Starting pitchers have become devalued in recent years, as injuries have ravaged their ranks and managers have increasingly come to rely on specialists coming out of the bullpen. Clayton Kershaw just wrapped up his sparkling farewell season, and the glory days of his fellow future Hall of Famers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander are well behind them. However, a bright new generation of talents has emerged over the last few years, led by the incomparable Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes. Who's the best, though?
The Case for Tarik Skubal
Skubal's performance this year was arguably superior to his triple crown and unanimous Cy Young winning 2024 campaign. He led the AL in ERA both seasons (2.39 last year and 2.21 this season), and although he failed to match last year's major league leading win total of 18, he lowered his WHIP from 0.922 to 0.891 (the lowest in baseball). After pacing the sport with 228 strikeouts last year, he increased his total to a career high 241 in 2025. He also pitched a complete game shutout (tying for the major league lead), and surrendered the fewest walks (1.5 per nine innings) of any major league pitcher. His 7.3 strikeouts per walk also led the majors.
Skubal is still only 28 years old, and he's been instrumental in resurrecting a moribund Tigers franchise over the past couple years. He overpowers hitters with his tremendous velocity, routinely touching triple digits on the radar gun, and also has an elite offspeed arsenal including a changeup and slider. He's the consensus best left handed starter in MLB, having just put the finishing touches on one of the most dominant two season stretches in the history of the Detroit Tigers.
The Case for Paul Skenes
The young career of Skenes has been incredibly successful. He arrived as the most heralded pitching prospect since Stephen Strasburg, having been drafted first overall in 2023 after leading LSU to a College World Series championship and being named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. He burst onto the MLB scene in 2024 after only one year in the minors, earning the honor of starting the All Star Game as a rookie and winning the NL Rookie of the Year award. He finished third in Cy Young voting thanks to his 11-3 record with a 1.96 ERA, 0.947 WHIP, and 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings.
Skenes built upon his historically dominant rookie season in his first full year. His 1.97 ERA led baseball, as did his 0.5 homeruns allowed per nine innings. He had the best WHIP in the NL at only 0.948, and topped 200 strikeouts for the first time. The Pirates struggled to provide him with run support, meaning he's in line to become the rare Cy Young recipient to not have a winning record (he was 10-10 this year). Like Skubal, he combines triple digit heat with pinpoint control and some of the nastiest pure stuff in the bigs. If he remains healthy, the sky's the limit for this 23 year old right hander.
Other Contenders
Garrett Crochet had a remarkably successful first season with the Red Sox, pacing baseball in strikeouts with 255. He led the AL with 205.1 innings pitched and 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings, and also threw a complete game shutout. His 18 wins helped lead Boston to the postseason, and he's as good a candidate as anyone to take Skubal's crown as the best lefty in the majors. At 26, he may not have even reached his peak.
Hold your horses though, we can't forget about Cristopher Sánchez of the Phillies. This left hander led baseball in pitching WAR according to Baseball Reference, although many casual fans had probably never heard his name before the season. Like Skubal, he's a bit of a late bloomer (both were 27 years old when they made their first All Star appearance last year), but he's poised to be an elite hurler for years to come.
It's also worth mentioning that Yankees lefty Max Fried led baseball with 19 wins, and right hander Freddy Peralta of the first place Brewers led the NL with his 17 (reaching 200 strikeouts for the third straight year in the process). Wins are not talked about as much as they used to be, but surely posting a sub-3.00 ERA and winning more games than anyone else in your league is still a pretty solid indicator of pitching excellence, no?
The Verdict
Tarik Skubal seems destined to succeed Kershaw as the dominant lefty of his generation, though fellow twenty something aces Crochet and Sánchez (among others) may have something to say about that.
Paul Skenes has completed two years in the Show and his career ERA is under 2.00 — that's hard not to take as an omen of greatness to come. As the sun sets on the era of Kershaw, Scherzer, and Verlander, it's comforting to know that the men toeing the rubber in 2026 and beyond will be up to the task of carrying on their legacy as workhorses.
So, who ya got? Is Skubal 1a and Skenes 1b or is it the other way around? Who else cracks your top ten? Chime in on our social media and be sure to vote at goatvote.ca/baseball/mvp/pitcher.