Young star ascends to the top of Starting Pitcher Power Rankings

There’s a new name at the top of MLB.com’s latest Starting Pitcher Power Rankings, and after a historic outing last week, it’s easy to see why.

That wasn’t the only shakeup, either: Four new names joined the rankings thanks to strong performances all season.

Here are the sixth Starting Pitcher Power Rankings of the season, as voted on by a panel of MLB.com experts.

All stats are through Tuesday unless otherwise noted.

1. Jacob Misiorowski, Brewers (Last poll: 2)

How does anyone hit this guy? Misiorowski is the most dominant pitcher on the planet right now, and given his competition in a loaded National League Cy Young Award race, that’s saying a lot. The Miz has simply been utterly overpowering with his record-setting fastball, which hit 104.5 mph in his last outing.

The 24-year-old right-hander is coming off one of the greatest single-game performances we’ve ever seen from a starting pitcher, tossing a 15-strikeout “Maddux” against the Phillies on Friday in Milwaukee. Misiorowski has struck out an incredible 39.8% of the batters he’s faced, and he seems to be the man to beat for the NL Cy Young Award at the moment.

2. Cristopher Sánchez, Phillies (1)

While Misiorowski’s incredible run was enough to take the top spot, The Miz’s offense helped dethrone Sánchez from the No. 1 position. The Brewers tagged the Phillies lefty for four earned runs in 5 2/3 innings on Sunday, the first time Sánchez had allowed more than two runs in a start since April 23 at Wrigley Field.

Still, Sánchez owns a 1.82 ERA and 116 strikeouts, trailing only Misiorowski among qualifying starters. He also entered Wednesday as MLB’s leader in innings pitched (99) and Baseball-Reference pitching WAR (5.0). After finishing second in last season’s NL Cy Young balloting, Sánchez has been even better in 2026.

3. Cam Schlittler, Yankees (3)

Schlittler has built on an impressive rookie season with an even more dominant sophomore campaign. His 1.82 ERA through 15 starts is tied with Sánchez for the second best among qualifying starters, and he’s coming off seven innings of one-run ball in Saturday’s win over the Blue Jays in Toronto.

At this point, Schlittler -- whose 3.8 bWAR, 230 ERA+ and 2.31 FIP all lead the AL -- is the clear favorite for the AL Cy Young Award, especially with Tarik Skubal missing nearly six weeks. The 25-year-old will have to keep up his success to take home the honor, but so far, he’s been the AL’s top starter.

4. Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers (4)

Ohtani is on a quest to win his first Cy Young Award, and while he will almost certainly end up with fewer innings pitched than his competition, he was so dominant over his first 10 starts this season (0.74 ERA) that it seemed he would make a serious bid. Since then, though, he’s given up eight runs (seven earned) over two starts after surrendering just seven runs on the entire season to that point, including four in an unusual outing on Wednesday at Dodger Stadium.

While knee and blister issues have cropped up for the two-way superstar, he and the Dodgers don’t seem too concerned, and Ohtani still has a 1.47 ERA for the season. Despite a sluggish start offensively, he’s also been surging at the plate, raising his OPS to .963.

5. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dodgers (not ranked)

Yamamoto has vaulted into the top five in our rankings after being unranked the last time around, and for good reason. The reigning World Series MVP came ever so close to perfection in his last start, not yielding a baserunner against the White Sox until there were two outs in the eighth inning at Rate Field on Saturday.

Since giving up five runs against the Giants on May 12, Yamamoto has yielded just four runs over his past five starts combined (1.01 ERA).

6. Chase Burns, Reds (7)

The second overall pick in the 2024 Draft, Burns showed tantalizing flashes during his debut campaign in 2025. He struck out 67 in just 43 1/3 innings, but he had a 4.57 ERA. This season, Burns has taken things to a whole new level, owning a 2.01 ERA in 14 starts for Cincinnati. After completing six innings just twice as a rookie, he’s done it eight times already this season.

Burns has quickly matured into one of the best pitchers in baseball, ranking third in the NL in ERA behind only Misiorowski and Sánchez and third in MLB with a .192 batting average against, trailing only Misiorowski (.140) and Yamamoto (.188).

7. Drew Rasmussen, Rays (not ranked)

For years, Rasmussen has been one of MLB’s most effective starters, owning a 2.71 ERA in six seasons with the Rays, including a 2.59 mark in 2026. After going seven innings in each of his past three starts and allowing one total run, Rasmussen has caught on with our voters, jumping into the top 10.

How good has Rasmussen been in June? He allowed just one hit in seven scoreless innings against the Marlins on June 5, then gave up just two hits and a walk while striking out a career-high 13 against the Red Sox on June 10. On Tuesday, he allowed just one run in seven innings against the Dodgers, courtesy of a homer by Ohtani.

8. Zack Wheeler, Phillies (not ranked)

Wheeler didn’t make his season debut until April 25 after undergoing thoracic outlet decompression surgery last year. But since his return, he’s been the same, steadily excellent veteran hurler he’s been. In 10 starts this season, the 36-year-old right-hander owns a 2.01 ERA and has only given up more than three runs in an outing once.

After throwing six scoreless frames against the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park on Monday, Wheeler has a 1.42 ERA over his past three starts, teaming with Sánchez atop Philadelphia’s rotation to form one of the best one-two punches in the game.

9. Paul Skenes, Pirates (6)

It’s surprising to see Skenes as low as ninth on this list, although it has more to do with superior performances by other hurlers than any struggles from the Pirates' phenom. Skenes has a 2.85 ERA after his latest strong outing, in which he struck out 10 Marlins in six innings of two-run ball on Sunday.

Skenes hasn’t been at his true peak for a while -- he has allowed multiple runs in every one of his past six starts, dating back to May 17 -- but he’s still as good and as consistent as any starter. His 0.93 WHIP ranks fifth in the Majors and third in the NL, and he’s tied for fifth in MLB with 99 strikeouts.

10-T. Chris Sale, Braves (5)

As with Skenes, Sale’s fall in these rankings is more a result of the incredible performances of his peers than any substandard performance on his part. Since a resurgent 2024 campaign for which he was named the NL Cy Young Award winner and Comeback Player of the Year, Sale has been remarkably consistent despite entering his late 30s.

The lanky left-hander owns a 2.30 ERA over 13 starts for the Braves this season, and he’s given up two or fewer runs in 11 of those appearances. With Spencer Strider back on the injured list, Atlanta will need Sale to continue his dominance while shorthanded in the rotation.

10-T. Dylan Cease, Blue Jays (not ranked)

Cease has been as good as advertised during his first season in Toronto after he signed a seven-year, $210 million deal with the Blue Jays this past offseason. He currently leads the AL with 110 strikeouts and has a 2.71 ERA through 13 starts. He also has a career-best 36.3% strikeout rate, second in the Majors only to Misiorowski.

One of the keys to Cease’s success this season, in particular, is the development of a unique changeup that has enhanced his already tremendous repertoire.

Others receiving votes: Logan Webb (Giants), Reid Detmers (Angels), Kyle Harrison (Brewers), Davis Martin (White Sox), Joe Ryan (Twins), Logan Gilbert (Mariners), Jacob deGrom (Rangers), Gerrit Cole (Yankees), Bryce Miller (Mariners), Dustin May (Cardinals)

Voters: Jason Catania, Jared Greenspan, Brent Maguire, Brian Murphy, Max Ralph, Manny Randhawa, Shanthi Sepe-Chepuru, Andrew Simon