Ranking Dodgers, Mariners, Phillies and All 30 MLB Pitching Staffs for 2025 Season
The old adage that pitching wins championships exists for a reason, and each offseason teams invest millions and millions of dollars trying to shore up their starting rotation and bullpen for the upcoming season.
Corbin Burnes (ARI), Max Fried (NYY) and Blake Snell (LAD) each joined the $100 million club while signing with new teams in free agency, while Tanner Scott (LAD) and Jeff Hoffman (TOR) received the most lucrative paydays among relief pitchers.
Those five pitchers are just a sampling of the arm talent that changed teams this winter, reshaping the MLB landscape in the process, and key arms returning from injury will also have a major impact on determining which teams shine on the mound in 2025.
Ahead we've ranked all 30 pitching staffs heading into the 2025 season, and while the focus was on the Opening Day staff, players set to return from injury during the season and overall depth were also factors since teams will no doubt have to dip into their pitching talent pool well beyond just the guys who break camp with a roster spot.
Nos. 30-26
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30. Chicago White Sox
Sean Burke with his 19 career innings of work at the MLB level will take the ball for the White Sox on Opening Day, which should paint a solid picture of where things stand with this staff. Jonathan Cannon has some upside and Martín Pérez was a nice buy-low signing, but this is a bottom-tier rotation. It also looks like non-roster veteran Mike Clevinger will handle ninth-inning duties.
29. Colorado Rockies
Getting Germán Márquez and Antonio Senzatela back healthy after they pitched a combined 16.1 innings in 2024 should give the Rockies a nice in-house boost, and top prospect Chase Dollander should get his first taste of the big leagues at some point in 2025. There is a real chance they won't be dead last in team ERA for the fourth straight year, but don't expect pitching to suddenly be a strength.
28. Miami Marlins
The presence of 2022 NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcántara is the only thing keeping the Marlins from being a serious contender for the No. 30 spot in these rankings, and he is returning from a full year on the sidelines recovering from Tommy John surgery. There is a lot of arm talent on the sidelines with Eury Pérez, Braxton Garrett, Ryan Weathers and Edward Cabrera all on the shelf.
27. Washington Nationals
The Nationals re-signed Trevor Williams and Kyle Finnegan while also adding Michael Soroka on a one-year, $9 million deal, but the pitching staff is still lagging behind the offense in terms of present and future upside. The front office did a nice job bargain hunting for bullpen arms with Jorge López (1/$3M), Lucas Sims (1/$3M) and Colin Poche (MiLB deal) all capable of pitching their way to being useful trade chips.
26. Los Angeles Angels
Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi is a good No. 3 starter on a contending team, but he is penciled into the role of staff ace on the Angels after signing a three-year, $63 million deal in November. Starter Jack Kochanowicz and reliever Ben Joyce offer some intriguing upside, while Tyler Anderson and Kyle Hendricks could both end up being trade chips if they pitch well and the team falls out of the playoff hunt.
Nos. 25-21
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25. Athletics
No one is going to confuse it for Zito-Hudson-Mulder, but the Athletics have assembled a solid top three in the rotation with newcomers Luis Severino and Jeffrey Springs joining JP Sears. Right-hander Osvaldo Bido has some under-the-radar upside, while Mason Miller will again be throwing gas in the ninth inning to protect any leads that make it that far.
24. San Francisco Giants
The Giants ranked 18th in the majors in starters' ERA last year, and it's hard not to view losing Blake Snell and replacing him with Justin Verlander as a step backward, though a healthy Robbie Ray could help balance the scales a bit. Young arms like Landen Roupp, Hayden Birdsong, Kyle Harrison, Keaton Winn and others have the potential to push them further up these rankings as the season progresses.
23. St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals have one of the oldest rotations in baseball with Sonny Gray (35), Erick Fedde (32), Miles Mikolas (36) and Steven Matz (33) all expected to be part of a six-man rotation once the season kicks into full swing. Anyone and everyone from that group could end up being traded this summer, which would open the door for guys like Matthew Liberatore, Michael McGreevy and top prospects Tink Hence and Quinn Mathews to get an extended look.
22. New York Mets
Even before Sean Manaea (oblique) and Frankie Montas (lat) landed on the injured list, the Mets rotation was middle-of-the-pack at best. Kodai Senga has front-line upside, David Peterson is a solid arm on the rise and Clay Holmes is an X-factor in his move from bullpen to rotation, but the idea of all three of those guys potentially starting games in a best-of-seven series is not ideal. Top prospect Brandon Sproat is a major X-factor.
21. Milwaukee Brewers
Even with Brandon Woodruff and Tobias Myers on the shelf, the Brewers still have the makings of a decent rotation with Freddy Peralta, Aaron Civale and offseason additions Nestor Cortes, José Quintana and Tyler Alexander. In the bullpen, Trevor Megill pitched at a high level filling in for Devin Williams in the ninth inning during the first half of last season, and now the job is all his.
Nos. 20-16
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20. Texas Rangers
The Rangers might have the widest range of potential outcomes of any pitching staff in baseball. Can Jacob deGrom stay healthy and pitch like an ace? Will Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter effectively fill rotation spots? Does someone from the group of Chris Martin, Robert Garcia and Luke Jackson step forward as a capable ninth-inning option? Every team has questions, but this is an entire pitching staff of questions.
19. Toronto Blue Jays
How much do Max Scherzer (40), Chris Bassitt (36) and Kevin Gausman (34) have left in the tank? That trio will determine just how good the Blue Jays rotation can be this season, though Bowden Francis and Yariel Rodríguez offer some untapped upside. Meanwhile, the bullpen has been rebuilt, with 2024 All-Star Jeff Hoffman expected to close games after signing a three-year, $33 million deal.
18. Houston Astros
Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown, Josh Hader and Bryan Abreu are four really good arms, but the rest of the Astros staff is filled with wild cards. If Ronel Blanco can avoid significant regression and Spencer Arrighetti can build off his rookie season, then the rotation could be a strength, but their depth is already being tested with Luis García, Lance McCullers Jr. and Cristian Javier all recovering from Tommy John surgery.
17. Cincinnati Reds
The Reds have assembled an enviable collection of starting pitching talent with Hunter Greene, Brady Singer, Nick Lodolo, Nick Martinez and Carson Spiers breaking camp as the five-man rotation, while Rhett Lowder, Andrew Abbott and Connor Phillips are also likely to start games in 2025. The question mark is the bullpen, which will rely on some combination of Emilio Pagán, Taylor Rogers, Scott Barlow and Graham Ashcraft in the late innings while Alexis Díaz recovers from a hamstring injury.
16. Minnesota Twins
The Twins ranked 21st in the majors with a 4.26 team ERA in 2024, and they return essentially the same pitching staff outside of Danny Coulombe replacing Caleb Thielbar as the primary lefty in the bullpen. However, all five starting pitchers had a FIP lower than their ERA last year, which is a solid indication this staff is due for some positive regression. Young starters Zebby Matthews and David Festa also provide quality rotation depth.
Nos. 15-11
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15. Baltimore Orioles
Replacing Corbin Burnes with Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano gives the Orioles a deeper rotation that is lacking a true ace. Grayson Rodriguez has the upside to be that guy, but first he needs to get healthy as elbow inflammation will sideline him to start the year. Meanwhile, a healthy Félix Bautista should help stabilize the late innings after Craig Kimbrel and company racked up 21 blown saves in 2024.
14. Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates have as much long-term upside in the rotation as any team in baseball with Paul Skenes headlining a group of talented young starters that also includes 2024 rookie Jared Jones and prospects Bubba Chandler, Thomas Harrington and Braxton Ashcraft. However, it might still be a year or two before that rotation is fully assembled in the big leagues. Jones is dealing with an elbow issue and the bullpen could be a weakness if David Bednar does not return to All-Star form.
13. New York Yankees
Good thing the Yankees pivoted to Max Fried after failing to re-sign Juan Soto or the starting rotation would really be in trouble. Losing Gerrit Cole is obviously a huge blow, and having Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil join him on the injured list to open the year is less than ideal, but a rotation of Fried, Schmidt, Gil, Carlos Rodón and Will Warren still has a chance to be a strength. If you're looking for a dark-horse breakout candidate, reliever Fernando Cruz had 109 strikeouts in 66.2 innings out of the Reds bullpen in 2024.
12. Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have a strong top-of-the-rotation trio in Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga and Jameson Taillon, while Matthew Boyd was signed to fill the No. 4 spot and Ben Brown will get the first crack at rounding out the staff while Colin Rea, Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks and top prospect Cade Horton could also start games in 2025. The bullpen should be more stable than a year ago with newcomer Ryan Pressly and breakout rookie Porter Hodge handling the late innings.
11. Boston Red Sox
Eventually, the Red Sox should have a starting rotation of Garrett Crochet, Tanner Houck, Walker Buehler, Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello, which could be one of the better rotations in the American League. For now, Giolito, Bello and Kutter Crawford are on the injured list, which has opened the door for Richard Fitts and non-roster invitee Sean Newcomb to round out the staff. Beyond the health questions in the rotation, Aroldis Chapman and Liam Hendriks also provide a boom-or-bust tandem at the back of the bullpen.
Nos. 10-7
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10. Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays always seem to assemble a competitive pitching staff, and young pitchers like Taj Bradley, Ryan Pepiot and Shane Baz are all capable of taking another step forward in 2025. The X-factor is the health of ace Shane McClanahan, who was expected to start on Opening Day but is instead sidelined with a triceps issue. No team is better at turning diamonds in the rough into key contributors out of the bullpen.
9. Cleveland Guardians
The Guardians ended up starting Alex Cobb and Matthew Boyd in playoff games last season due to a combination of injuries and poor performance from their rotation. The only major outside addition was Luis L. Ortiz, though a healthy season from Gavin Williams, a bounce-back from Logan Allen and the eventual return of Shane Bieber could still make it a vastly improved rotation. They also return the top four relievers from a bullpen that led the majors with a 2.57 ERA in 2024.
8. San Diego Padres
The Padres will be without Joe Musgrove for the entire 2025 season while he recovers from Tommy John surgery and Yu Darvish for at least the start of the year while he deals with elbow inflammation. However, they still have Dylan Cease, Michael King and newcomer Nick Pivetta, while KBO standout Kyle Hart has a chance to be an X-factor. The bullpen should again be a major strength with Robert Suárez, Jason Adam, Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejón and Yuki Matsui.
7. Detroit Tigers
Manager A.J. Hinch caught lightning in a bottle with the way he utilized his bullpen down the stretch and into the postseason last year, but the Tigers should be able to field a more traditional rotation this season with Jack Flaherty brought back and Jackson Jobe breaking camp with a starting job. They still have a terrific relief corps, with Tommy Kahnle and John Brebbia added to the mix this winter.
6. Atlanta Braves
The Braves lost Max Fried and Charlie Morton in free agency and did not make a major outside addition to replace them, but the trio of Spencer Schwellenbach, Grant Holmes and AJ Smith-Shawver can fill the void, while the eventual return of Spencer Strider will give them a bona fide rotation star once again. Most of the top arms are also back from a bullpen that ranked third in the majors with a 3.32 ERA in 2024.
5. Kansas City Royals
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Opening Day Rotation
LHP Cole Ragans
RHP Seth Lugo
RHP Michael Wacha
LHP Kris Bubic
RHP Michael Lorenzen
Opening Day Bullpen
LHP Daniel Lynch IV
LHP Sam Long
RHP Chris Stratton
RHP John Schreiber
RHP Hunter Harvey
LHP Angel Zerpa
RHP Lucas Erceg
RHP Carlos Estévez
The Kansas City Royals ranked second in the majors with a 3.55 ERA from their starting staff in 2024, and while Brady Singer was traded to the Cincinnati Reds, shifting Kris Bubic back to the rotation after a strong season out of the bullpen gives them similar upside this year.
Meanwhile, the bullpen should be vastly improved after posting a 4.13 ERA (20th in MLB) and tallying 23 blown saves. They signed Carlos Estévez to a two-year, $22 million deal and will also have full seasons of Hunter Harvey and Lucas Erceg who were both acquired last summer.
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
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Opening Day Rotation
RHP Zac Gallen
RHP Merrill Kelly
RHP Brandon Pfaadt
LHP Eduardo Rodríguez
RHP Corbin Burnes
Opening Day Bullpen
RHP Ryne Nelson
LHP Jalen Beeks
RHP Bryce Jarvis
RHP Shelby Miller
LHP Joe Mantiply
RHP Ryan Thompson
LHP A.J. Puk
RHP Justin Martínez
Brandon Pfaadt and Ryne Nelson were the only pitchers to reach 150 innings for the Arizona Diamondbacks last season, and now they rank as the fifth- and sixth-best rotation options heading into 2025.
Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly and Corbin Burnes have a chance to be as good as any trio of starters in baseball, and they could get a bounce-back year from Eduardo Rodríguez, who never really hit his stride during an injury-plagued 2024 campaign. A bullpen that ranked 25th in the majors with a 4.41 ERA looks much more stable with A.J. Puk and Justin Martínez handling the late innings.
3. Philadelphia Phillies
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Opening Day Rotation
RHP Zack Wheeler
LHP Jesús Luzardo
RHP Aaron Nola
LHP Cristopher Sánchez
RHP Taijiuan Walker
Opening Day Bullpen
RHP Joe Ross
RHP Carlos Hernández
LHP Tanner Banks
RHP José Ruiz
LHP Matt Strahm
RHP Orion Kerkering
LHP José Alvarado
RHP Jordan Romano
Even with a revolving door in the No. 5 starter role, the Philadelphia Phillies still finished eighth in the majors with a 3.81 ERA from the starting rotation last year. The offseason addition of Jesús Luzardo has further bolstered the starting staff, and once Ranger Suárez is back healthy this rotation stacks up to any in baseball.
The bullpen outlook hinges greatly on whether two-time All-Star Jordan Romano can return to being a lockdown closer, and someone else will also need to help pick up the slack of losing Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez in free agency.
2. Seattle Mariners
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Opening Day Rotation
RHP Logan Gilbert
RHP Luis Castillo
RHP Bryce Miller
RHP Bryan Woo
RHP Emerson Hancock
Opening Day Bullpen
RHP Carlos Vargas
RHP Eduard Bazardo
LHP Gabe Speier
LHP Tayler Saucedo
RHP Trent Thornton
RHP Gregory Santos
RHP Collin Snider
RHP Andrés Muñoz
The Seattle Mariners led the majors with a 3.38 ERA from their starters in 2024, and the top five pitchers on the staff made 149 of 162 starts last season. That number figures to drop this year with George Kirby already nursing a shoulder injury, but all five of those pitchers remain on the roster.
Electric Andrés Muñoz returns in the closer's role following an All-Star nod in 2024, and the organization has done a fantastic job mixing and matching to build a quality relief corps in recent years.
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
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Opening Day Rotation
LHP Blake Snell
RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
RHP Roki Sasaki
RHP Tyler Glasnow
RHP Dustin May
Opening Day Bullpen
RHP Luis García
LHP Jack Dreyer
RHP Ben Casparius
LHP Anthony Banda
LHP Alex Vesia
RHP Blake Treinen
RHP Kirby Yates
LHP Tanner Scott
The Los Angeles Dodgers made upgrading the pitching staff the focal point of the offseason, adding Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki to the starting rotation while also re-signing Blake Treinen and signing Kirby Yates and Tanner Scott to join him at the back of the bullpen.
Outside of the projected pitching staff above, they also have Tony Gonsolin, Michael Kopech and Evan Phillips expected to return from the injured list during the first half of the season, while Clayton Kershaw and Emmet Sheehan could be ready by midseason.
And of course, Shohei Ohtani will also be making his return to the mound at some point during the first few months, giving the team yet another ace-caliber arm.
