Top 15 MLB pitchers for 2023 season

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: 15-9 with a 2.90 ERA, 3.03 FIP, 1.159 WHIP, zero complete games and a 4.2 WAR across 192 1/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 26

Quite a few talented veteran pitchers have come and gone from San Francisco over the past few seasons, but Webb has turned into a constant for the Giants. A fourth-round pick out of high school in the 2014 MLB Draft, Webb has a 2.96 ERA and 2.90 FIP to show for the 340 2/3 innings pitched that he's racked up over the past two seasons. 2023 is his first of three years of arbitration eligibility.

Ranking Last Year: 11
2022 Statistics: 12-10 with a 3.35 ERA, 2.38 FIP, 1.237 WHIP, zero complete games and a 5.7 WAR across 174 2/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 32

It took Gausman quite a bit of time to put everything together, buy boy has he over the past three years. Since the start of the 2020 season, Gausman's 2.76 FIP ranks second among all qualified starting pitchers in baseball. He finished in the top 10 in AL Cy Young Award voting in his first season with the Blue Jays in 2022, as his five-year/$110 million deal already looks very team-friendly.

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: 14-7 with a 2.48 ERA, 2.70 FIP, 1.014 WHIP, zero complete games and a 5.0 WAR across 185 1/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 29

Fried is coming off of the best season of his career, having made his first All-Star Game appearance, while taking home his third consecutive Gold Glove Award and finishing runner-up in NL Cy Young Award voting. Set to become a free agent after the 2024 season, Fried is one of the few young stars that Alex Anthopoulos and the Braves have not been able convince to sign an extremely team-friendly extension. At least not yet.

Ranking Last Year: 9
2022 Statistics: 17-7 with a 2.16 ERA, 3.71 FIP, 0.960 WHIP, zero complete games and a 3.2 WAR across 175 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 26

Urías is tough to place, because his back-of-the-baseball-card stats over the past two seasons have been incredible. In 2021, he led baseball with 20 wins. In 2022, he won the NL ERA title by finishing the season with a minuscule 2.16 ERA. Some of his more advanced numbers paint a picture of someone that is one of the better pitchers in baseball, but perhaps not the top five pitcher he may have been viewed as based on some more traditional statistics 15 or 20 years ago. Either way, Urías figures to do very well if the Dodgers allow him to reach the free-agent market next offseason.

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: 14-8 with a 2.88 ERA, 2.25 FIP, 1.028 WHIP, one complete game and a 6.2 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 30

Rodón opted out of the final year of his contract with the San Francisco Giants this past winter, which proved to be a savvy business decision when the Yankees rewarded him with a six-year/$162 million deal in free agency. Over the past two seasons, Rodón ranks third among all pitchers in WAR, trailing two pitchers yet to come on this list.

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: 11-13 with a 3.25 ERA, 2.58 FIP, 0.961 WHIP, two complete games and a 6.3 WAR
Age During 2023 Season: 30

Nola bounced back from a disappointing 2021 season to lead all pitchers in WAR in 2022, per FanGraphs. Since the start of the 2018 season, his 871 2/3 innings pitched are the top mark in baseball. The Phillies have said all the right things regarding wanting to retain Nola beyond 2023, and given how aggressively that John Middleton has spent in recent years, there's probably a good chance they are successful in re-signing the former first-round pick. But it's likely to take an investment at least as large as the one the Yankees made in the aforementioned Rodón this past offseason.

Ranking Last Year: 7
2022 Statistics: 13-8 with a 2.88 ERA, 2.87 FIP, 1.040 WHIP, one complete game and a 4.9 WAR across 200 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 28

The former AL Cy Young Award winner put together another excellent season in 2022, including winning his first career Gold Glove Award. He and the Guardians have a World Series-caliber roster, but given that he can become a free agent after the 2024 season, you do wonder how many more starts Bieber will make in a Cleveland uniform.

Ranking Last Year: 5
2022 Statistics: 11-5 with a 2.29 ERA, 2.62 FIP, 0.908 WHIP, zero complete games and a 4.4 WAR across 145 1/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 38

An oblique strain prevented Scherzer from racking up enough innings to compete for his fourth Cy Young Award, but when he was healthy, he was predictably brilliant in his first season with the Mets. The eight-time All-Star recorded his 200th win last season, and even as he approaches 40, Scherzer seems to have a lot left in the tank.

Ranking Last Year: 4
2022 Statistics: 12-7 with a 2.82 ERA, 2.89 FIP, 1.039 WHIP, zero complete games and a 4.1 WAR across 153 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 33

A year after he led baseball with 213 1/3 innings pitched, some minor injuries limited Wheeler to 26 regular season starts. Across those outings, though, he had some dominant moments, while also posting a 2.78 ERA over his first six postseason starts. Since joining the Phillies on a five-year/$118 million deal ahead of the 2020 season, Wheeler is second among all pitchers in WAR, according to FanGraphs.

Ranking Last Year: 2
2022 Statistics: 13-8 with a 3.50 ERA, 3.47 FIP, 1.017 WHIP, zero complete games and a 3.3 WAR across 202 2/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 32

If 2022 was a relative down season for Cole, that's saying something. Sure, he led the AL with 33 home runs allowed. He also struck out more batters (257) than any pitcher in the sport, and topped the 200 innings pitched mark for the fifth time in his career. So far, the Yankees have gotten a tremendous return on their nine-year/$324 million investment in Cole.

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked As Pitcher
2022 Statistics: 15-9 with a 2.33 ERA, 2.40 FIP, 1.012 WHIP, zero complete games and a 5.6 WAR across 166 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 28

A year after clubbing 46 home runs, it was on the mound where Ohtani shined the most for the Angels in 2022. Had it not been for a historic season from Aaron Judge, Ohtani's best season yet as a pitcher would have carried him to a second consecutive AL MVP Award. As is, he finished runner-up for AL MVP and fourth in AL Cy Young Award voting. He's truly one of the greatest players that the sport has ever seen.

Ranking Last Year: 1
2022 Statistics: 5-4 with a 3.08 ERA, 2.13 FIP, 0.746 WHIP, zero complete games and a 2.2 WAR across 64 1/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 35

Simply put, when deGrom is on the mound, he's the best pitcher in baseball. He may have the best repertoire of any pitcher in baseball history. We understand what tantalized the Rangers about deGrom, to the point that they lured him away from the Mets with a five-year/$185 million deal. But at a certain point, availability has to count for something. For as dominant as deGrom has been over the past two seasons, he's made just 26 total starts. If he can pitch a full season for the first time since 2019, deGrom will likely be back at No. 1 next year.

Ranking Last Year: 3
2022 Statistics: 12-8 with a 2.94 ERA, 3.14 FIP, 0.965 WHIP, zero complete games and a 4.6 WAR across 202 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 28

Burnes followed up his NL Cy Young Award winning campaign of 2021 by leading the senior circuit with 243 strikeouts in 2022, and topping the 200 innings mark for the first time in his career. He can become a free agent after the 2024 season, so while the Brewers have playoff aspirations, his future is worth monitoring.

Ranking Last Year: Not Ranked
2022 Statistics: 18-4 with a 1.75 ERA, 2.49 FIP, 0.829 WHIP, zero complete games and a 6.1 WAR across 175 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 40

As only he could, Verlander returned after missing nearly two seasons recovering from Tommy John Surgery to win his third AL Cy Young Award in 2022. Before the year was out, he and the Houston Astros won their second World Series title in six seasons. Even with his age-40 season approaching, the Mets were willing to give Verlander a two-year/$86.6 million deal with a $35 million vesting option for a third season. He's six wins away from 250 for his career, and 56 away from becoming the first pitcher to record 300 wins since Hall of Famer Randy Johnson.

Ranking Last Year: 14
2022 Statistics: 14-9 with a 2.28 ERA, 2.99 FIP, 0.980 WHIP, six complete games and a 5.7 WAR across 228 2/3 innings pitched
Age During 2023 Season: 27

In what was a Roy Halladay-esque season, Alcántara won the 2022 NL Cy Young Award, leading baseball in complete games (six) and innings pitched (228 2/3). The Marlins odds to win the loaded NL East in 2023 are probably not much higher than 0%, but in a division with a ton of great starting pitching, it's Alcántara who takes the top spot. And he's on an extremely team-friendly contract, set to make just $49 million over the next four seasons, with the Marlins also having a $21 million club option for 2027.