon! (View Game Card)
Justin Wrobleski (LAD) @ MIL (L) – 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 8 Hits, 2 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 31% CSW, 100 pitches.
The magic of the four-seamer-slider combo has faded for Wrobleski. Not that I’m surprised. The silver lining is that he added a tick of velo to the heater to sit 94-95 mph and threw 20% sinkers/changeups/curveballs. If he can get up to where he was at last year with 95-96 mph four-seamers and continue to expand his arsenal, he would quickly become a target in standard leagues. (View Game Card)
Connor Prielipp (MIN) @ BOS (ND) – 4.0 IP, 5 ER, 7 Hits, 3 BBs, 1 Ks – 7 Whiffs, 26% CSW, 85 pitches.
Nick’s gone for one Roundup, and you fall apart? I get it, he was your load-bearing pillar. But so is your slider! That’s now back-to-back starts where his command of the breaker was missing, and this is what had me a bit skeptical of Prielipp when he debuted. The four-seamer and slider are dope, but he didn’t display the confidence in the rest of his arsenal to suggest that he’d be able to succeed if one of those offerings was missing. Curveballs were the emergency button here, but they couldn’t find the zone, returning just 45% strikes. The changeup isn’t the key, as he hasn’t displayed a feel once yet, failing to claim that SWATCH title. We’re not close to giving up on Prielipp, but the floor is becoming more apparent. He should have respite with CHW x2 next to rediscover his slider. (View Game Card)
Jacob deGrom (TEX) @ LAA (L) – 3.0 IP, 6 ER, 6 Hits, 3 BBs, 3 Ks – 13 Whiffs, 25% CSW, 65 pitches.
I gotta tell you, I vocally exclaimed when I saw this start when checking my fantasy teams. Just three innings? Six earned runs? You must have the wrong number. We’re talking about deGOAT! This was a One Night Bland as Koufax had other matters to attend to, forcing deGrom to deal with a .500 BABIP. (View Game Card)
Trevor McDonald (SFG) vs CHW (L) – 3.2 IP, 7 ER, 3 Hits, 1 BBs, 4 Ks – 8 Whiffs, 27% CSW, 66 pitches.
Our streamer of the day failed us as the club formerly known as the CrySox continue to showcase why we stopped calling them that. This start was as unfair as it gets. Scene opens. The scoreboard reads 0-0 in the 3rd inning. Pan to Trevor McDonald on the mound. He hits the first batter. He hits the second batter. Zoom in on the disgruntled manager. The third batter flies out. A close-up of McDonald reveals his relief. A single loads the bases. A wide shot of the dugout shows a line of Giants nervously biting their fingernails. He walks in a run. A double scores two. Another run scores as the batter reaches on a fielder’s choice. The manager is literally sitting on his hands. The next batter strikes out swinging. The stadium’s collective sigh of relief can be heard across the Bay Area. A single scores another. The stadium’s collective groan registers on the Richter scale. McDonald’s night is over. End scene. NOPE! The lights come back on. Back to the top of the order. He’s hit by his second pitch of the inning. He scores on a bases-clearing double. That runner comes around to score on a throwing error by the shortstop. What is happening?! Strikeout. Return to shot of the scoreboard. It’s 9-0. Nightmare over. (View Game Card)
Game of the Day
Freddy Peralta vs. Max Meyer – I’m hoping to see Professor Chaos get back on track and for Meyer to continue his fastball-driven ascension.
But Nick?! Where are the streaming picks? – I’ve moved them to the daily SP Matchups & Streamer Rankings article.
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Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)
