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Almost nine weeks of the MLB season have come and gone, and several pitchers are enjoying career years. There's still a long way to go before awards get handed out, but these five pitchers have been excellent and worthy of praise so far in 2024.
The best MLB starting pitchers through nine weeks
5) Cole Ragans
Cole Ragans has really burst onto the scene this year. The Kansas City Royals have their ace, as Ragans boasts a 2.0 fWAR, 2.37 FIP, 11.03 K/9, and many other brilliant metrics. The Royals have been good this year and very competitive in their division, and Ragans has been a big reason why.
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4) Tyler Glasnow
The Los Angeles Dodgers have to be thrilled with themselves. Tyler Glasnow has been a true ace and the Tampa Bay Rays haven't been all that good following the trade. His 2.0 fWAR is fourth among all pitchers and he has a blistering 11.60 K/9. A 2.44 xERA and 2.45 FIP are both exceptional metrics as well.
3) Tarik Skubal
The Detroit Tigers haven't been particularly good this year, but that is no fault of Tarik Skubal. He has been as good as almost any pitcher in baseball (2.1 fWAR, tied for second). He's striking out almost 11 batters per nine innings and has a 2.25 ERA and a 2.14 FIP to boot. He also has a pretty low BB/9 (1.50) and HR/9 (0.60).
2) Ranger Suarez
The best pitcher in the National League would, in most other years, be considered the third-best pitcher on his own team. The Philadelphia Phillies have Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola, but Ranger Suarez has been the best. He's been worth 2.1 fWAR thanks to a 1.36 ERA and a .226 BABIP. He is probably the NL frontrunner for Cy Young at this stage of the season.
1) Tanner Houck
The most valuable pitcher in all of baseball resides with the Boston Red Sox. Tanner Houck has been worth 2.2 fWAR, the most in baseball this year. He's been brilliant for an otherwise largely struggling team, and his 1.94 ERA and 2.20 FIP are incredible. His expected metrics suggest a bit of luck, but he does still sport an incredible 0.14 HR/9 rate.
