Best Pitchers in MLB the Show 24 Season 2

In MLB The Show 24, starting pitching has felt like it’s behind hitting all year. This is even more true with the launch of Season 2, meaning all those 99 overall pitchers you earned are back to the bench in Ranked Seasons. Still, there are some good options early in Season 2 for you to use.

We won’t be including any Live Series cards on this list. They can all be used in Season 2, and will be some of the best options early on. However, this list is focused on Season 2 cards only.

Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays, 95 Overall

Most of the best Season 2 cards thus far are behind pack paywalls, but the late, great Doc Halladay can be unlocked by earning XP in Season 2. The 99 overall Halladay is better, without a doubt. The problem is that no one has earned it yet, so we’re going with this card. Halladay’s 95 overall card can be unlocked when you earn 420,000 XP in Season 2. If you’re REALLY grinding, you’re probably almost there.

Although Halladay is a 95 overall starting pitcher, the rating is a little deceptive. With a Hits/9 of 82, there is going to be some good contact off of him. What makes Halladay elite is the pitch mix. He features a cutter and sinker as his top two pitches, so you should be able to keep hitters off balance if you approach at-bats correctly. With the Break Outlier quirk, Halladay will keep his nasty stuff even when he starts to tire.

Charlie Morton, Atlanta Braves, 92 Overall

The newest Codename pack in the store has a couple of pitchers that will play well early in Season 2. Unfortunately, Morton’s Incognito card continues a trend where many of the best players available are behind paywalls. With a 92 Hits/9 rating and a really strong pitch mix, Morton should be an effective option for many rosters.

If you want Charlie Morton’s Incognito card, you’ll need to spend 40,000 stubs for a chance to pull him in the Codename pack. If you want to be sure you get him, expect to spend slightly over 40,000 stubs in the marketplace.

Mike Mussina, Baltimore Orioles, 91 Overall

There’s a trend on this list. Pitchers with a sinker-cutter combo in their arsenal can overcome lower Hits/9 ratings to still be really effective. Mussina is another example of this. He has low Hits/9 and K/9 at 86 and 76 respectively, but you can use his great variety of movement and speed to keep the contact pretty weak.

If you’re willing to grind Battle Royale, you won’t even need to spend any stubs to get Mussina. Either complete a 10-0 run in Battle Royale or earn 100 BR points in the Battle Royale program. If you’re too late to do that or just don’t want to, you can still get Mussina for around 60,000 stubs in the marketplace.

Hunter Brown, Houston Astros, 90 Overall

Hunter Brown’s Season Awards card features a really strong Hits/9 rating and a decent pitch mix. It’s somewhat offset by fairly low stamina for a starter and poor control, though. Be ready to be effective but also run up a high pitch count early.

Unfortunately, Brown is also behind a paywall as part of the Season Awards Drop 2 pack. With that pack now expired, you can either take your chances in the Vault pack for 35,000 stubs or purchase Brown’s card in the marketplace. If you choose the latter, expect to spend about 50,000 stubs until the power creep moves up more in Season 2.

Juan Marichal, San Francisco Giants, 91 Overall

Marichal is an affordable option for players looking to round out their rotation. If he’s your best starter, Ranked Seasons might be a rough go for a bit, but you should feel okay about slotting him into the middle to end of the rotation. His Hits/9 is alright at 87, and with a curveball, screwball, and changeup, Juan Marichal is an excellent choice for players who love to mix up speeds a lot.

He was a Headliners player, but the only way to get the Marichal Standout series card now is in the marketplace. Still, it’s pretty affordable — you’ll only have to spend about 7,000 stubs to get him.

Luis Castillo, Seattle Mariners, 88 Overall

Luis Castillo isn’t on this list because of his attributes. They’re okay, and won’t really hurt you, but the real incentive to the Captain card are the boosts Castillo offers. If you select Castillo as your Season 2 captain, he will boost any Live Series player on your active roster.

If you’ve completed the Live Series collection, this Cornerstone Captain choice is essentially a no-brainer. The boost Castillo gives cards like Yordan Alvarez, Corey Seager, and others is insane once you get to the Tier 3 boost. The Castillo Cornerstone Captain won’t cost you anything, either. Just select or exchange for him to use as your Season 2 Cornerstone Captain.