There are only two significant changes in our updated pitching rankings -- young starters Matt Moore of the Rays and Cory Luebke of the Padres jumped 18 and 24 spots, respectively.

Moore was ranked by Baseball America as the game's No. 2 prospect entering 2012, and all he has done in his minor-league career is post a 2.64 ERA and a ridiculous 700 strikeouts in 497 1/3 innings (12.7 Ks per nine innings). He fanned 15 in 9 1/3 innings in three appearances with the Rays as a rookie in 2011, and, assuming he remains a part of Tampa's deep starting rotation when the regular season starts, he should be considered a No. 4 fantasy starter.

Luebke, meanwhile, was a reliever in 29 of 46 games with the Padres as a rookie in 2011. Once he was moved into the rotation, he had a 3.31 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and struck out 9.9 batters per nine innings. He's a low-end No. 4 starter in a 12-team league, with his value aided by the Petco Park factor.

Without further delay, our starting pitcher and closer rankings. We'll be back later in the week with our updated top 100 overall. We encourage you to wait with bated breath.

STARTING PITCHERS
Rank, player, team IP, W-L, ERA, BB, K
1. Justin Verlander, Tigers 251, 24-5, 2.40, 57, 250
2. Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers 233.1, 21-5, 2.28, 54, 248
3. Roy Halladay, Phillies 233.2, 19-6, 2.35, 35, 220
4. Cliff Lee, Phillies 232.2, 17-8, 2.40, 42, 238
5. Tim Lincecum, Giants 217, 13-14, 2.74, 86, 220
6. Jered Weaver, Angels 235.2, 18-8, 2.41, 56, 198
7. CC Sabathia, Yankees 237.1, 19-8, 3.00, 61, 230
8. Felix Hernandez, Mariners 233.2, 14-14, 3.47, 67, 222
9. Cole Hamels, Phillies 216, 14-9, 2.79, 44, 194
10. Ian Kennedy, Diamondbacks 222, 21-4, 2.88, 55, 198
11. David Price, Rays 224.1, 12-13, 3.49, 63, 218
12. Dan Haren, Diamondbacks 238.1, 16-10, 3.17, 33, 192
13. James Shields, Rays 249.1, 16-12, 2.82, 65, 225
14. Jon Lester, Red Sox 191.2, 15-9, 3.47, 75, 182
15. Stephen Strasburg, Nationals 24, 1-1, 1.50, 2, 24
16. Zack Greinke, Brewers 171.2, 16-6, 3.83, 45, 201
17. C.J. Wilson, Angels 223.1, 16-7, 2.94, 74, 206
18. Yovani Gallardo, Brewers 207.1, 17-10, 3.52, 59, 207
19. Madison Bumgarner, Giants 204.2, 13-13, 3.21, 46, 191
20. Tommy Hanson, Braves 130, 11-7, 3.60, 46, 142
21. Michael Pineda, Yankees 171, 9-10, 3.74, 55, 173
22. Josh Beckett, Red Sox 193, 13-7, 2.89, 52, 175
23. Chris Carpenter, Cardinals 237.1, 11-9, 3.45, 55, 191
24. Matt Cain, Giants 222.1, 12-11, 2.88, 63, 179
25. Josh Johnson, Marlins 60.1, 3-1, 1.64, 20, 56
26. Ricky Romero, Blue Jays 225, 15-11, 2.92, 80, 178
27. Adam Wainwright, Cardinals DNP
28. Gio Gonzalez, Nationals 202, 16-12, 3.12, 91, 197
29. Mat Latos, Reds 194.1, 9-14, 3.47, 62, 185
30. x-Yu Darvish, Rangers 232, 18-6, 1.44, 36, 276
31. Daniel Hudson, Diamondbacks 222, 16-12, 3.49, 50, 169
32. Jeremy Hellickson, Rays 189, 13-10, 2.95, 72, 117
33. Ubaldo Jimenez, Indians 188.1, 10-13, 4.68, 78, 180
34. Justin Masterson, Indians 216, 12-10, 3.21, 65, 158
35. Tim Hudson, Braves 215, 16-10, 3.22, 56, 158
36. Matt Garza, Cubs 198, 10-10, 3.32, 63, 197
37. Brandon Beachy, Braves 141.2, 7-3, 3.68, 46, 169
38. Clay Buchholz, Red Sox 82.2, 6-3, 3.48, 31, 60
39. Ervin Santana, Angels 228.2, 11-12, 3.38, 72, 178
40. Matt Moore, Rays 10, 1-0, 0.90, 3, 8
41. Jair Jurrjens, Braves 152, 13-6, 2.96, 44, 90
42. Trevor Cahill, Diamondbacks 207.2, 12-14, 4.16, 82, 147
43. Max Scherzer, Tigers 195, 15-9, 4.43, 56, 174
44. Brandon Morrow, Blue Jays 179.1, 11-11, 4.72, 69, 203
45. Jaime Garcia, Cardinals 194.2, 13-7, 3.56, 50, 156
46. Derek Holland, Rangers 198, 16-5, 3.95, 67, 162
47. Cory Luebke, Padres 139.2, 6-10, 3.29, 44, 154
48. Johnny Cueto, Reds 156, 9-5, 2.31, 47, 104
49. Doug Fister, Tigers 216.1, 11-13, 2.83, 37, 146
50. Anibal Sanchez, Marlins 196.1, 8-9, 3.67, 64, 202
51. Neftali Feliz, Rangers 62.1, 2-3, 2.74, 30, 54
52. Shaun Marcum, Brewers 200.2, 13-7, 3.56, 50, 156
53. Colby Lewis, Rangers 200.1, 14-10, 4.40, 56, 169
54. Francisco Liriano, Twins 134.1, 9-10, 5.09, 75, 112
55. Chad Billingsley, Dodgers 188, 11-11, 4.21, 84, 152
56. Wandy Rodriguez, Astros 191, 11-11, 3.49, 69, 166
57. Jordan Zimmermann, Nationals 161.1, 8-11, 3.18, 31, 124
58. Vance Worley, Phillies 131.2, 11-3, 3.01, 46, 119
59. Jhoulys Chacin, Rockies 194, 11-14, 3.62, 87, 150
60. Ivan Nova, Yankees 165.1, 16-4, 3.70, 57, 98
61. Ryan Vogelsong, Giants 179.2, 13-7, 2.71, 61, 139
62. Hiroki Kuroda, Yankees 202, 13-16, 3.07, 49, 161
63. Scott Baker, Twins 134.2, 8-6, 3.14, 32, 123
64. John Danks, White Sox 170.1, 8-12, 4.33, 46, 135
65. Ryan Dempster, Cubs 202.1, 10-14, 3.80, 82, 191
66. Mike Minor, Braves 82.2, 5-3, 4.14, 30, 77
67. Jonathan Sanchez, Royals 101.1, 4-7, 4.26, 66, 102
68. Phil Hughes, Yankees 74.2, 5-5, 5.79, 27, 47
69. Ricky Nolasco, Marlins 206, 10-12, 4.67, 44, 148
70. Gavin Floyd, White Sox 193.2, 12-13, 4.37, 45, 151
71. Matt Harrison, Rangers 185.2, 14-9, 3.39, 57, 126
72. Bud Norris, Astros 186, 6-11, 3.77, 70, 176
73. Josh Collmenter, Diamondbacks 154.1, 10-10, 3.38, 28, 100
74. Johan Santana, Mets 199, 11-9, 2.98, 55, 144
75. Chris Sale, White Sox 71, 2-2, 2.79, 27, 79
76. Mark Buehrle, Marlins 205.1, 13-9, 3.59, 45, 109
77. Ted Lilly, Dodgers 192.2, 12-14, 3.97, 51, 158
78. Brandon McCarthy, Athletics 170.2, 9-9, 3.32, 25, 123
79. Tim Stauffer, Padres 185.2, 9-12, 3.73, 53, 128
80. Roy Oswalt, free agent 139, 9-10, 3.69, 33, 93
x-Stats with the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan

CLOSERS
Rank, player, team IP, W-L, ERA, K, SV-Opp
1. Craig Kimbrel, Braves 77, 4-3, 2.10, 127, 46-54
2. Jonathan Papelbon, Phillies 64.1, 4-1, 2.94, 87, 31-34
3. John Axford, Brewers 73.2, 2-2, 1.95, 86, 46-48
4. Mariano Rivera, Yankees 61.1, 1-2, 1.91, 60, 44-49
5. Drew Storen, Nationals 75.1, 6-3, 2.75, 74, 43-48
6. Brian Wilson, Giants 55, 6-4, 3.11, 54, 36-41
7. Heath Bell, Marlins 62.2, 3-4, 2.44, 51, 43-48
8. J.J. Putz, Diamondbacks 58, 2-2, 2.17, 61, 45-49
9. Jose Valverde, Tigers 72.1, 2-4, 2.24, 69, 49-49
10. Joakim Soria, Royals 60.1, 5-5, 4.03, 60, 28-35
11. Ryan Madson, Reds 60.2, 4-2, 2.37, 62, 32-34
12. Joel Hanrahan, Pirates 68.2, 1-4, 1.83, 61, 40-44
13. Andrew Bailey, Red Sox 41.2, 0-4, 3.24, 41, 24-26
14. Jason Motte, Cardinals 68, 5-2, 2.25, 63, 9-13
15. Sergio Santos, Blue Jays 63.1, 4-5, 3.55, 92, 30-36
16. Carlos Marmol, Cubs 74, 2-6, 4.01, 99, 34-44
17. Jordan Walden, Angels 60.1, 5-5, 2.98, 26, 67, 32-42
18. Joe Nathan, Rangers 44.2, 2-1, 4.84, 43, 14-17
19. Chris Perez, Indians 59.2, 4-7, 3.32, 39, 36-40
20. Huston Street, Padres 58.1, 1-4, 3.86, 55, 29-33

UPDATED RANKINGS: Batters

EARLY POSITION RANKINGS:  Catchers, first basemen, second basemen, shortstops, third basemen, designated hitters, outfielders, starting pitchers, closers, top 100 overall

Adrian Peterson is banged up, Chris Johnson is back to not being Chris Johnson, Kevin Smith is a star two weeks after getting picked up as a street free agent ... Just another week in fantasy football.

As always, the waiver-wire picks include players who are available in more than half of the leagues on ESPN.com. This week's batch can be had in more than 61 percent of the ESPN formats.

1. Kevin Smith, RB, Lions (owned in 0.8 percent of the ESPN leagues): In his second game since the Lions signed him out of desperation, Smith had 16 carries for 140 yards and two touchdowns, and he caught four passes for 61 yards and another score. Backfield mate Maurice Morris had only eight touches against Carolina, so there is a pretty clear chain of command with Jahvid Best out because of a concussion.

Thursday will be the fifth consecutive game Best has missed, and at this point we shouldn't be surprised if he doesn't play again this season. That makes Smith much more valuable than, say, Toby Gerhart, since there is an opportunity to acquire a player who will start the rest of the season.

Thursday's opponent, the Packers, rank 12th against the run and have allowed only six TDs on the ground -- mostly because they struggle to stop the pass, and many teams have to throw against them after they get down 14 points. That makes Smith a somewhat risky play this week, but he is a decent flex option.

In Weeks 13 and 14, Detroit will face the league's Nos. 19 and 9 run defenses in the Saints and Vikings, followed by favorable matchups in Week 15 (at the Raiders, No. 25 vs. the run) and 16 (vs. the Chargers, No. 23).

2. Toby Gerhart, RB, Vikings (owned in 1.7 percent of the ESPN leagues): Gerhart rushed for 18 yards on seven carries and caught one pass for 7 yards last week, when Peterson was sidelined for the majority of a loss to the Raiders because of an ankle injury. The latter hasn't been ruled out this week, but considering it's the dreaded high ankle sprain, we doubt the 2-8 Vikings will risk having their best player on the field with a bum wheel.

Sunday, Minnesota will play at Atlanta, which owns the league's No. 2 run defense and has given up only six TDs on the ground. All of which makes Gerhart much more ideally suited to be a flex play at best. If you own Peterson, though, you might not have that luxury and will be forced to play Gerhart as one of your two running backs.

3. Matt Moore, QB, Dolphins (owned in 2.8 percent of the ESPN leagues): He has had three touchdown passes in two of Miami's last three games. In that span, Moore has thrown for 613 yards with six TDs and one interception. More importantly, the Dolphins are 3-0 -- thus eliminating themselves from the Andrew Luck sweepstakes.

In the next six weeks, Moore has three very favorable matchups: Week 13 vs. the Raiders (No. 20 vs. the pass), Week 15 at the Bills (No. 24) and Week 16 at the Patriots(No. 32). Thursday's foe, Dallas, is No. 13 against the pass.

If you lost Jay Cutler for the season or you just need a QB, Moore can be an immediate starter.

4. Joe McKnight, RB, Jets (owned in 1.0 percent of the ESPN leagues): With Shonn Greene missing most of last Thursday's loss to the Tim Tebow-powered Broncos because of an injury to his ribs, McKnight was a dual threat. He had 59 yards on 16 carries and caught six passes for 62 yards. His 22 touches were 41 fewer than his total from his first 18 NFL games.

Greene is expected to play this week, but LaDainian Tomlinson could be out a second consecutive game because of a knee ailment. If both are out, McKnight is a must-start against the Bills, who rank 20th against the run and have yielded 12 rushing TDs. If Greene plays, McKnight's value is obviously limited, but he could still receive flex-play consideration in point-per-reception leagues.

5. Earl Bennett, WR, Bears (owned in 38.4 percent of the ESPN leagues): The good news is he has 14 receptions for 251 yards and a TD in his last three games. The bad news is he had become Cutler's favorite target, and now he will be catching passes from Caleb Hanie.

It's too bad, too, because the Bears will play Sunday at Oakland (No. 20 vs. the pass) and have games remaining against the Chiefs (Week 13, No. 14 vs. the pass), Broncos (Week 14, No. 21), Seahawks (Week 15, No. 15) and Packers (Week 16, No. 31).

Cutler's absence means Bennett should be viewed as a No. 4 fantasy receiver, not a No. 3. But you could start him and hope Hanie plays much better than his reputation against a suspect schedule.

Past waiver-wire picks who remain undervalued: Chris Ogbonnaya, RB, Browns (owned in 15.9 percent of the ESPN leagues); Donald Brown, RB, Colts (6.7 percent); Torrey Smith, WR, Ravens (43.8); Jabar Gaffney, WR, Redskins (25.5); Nate Burleson, WR, Lions (15.7); Greg Little, WR, Browns (10.3); Jerome Simpson, WR, Bengals (32.8); Early Doucet, WR, Cardinals (21.2); Brent Celek, TE, Eagles (18.2); Heath Miller, TE, Steelers (34.1).