5 Best Strikeout Futures Bets for MLB 2026 That Could Cash Big

Spring training is underway as the pitchers and catchers got to their respective fields last week, and the rest of the rosters are reporting today. That means futures boards are live, and the strikeout leader market is already drawing tons of attention.

Sure, the odds are tight at the top, which makes sense, but the names we’re seeing up there are not flukes. These are Cy Young winners, finalists, and power arms who not only thrive in the strike zone but also live in it.

Here are the 5 best bets to lead MLB in strikeouts in 2026, based on current odds and what we saw coming out of the 2025 season.

Tarik Skubal — The Back-To-Back Cy Young Lefty

• Odds: +350

Tarik Skubal at +350 is the betting favorite for a reason, and almost nobody is questioning this.

In 2025, he struck out 241 hitters across 195.1 innings, all while posting a 2.21 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. His strikeout-to-walk ratio was 11.1, putting him in the top 3. Those are video game numbers. He led qualified AL pitchers in a few categories and won his second straight AL Cy Young Award.

Back-to-back Cy Young winners do not simply just fade away. Skubal has turned into one of the most efficient power pitchers in baseball, and coming into the final year of his contract, he does not just rack up strikeouts. He works deep into games. That is key for this market because we all know that volume matters.

In 2024, he threw 192 innings and struck out 228 earning him the Triple Crown and the Cy Young. In 2025, he bumped that to 241 Ks. His career ERA now sits at 3.08, but his last 2 seasons have been on another level.

Detroit’s situation also helps this lefty. The Tigers undoubtedly rely on him as their ace, and he is not in a 6-man rotation. He is not being babied, and he’s in full bloom. If the team stays competitive, he will keep taking the ball every 5th day.

The only real concern we see here is his price. +350 is very short. You are paying for elite performance and recent awards, but if you believe 240+ strikeouts is his new baseline, which it very well could be, he has a clear path to leading the league again.

Sometimes the favorite is the favorite for a reason, and you just have to take the price at what it is.

Paul Skenes — The Generational Arm With 300-K Upside

• Odds: +400

If Skubal is the safe elite bet, Paul Skenes is the nuclear option that will keep this competitive.

At +400, you are getting the reigning NL Cy Young winner. In 2025, Skenes posted a dominant 1.97 ERA over 187.2 innings with 216 Ks in that span, all while his WHIP was 0.95.

And let’s not forget that he is only 23.

Skenes already won the NL Rookie of the Year in 2024 and then followed it up with a unanimous Cy Young. His career line through 2 seasons — 320.2 innings, 386 strikeouts, 1.96 ERA. That already feels like consistency.

The strikeout rate is real. He averages 10+ K/9 across his young career, and it’s that kind of swing-and-miss profile that threatens 260-280 strikeouts if the innings jump.

That is the key question surrounding this phenom.

In 2025, he threw 187.2 innings, and if Pittsburgh lets him push past 200 in 2026, the strikeout ceiling jumps. A move from 187 innings to 205 or 210 could mean another 30 Ks without changing anything else.

He also pitches in the NL, which often helps in strikeout totals, depending on division matchups. The Pirates may not be a powerhouse like some of the other teams, but that does not hurt their strikeout chances. This market is about Ks, not wins.

If you want the pitcher who is most likely to post a monster 260+ K season, Skenes is your guy. At +400, you are betting on a young ace that hasn’t even hit his potential yet, and that is a scary thought for the rest of the league.

Garrett Crochet — Boston’s Ace With A Rising K Profile

• Odds: +500

Garrett Crochet at +500 feels like a strong value bet before the season even kicks off.

He struck out 255 hitters in 2025 over 205.1 innings. That was the 2nd highest total in baseball just behind Logan Webb who had 207.0. He finished with a 2.59 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP, and he also finished as a Cy Young runner-up.

Crochet had been more of a high-upside arm earlier in his career. In 2024, he threw just 146 frames with 209 Ks. In 2025, he cleared 200 innings and maintained elite swing-and-miss stuff.

Boston rewarded him with a long-term extension before the season, which signals trust as the ace. He is not on a leash — he is their guy for the long haul.

The Red Sox are also projected to be competitive in 2026 which only helps to keep him on a normal rotation schedule. No shutdowns and no weird workload management in September.

His career strikeout rate is strong, and now the volume is there. A pitcher who strikes out 255 hitters in one season does not need a massive leap to lead the league. He just needs the other stars to dip slightly and he could run away with it.

At +500, you are getting someone who already showed he can cross 250+ Ks, and it’s that number that often wins this market.

Hunter Greene — The Wild Card With Elite Velocity\

• Odds: +800

Hunter Greene sits at +800, and he might be the most volatile name on our list.

Last season, he struck out 132 hitters over the span of 107.2 innings while injuries limited him to just 19 starts. Despite this, his ERA was 2.76, and his WHIP was 0.94, which means when he was on the mound, he was effective.

For his career, he has 617 Ks in 495.2 innings, which is a really strong strikeout rate. His fastball still sits near the top of the league in velocity.

The issue for him has always been health and consistency.

In 2024, he threw 150.1 innings and struck out 169. That gives us a better sense of his full-season pace. If he pushes past 170 or 180 innings in 2026, which he could, the strikeout total could climb into the 210 to 220 range.

Cincinnati trusts him in big spots as he has been their Game 1-type arm when healthy. That role means he is not getting skipped often, but the catch is that he has to stay healthy.

At +800, you are betting on a full, healthy season. If that happens, his raw stuff is good enough to compete with anyone on this list. He might not have the same command as Skubal or the polish of Skenes, but pure velocity and strikeout ability are there.

Dylan Cease (+1400): The Longshot With A Track Record

• Odds: +1400

If you want a bigger payout, Dylan Cease at +1400 is pretty solid.

Cease has now recorded 5 straight 200+ strikeout seasons. That kind of consistency matters in a futures market where every strikeout counts. In 2025, he struck out 215 hitters in 168.1 innings, and his ERA was 4.55, which will scare some bettors away, but this bet is about strikeouts, not run prevention.

For his career, he has 1,231 strikeouts in 1,015.1 innings, and what that really tells us is that he has elite swing-and-miss stuff over a long sample.

He also signed a major free-agent deal with the Toronto Blue Jays this offseason. A fresh setting can help, especially with a team that made it to the World Series and lost in Game 7. A competitive team like that should let him take the ball every 5th day without any hesitation.

His strikeout per nine innings has stayed high even when his ERA fluctuates, which is key because it means that even in down years, he misses bats.

At 30 years old, he is clearly in his prime. He may not have the Cy Young shine of Skubal or Skenes, but he has a history of piling up Ks. If he reaches 190 to 200 innings again, 230 to 240 strikeouts is realistic.

At +1400, you are really betting on volume and durability. He’s a bit further out from the rest of the pack, but we like the price, and he’s definitely not out of the running.

Balancing Price And Ceiling

If you want the safest path, Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes make the most sense, and it’s easy to see why. They just won Cy Young Awards, and their K rates and workloads are elite.

If you want a blend of value and recent production, then Garrett Crochet at +500 isn’t a bad bet as he already showed he can pass 250+ strikeouts in a full season.

If you want bigger payouts and willing to take a little more risk, Dylan Cease and Hunter Greene offer that. Cease brings consistency and Greene brings raw upside.

Strikeout leader futures are about 3 things — health, innings, and swing-and-miss stuff. All 5 of these pitchers check at least 2 of those boxes and a couple check all 3.

With spring training underway and workloads ramping up, now is the time to decide which arm you trust to sit atop the strikeout leaderboard when 2026 ends.