Fantasy Baseball 2026: Two-Start Pitchers for April 27-May 3

It's a thin week for ace pitchers with two starts for 2026 fantasy baseball. Still, there are plenty of good matchups to exploit, even though the list of two-start pitchers is primarily populated with No. 3, 4, and 5 starting pitchers.

As always, we'll provide statistics like strikeout rate (K%), walk rate (BB%), weighted on-base average (wOBA), and weighted runs created plus (wRC+) for context towards the decision-making process. These stats are for the handedness of the pitcher vs. the team unless otherwise noted. We'll begin with the table below, which shows the league average of those four statistics against left-handed and right-handed pitchers.

Must-Start Two-Start Pitchers

Arms with Favorable Matchups

Max Fried (NYY) @ TEX, vs. BAL

Joe Ryan (MIN) vs. SEA; vs. TOR - Ryan has been tough at home with a 2.45 ERA and 0.82 WHIP. Five of his six pitches are generating whiffs at least 22% of the time.

Chase Burns (CIN) vs. COL; @ PIT - The 98 MPH fastball and wipeout slider combination has been unhittable. Regression may catch up to him at some point, a problem he could avoid if he throws his changeup a bit more often.

Luis Castillo (SEA) @ MIN; vs. KCR - Right-handed batters have been chewing Castillo up to the tune of .389/.450/.426 with a .512 BABIP against him. Neither the Twins nor the Royals should fare well against Castillo, whose inconsistencies should even out.

Matthew Boyd (CHC) @ SDP; vs. ARI - Boyd gets prodigious whiff rates from all of his secondary offerings and the strikeouts are coming in bunches. We'd be talking Cy Young votes if he pitched for a good team.

Parker Messick (CLE) vs. TBR; @ ATH - Messick throws six pitches, none more than 30 percent of the time and none less than 10%. His changeup is downright nasty, generating a 45.3% whiff rate.

Randy Vasquez (SDP) vs. CHC; vs. CWS - Vasquez gets up to 19.5 inches of armside horizontal break on his changeup, just one example from a seven-pitch repertoire that has looked dominant thus far.

Jesus Luzardo (PHI) vs. SFG; @ MIA - Luzardo gets a solid matchup at home against the Giants, who can't hit their way out of a paper bag. Then he hits the road, where he's pitched to a stunning 1.59 ERA with 14 strikeouts over 11.1 innings in two starts.

Other Two-Start Pitchers to Consider

Start Based on Need and Matchup Considerations

Kris Bubic (KCR) @ ATH; @ SEA - Bubic has struggled with his command, issuing 13 walks in just 28.2 innings. Both teams have struggled to produce runs against southpaws, so Bubic might get away with his lack of command for another pair of games.

JR Ritchie (ATL) vs. DET; @ COL - Ritchie looked great in his MLB debut against the Nationals (yeah, I know) and it looks like he could end up bumping Martin Perez from the Atlanta starting rotation. We won't know for sure until the team makes their roster moves when Spencer Strider returns. Stash Ritchie if you can.

Braxton Ashcraft (PIT) vs. STL; vs. CIN - Ashcraft has been solid over his first five starts with plenty of swing-and-miss. The combination of 97 MPH gas and a nasty splitter keeps hitters guessing.

Bubba Chandler (PIT) vs. STL; vs. CIN - Chandler hasn't been as successful as his teammate so far. He's making mistakes with his four seamer. It doesn't matter that he throws it over 98 MPH. If he tosses it middle/middle it's going to get hammered.

Jack Leiter (TEX) vs. NYY; @ DET - Leiter has terrific stuff but he needs to work on his pitch sequencing and mix to better utilize his fastball/changeup combination. The fastball grades out at 107 and the changeup at 109 on Stuff+, and his slider (106) comes in elite as well. The Rangers coaching staff should be able to help him reign in his pitches, which would go a long way towards realizing his ace potential.

Clay Holmes (NYM) vs. WSH; @ LAA - The sinker/sweeper combo has worked for Holmes but his cutter hasn't been as effective as it was last season. Fewer sinkers and more changeups would be a good way to get Holmes back on track.

Casey Mize (DET) @ ATL; vs. TEX - Mize's Stuff+ numbers have dropped from last season across all of his pitches. The surface stats look great but I'm a little concerned about what the underlying numbers are saying. Regression will come for Mize at some point but I'm inclined to ride him until his performance says otherwise.

Landen Roupp (SFG) @ PHI; @ TBR - Roupp has been really good despite his cutter being slammed for a .625 BA. Both his changeup and curve have generated good whiff rates, so he can afford to keep using them in tandem with his sinker to get by while he hammers out the mechanics on the cutter.

Spencer Arrighetti (HOU) @ BAL; @ BOS - Walks have been, and continue to be an issue. I'm always leery of pitchers who rely on curveballs for such a high percentage (31.6%) of their pitch mix.

Eric Lauer (TOR) vs. BOS; @ MIN - If the Red Sox were actually hitting I'd recommend sitting Lauer out. However, the Sox can't seem to get untracked at the plate and the Twins don't scare anyone. Therefore, have at it with Lauer.

Shane Baz (BAL) vs. HOU; @ NYY - I don't trust Baz in either of these matchups. His knuckle curve and four seamer are both getting hit hard, and his cutter has been even worse.

Ranger Suarez (BOS) @ TOR; vs. HOU - Three out of five Suarez outings have been terrible, including his first start of the season against the Astros, in which he coughed up a pair of home runs. I left him at the bottom of this tier but he really belongs in the next tier down because of the wRC+ values for the Blue Jays and Astros.

Risky Two-Start Pitchers to Sit or Monitor

Pitchers Facing Tough Tests

Merrill Kelly (ARI) @ MIL; @ CHC - Kelly didn't pitch well in his first start off the IL, and these are tough matchups. Wait to see if there is any improvement before taking any more risks with him.

Steven Matz (TBR) @ CLE; vs. SFG - Five HR and 10 BB in 24 IP. Nuff said.

Chad Patrick (MIL) vs. ARI; @ WSH - Patrick is walking almost as many batters as he strikes out.

Walker Buehler (SDP) vs. CHC; vs. CWS - Buehler has no business starting for anyone.

Zack Littell (WSH) @ NYM; vs. MIL - Bad pitcher in bad matchups.

Tomoyuki Sugano (COL) @ CIN; vs. ATL - There's no there there.

Dustin May (STL) @ PIT; vs. LAD

Kyle Leahy (STL) @ PIT; vs. LAD

Anthony Kay (WAS) vs. LAA; @ SDP

Patrick Corbin (TOR) vs. BOS; @ MIN

Martin Perez (ATL) vs. DET; @ COL

Jacob Lopez (ATH) vs. KCR; vs. CLE

Simeon Woods Richardson (MIN) vs. SEA; vs. TOR

Chris Paddack (MIA) @ LAD; vs PHI

Fantasy Baseball 2026 Two-Start Pitcher Questions, Answered

Who are the top two-start pitchers for April 27-May 3?

The top options feature arms with plus matchups on both sides of the schedule.

Which popular two-start pitchers should be sat this week?

A few high-owned names draw tough opponents that make them risky even in favorable formats.

Are there strong streaming two-start options available?

Yes. Several mid-rotation arms with favorable home/road splits move into streamer territory.

How should advanced managers approach two-start decisions in shallow vs deep leagues?

Shallow leagues should lean conservative; deep leagues can take more calculated risks on streamers with strong underlying metrics.

What factors beyond opponent matter most for two-start decisions in late April 2026?

Recent command, velocity trends, ballpark factors, and weather carry extra weight early in the season.

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This story was originally published April 24, 2026 at 2:52 PM.