Fantasy Shortstop Rankings

The position of shortstop in fantasy baseball is a lot like the kicker in fantasy football. There are a few who will genuinely help you, but in comprising the list, I was pretty horrified at the lack of available talent. If you do not have one within the first few rounds, you should hope for someone to slip for some reason (like Jose Reyes) or just grab a filler late. If you can grab even a one category filler, like an Andrus or potentially Alcides Escobar late, that has to be considered a moderate success for the position.

Name	Tom	Alex	Overall
Troy Tulowitzki	1	1	1
Hanley Ramirez	2	2	2
Derek Jeter	4	5	3
Jose Reyes	9	3	4
Alexei Ramirez	6	6	5
Jimmy Rollins	5	8	6
Stephen Drew	7	7	7
Juan Uribe	3	15	8
Elvis Andrus	16	4	9
Rafael Furcal	10	11	10
Alex Gonzalez	11	12	11
Ian Desmond	17	10	12
Starlin Castro	19	9	13
Miguel Tejada	8	21	14
Jason Bartlett	12	14	15
Yunel Escobar	15	16	16
Marco Scutaro	13	22	17
Alcides Escobar	23	13	18
Jhonny Peralta	14	23	19
Omar Infante	18	17	20
Mike Aviles	20	18	21
Cliff Pennington	21	19	22
Asdrubal Cabrera	22	20	23

2011 Second Base Rankings

Second base is pretty similar to catcher, as it features a pretty talented set of players early, but ultimately the depth is probably even worse. Grabbing one of the top 8 players is ideal, but if they are gone early, it might be best to wait and grab a potential reclamation project like Jose Lopez (welcome to Coors Field), or Chone Figgins. Aaron Hill is another intriguing option, especially if he is available late, due to his power potential.

Name	Tom	Alex	Overall
Robinson Cano	2	1	1
Dan Uggla	1	3	2
Chase Utley	3	2	3
Rickie Weeks	4	4	4
Dustin Pedroia	5	5	5
Ian Kinsler	6	6	6
Brandon Phillips	7	7	7
Brian Roberts	8	9	8
Martin Prado	9	12	9
Aaron Hill	13	8	10
Kelly Johnson	11	10	11
Ben Zobrist	12	11	12
Chone Figgins	10	15	13
Howie Kendrick	14	14	14
Gordon Beckham	16	13	15
Jose Lopez	17	16	16
Orlando Hudson	15	21	17
Reid Brignac	21	17	18
Neil Walker	19	19	19
Jeff Keppinger	18	22	20
Clint Barmes	22	18	21
Ryan Theriot	20	23	22
Jayson Nix	23	20	23

2011 First Base Rankings

2011 is no exception to the rule when it comes to first basemen: quality players are extremely plentiful. There is a tremendous amount of 5x5 production to be had here, with three reigning MVP candidates (Pujols, Votto, Cabrera) fronting the list. Throw in some established studs in new, hitter friendly parks (Dunn and Gonzalez), along with a bevy of other standout performers. All told, landing a top 12 first baseman probably guarantees at least average production for the position, with the potential for even more. Keep an eye on guys like Kevin Youkilis and Justin Morneau, who could fall due to injury concerns, but are still elite hitters playing in good lineups and could give you great middle round value.

Name	Tom	Alex	Overall
Albert Pujols	1	1	1
Joey Votto	2	3	2
Miguel Cabrera	3	2	2
Prince Fielder	5	5	4
Adrian Gonzalez	6	4	5
Adam Dunn	4	7	6
Mark Teixeira	7	6	7
Ryan Howard	8	8	8
Paul Konerko	9	11	9
Justin Morneau	10	10	10
Kevin Youkilis	11	12	11
Kendry Morales	13	9	11
Carlos Pena	12	14	13
Aubrey Huff	17	13	14
Buster Posey	14	17	15
Derrek Lee	18	15	16
Adam Laroche	16	18	17
Mike Napoli	15	21	18
Victor Martinez	21	16	19
Michael Cuddyer	19	20	20
Billy Butler	22	19	21
Lance Berkman	20	22	22

2011 Catcher Rankings

This is the deepest the catcher spot has been at any time in recent years, with potential for elite production from as many as 6 players, given the emergence of Buster Posey and Carlos Santana in 2010. If Jorge Posada can stay healthy as a full time DH, the top 7 on this list will all be extremely valuable as starters in all leagues in 2011. Once you get past those guys, if you are willing to sacrifice some certainty for potential, your best bet is probably Matt Wieters, and as far as late round fliers go, Russell Martin could pick up a bunch of R/RBI/SB from the bottom of a stacked Yankees lineup.

Name	Tom	Alex	Overall
Joe Mauer	1	1	1
Buster Posey	2	3	2
Victor Martinez	5	2	3
Brian McCann	4	4	4
Mike Napoli	3	6	5
Carlos Santana	6	5	6
Jorge Posada	7	7	7
Kurt Suzuki	9	8	8
Miguel Olivo	8	12	9
Matt Wieters	10	10	10
Geovany Soto	12	9	11
A. J. Pierzynski	11	14	12
John Buck	14	11	13
Rod Barajas	15	16	14
John Jaso	13	20	15
Carlos Ruiz	20	13	16
Miguel Montero	16	19	17
Ramon Hernandez	21	15	18
Yadier Molina	19	17	19
Russell Martin	17	21	20
Chris Iannetta	18	22	21
Ryan Doumit	22	18	22