Opening Week
Mar 25–29, 2026

Garth W opens with Skubal and Yamamoto at the top of his rotation, which is genuinely elite, and it shows in the ERA and WHIP edges. The problem is he only has three active starters, which puts him at a volume disadvantage in K and QS. The lineup is the bigger issue: low-OBP bats up and down the order, and against a Buckner lineup that grinds out at-bats like a second job, that gap becomes a rout.

Michael fields arguably the best lineup in the league on opening week. Tucker, Henderson, Seager, Bregman, Rutschman, five-deep rotation including Sale and Valdez. Ketel Marte is day-to-day with a lower leg issue, but this lineup does not need Marte to win OBP by 91 percentage points. Devin Williams anchors a bullpen that edges One Ball in SV despite Bednar and Jansen on the other side.

TylerV assembled a legitimate contender. Judge, Trout, Ohtani on the mound, Cole Ragans, Castillo, Jhoan Duran. Real star power at every position. The OBP and HR edges reflect an offense that projects well on contact quality, and the rotation has both volume and strikeout upside. They do leak SB and QS, which is exactly where Rain City will try to steal points.

Rain City has the most rotation depth in the league: Skenes, deGrom, Imanaga, Sasaki, Flaherty, Burrows. Six starters. The problem is their pen is two guys deep with zero closers, which hands SV straight to Ragans before the first pitch. Lindor is day-to-day with a hand injury, and Lodolo, Wheeler, and Merrill Kelly are already IL-stashed. Taylor is starting Week 1 without a single save option.

Mario has real offensive pop. Acuna Jr. is back and running, James Wood is one of the best young hitters in baseball, and Mason Miller plus Ryan Helsley is two of the best closers on the board. The issue is rotation depth. With Snell and Cole both IL15, Donovan is running four active starters. That hands K and QS to Ete Crow before the week starts.

Jace Allison is the defending league champ and his Week 1 roster looks the part. Guerrero Jr., Elly De La Cruz, Chourio, PCA. Josh Hader is IL with a biceps issue, which dents the SV outlook, but Iglesias and Estevez are both legitimate closers and the simulation still gives Ete Crow the SV edge. Five-deep rotation gives them the K and QS volume to separate from a Donovan team short on starters.

Michael's Good Vibes Only team has the best pure hitting lineup in the league: Harper, Mookie Betts, Julio Rodriguez, Alonso, Rooker, Altuve. The RBI and K edges are real. The problem is three of his best pitchers, Burnes, Hunter Greene, and Schwellenbach, are all on the 60-day IL before the season begins. Five active starters including Crochet and Cease is fine, but if one more arm goes down this team has a crisis.

Rose drafted bat-only Shohei Ohtani as her Util slot and it is a cheat code for OBP and run production. Adames, Carroll, Chisholm, and Arozarena all run, which explains the SB edge. Strider and Bryce Miller are both IL15 with oblique issues so the rotation thins out fast, but Edwin Diaz, Jax, and Sewald give her a legitimate pen edge in a matchup where GVO's closer depth is roughly equal.

Duke Joe loaded up on strikeout arms. Peralta, Sanchez, Fried, Abbott, Williams, Rasmussen are all K-first pitchers. The 69% K edge is the clearest advantage on Keanu's roster. The lineup has Soto and Schwarber at the top, which is elite, but the middle of the order thins out and the SB game is basically nonexistent. Chapman and Fairbanks are quality closers but they get outgunned by a four-headed Alvarez bullpen.

TylerR took a 10th-place finish in 2025 personally and built a squad with legitimate depth. Freeman, Alvarez, Witt Jr., Devers, Cruz, Semien is a top-three lineup in this league. Munoz, Pagan, Abreu, Uribe gives him the deepest bullpen on the board, which is the clearest differentiator in this matchup. Westburg and Holliday are both IL10 but both are backfill depth rather than lineup anchors.