How do the Cubs stack up in the division when it comes to starting rotations?

Chicago has some new faces in the mix - but did they do enough to take the top spot?

Oakland Athletics v Chicago Cubs
Oakland Athletics v Chicago Cubs | Matt Dirksen/GettyImages
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Digging into the NL Central's starting rotations, I can see how the Chicago Cubs front office might have talked itself into not needing another arm after tacking on Matthew Boyd and Colin Rea. There isn't a complete rotation among the other teams in the division. The back half of the rotations are some of the most vulnerable in baseball. Let's get into it.

1. Pirates: Skenes, Keller, Jones, Falter, Oviedo

The Pittsburgh Pirates rotation is ranked first for one reason only: Paul Skenes. There is no one else close to him in the division, and he'll be the NL Cy Young favorite. Fangraphs has him pegged for 5.8 WAR, by FAR the most valuable projection in MLB for pitchers. Skenes is elite at everything and there's reportedly no innings limit on the LSU product this year. His ERA+ was an outrageous 214 last year, a number topped by only four active players in full seasons. Skenes has multiple unhittable pitches, generates whiffs and avoids walks. If he can stay healthy, he's the best pitcher in the league for the next decade.

Jared Jones is pretty clearly the one with the second-biggest upside now. Keller has failed to develop a second above-average pitch, and it shows in his ERA and K rate. Jones hasn't been a full-time pitcher for very long and prospect lists never loved him like Skenes and Keller. His fastball velocity is elite though, and his slider was good enough to generate very strong whiff rates in 2024.

The rest of the rotation will be pretty sub-par. Bailey Falter is a soft tosser that isn't very exciting and the fifth starter could be any number of players. Skenes' excellence and the upside of Jones carry the Pirates to the top spot despite the weakness behind them.

Schedule