X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

2016 Fantasy Baseball Tiered Shortstop Rankings (March)

Welcome to our final round of rankings. We've been guiding you throughout the offseason and it has all culminated to this. These rankings will be your guide in fantasy drafts, and while they shouldn't be seen as an end-all, be-all assessment, it's wise to have an understanding of where the market values the players you seek.

This round of rankings features seven of our experts. They are Brad Johnson, Max Petrie, Kyle Bishop, Nick Miriano, Harris Yudin (me), Jeff Kahntroff and Bill Dubiel. Here, we will take a look at shortstops. Assume a standard 5x5 redraft league when reading.

Editor's note: Just in case you've been living under a rock, be sure to also check out our 2016 fantasy baseball rankings dashboard. It's already loaded up with tons of great rankings articles and draft analysis. Aside from our tiered staff rankings for every position, we also go deep on MLB prospect rankings, impact rookies for 2016, and dynasty/keeper rankings as well. Bookmark the page, and win your drafts.

 

2016 Fantasy Baseball Rankings Analysis: Shortstop (SS)

Tier One

Look, it's Carlos Correa all by himself. How lonely.

In a full, 162-game season, that equates to 633 AB, 36 HR, 23 SB, 111 RBI and 85 R to go along with a .279/.345/512 slash line. If you're thinking that a 35/20 season is pretty remarkable, you're right-- over the last three seasons, only Manny Machado (exactly 35 HR and 20 SB in 2015) has accomplished that feat, and it's only been done eight times over the last 10 seasons. The last player to accomplish it while manning one of the middle infield spots was Alfonso Soriano in 2005. No player in the history of Major League Baseball has ever gone 35/20 in his rookie season. Now, Correa didn't do it, but even just being on pace for such a stat line speaks to his potential as a superstar.

Even in the event of a regression, which is not uncommon for second-year players, Correa, who will be 21 pretty much all season, would still be pretty far ahead of his fellow shortstops. Troy Tulowitzki, a near unanimous No. 2, would have made the cut for the top tier if it weren't for Brad ranking him fourth.

Tier Two

Joining Tulowitzki in the second tier are youngsters Francisco Lindor, Corey Seager and Xander Bogaerts, as well as veteran Ian Desmond. Tulowitzki is a proven slugger with the best offense in baseball around him but a severe injury history-- he hasn't played 130 games since 2011.

As far as Lindor, Seager and Bogaerts go, they all have incredible upside and can contribute in at least four of the five major categories. We all ranked them somewhere between No. 2 and No. 6, with each player being ahead of the other two on at least one person's list. Personal preference will have to come into play here.

Desmond had a down 2015 season by his standards, but most shortstops will never sniff 19 HR in their best year. He has 88 HR and 79 SB over the last four years, and should benefit from a change in scenery (he will be playing left field for the Rangers). At age 30, his counting stats still hold a lot of value-- enough to reach No. 3 in Nick's rankings.

Tier Three

The major change here is the loss of Jhonny Peralta, who will be sidelined for at least a couple of months following surgery on his left thumb. This allowed Jung-ho Kang and Addison Russell to slide up in the overall rankings.

Kang was absolutely raking at the time of his knee injury in September-- .310/.364/.548 with 11 HR and five stolen bases in the second half of the season. He finished with 15 bombs in just 126 games, and could be in line for more than 20 in 2016. At his more natural position of shortstop, Russell produced at the plate in 2015. After making the move from second base, he hit .259/.315/.465 with eight homers, 29 R and 29 RBI in 185 AB. He also just became more comfortable as his rookie season went on. Post All-Star break, he slashed .259/.318/.427 with eight homers and 32 RBI. With added experience, Russell should develop into a very strong offensive shortstop in 2016. Brandon Crawford actually fell from No. 7 to No. 9 after four of the seven rankers dropped him down on their lists. I am expecting Crawford to regress from his 21-HR season, but should still manage 15 long-balls with a solid on-base percentage.

Tier Four

Tier four is home to several popular sleeper picks. Eugenio Suarez is shooting up draft boards, and understandably so, given the 13 homers, four steals and .280/.315/.446 slash line he compiled in just 372 AB last season. Marcus Semien has also seen his stock rise as a potential 15/15 player. Brad Miller could finally realize his own 15/15 potential in Tampa Bay at just 26 years old, Ketel Marte should steal more than 20 bases while maintaining strong rate stats, and Starlin Castro, now with the New York Yankees, should continue to produce at his more comfortable position of second base.

Tier Five

The fifth tier is headlined by two players expected to miss a good chunk of time to start the season. Peralta fell all the way to No. 18 due to his thumb injury, but he could provide decent value in the second half of the season, if healthy. Additionally, the news of Aroldis Chapman's suspension caused Jose Reyes' stock to plummet, to the point where Brad left him off of his rankings altogether. Reyes is almost guaranteed to be suspended at least 30 games, and he hasn't been that productive in recent years, anyway. Fantasy owners can also find a ton of speed here, with Alcides Escobar, Trea Turner and Alexei Ramirez.

Tier Six

As you can probably tell, I am much higher on Asdrubal Cabrera than are my fellow rankers. And no, it's not just because he will be a contributing piece for my Mets' much improved batting order.

Of those who are currently eligible at shortstop, Cabrera is one of two players with at least 80 HR and 50 SB over the last five seasons-- Desmond is the other. This is largely a result of Cabrera's breakout 2011 season, during which he smacked 25 homers, swiped 17 bases, drove in 92 runs and scored 87 more. But even following that season, Cabrera has been one of the more consistent offensive shortstops in baseball. Over the last two years, he is sixth in home runs among current shortstops, ninth in runs and eighth in runs batted in.

Now, these stats obviously don't account for Carlos Correa, Corey Seager or Francisco Lindor-- all of whom reached the Majors last year -- but it still shows that owners can rely on Cabrera to compile counting stats. His rate stats -- career .267/.329/.412 -- are not terrible, but are mediocre enough to keep him out of the SS1 range. Still, he is more valuable than Escobar, Ramirez, Elvis Andrus, Erick Aybar and Jean Segura-- all of whom own similarly mediocre rate stats but possess little to no power. Cabrera can be counted on for 15 HR, seven steals, 80 R and 70 RBI, and can be had in the last round of deep mixed leagues.

As far as the rest of the tier goes, there's not a whole lot of appeal for mixed leagues. I'm personally not touching J.J. Hardy, even in the deepest of AL-Only Leagues. He hasn't reached double-digit home runs since 2013, and his rate stats have dropped to abysmal levels-- .219/.253/.311 in 2015.

Tier Seven

Not much to see here, especially for mixed leagues. These players either bring very little to the table, or they are not the starting shortstop for their respective teams. Phillies prospect J.P. Crawford is one name to keep an eye on, though, given the Phillies' lack of talent and his maturity as a hitter.

 

Shortstop Tiered Fantasy Baseball Rankings (March)

Ranking Tier Name Brad Max Kyle Nick Harris Jeff Bill
1 1 Carlos Correa 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
2 2 Troy Tulowitzki 4 2 2 2 2 2 2
3 2 Francisco Lindor 2 5 4 4 4 4 4
4 2 Corey Seager 3 4 5 5 3 5 3
5 2 Xander Bogaerts 6 3 3 6 5 3 5
6 2 Ian Desmond 5 6 6 3 7 6 6
7 3 Jung-ho Kang 9 7 7 7 6 9 8
8 3 Addison Russell 8 9 9 9 9 8 9
9 3 Brandon Crawford 12 8 11 8 8 13 7
10 4 Eugenio Suarez 7 12 8 10 14 14 11
11 4 Marcus Semien 11 11 10 11 15 10 10
12 4 Brad Miller 14 10 13 15 11 7 12
13 4 Ketel Marte 10 13 12 14 12 15 14
14 4 Starlin Castro 15 14 15 13 10 17 13
15 4 Elvis Andrus 16 15 14 12 17 11 15
16 5 Alcides Escobar 18 18 17 18 20 12 18
17 5 Trea Turner 19 22 19 25 13 16 16
18 5 Jhonny Peralta 13 16 21 16 23 18 34
19 5 Jed Lowrie 17 20 16 20 26 28 17
20 5 Jose Reyes - 17 18 27 22 25 19
21 5 Alexei Ramirez 20 24 25 23 19 19 20
22 6 Erick Aybar - 19 27 30 21 24 21
23 6 Jean Segura 31 23 32 17 18 23 22
24 6 Jose Iglesias 28 27 24 31 27 20 25
25 6 Asdrubal Cabrera 27 34 30 19 16 31 26
26 6 J.J. Hardy 23 21 26 21 39 22 32
27 6 Eduardo Escobar 22 29 23 26 32 29 24
28 6 Javier Baez - 26 31 22 28 21 31
29 7 Andrelton Simmons 29 25 22 32 31 30 23
30 7 Jimmy Rollins 25 28 20 36 29 27 28
31 7 Wilmer Flores 26 30 28 35 25 26 27
32 7 Didi Gregorius 24 33 33 24 30 - 29
33 7 Jedd Gyorko - 36 34 29 24 - 34
34 7 Zack Cozart 21 31 37 - 38 32 30
35 7 Adeiny Hechavarria 30 32 29 34 33 33 32
36 7 Jonathan Villar - 39 - 28 34 - 38
37 7 J.P. Crawford - 38 35 33 35 - 35
38 7 Jose Ramirez - 37 - - 36 - 33
39 7 Jordy Mercer 32 35 37 38 40 - 37
40 7 Tyler Saladino - 40 36 37 37 -
41 7 Nick Ahmed - 41 - - -

 

MLB & Fantasy Baseball Chat Room

[iflychat_embed id="c-12" hide_user_list="yes" hide_popup_chat="no" height="400px"]

 




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Austin Reaves7 mins ago

Ready To Go For Game 1
NFL9 mins ago

Bills Release Armani Rogers, Branson Deen
Luka Dončić13 mins ago

Luka Doncic Removed From Injury Report
Brandon Young17 mins ago

Set To Make MLB Debut On Saturday
LeBron James21 mins ago

Listed As Probable For Game 1
Ben Sheppard27 mins ago

Probable For Saturday's Game 1
Jacob Lopez28 mins ago

Recalled From Triple-A
NFL30 mins ago

Kolton Miller Absent From Raiders' Voluntary Offseason Program
Kevin Durant33 mins ago

To Houston Already Losing Steam
Matt Canterino45 mins ago

Twins Designate Matt Canterino For Assignment
Lauri Markkanen47 mins ago

Wants To Stay With The Jazz
NFL54 mins ago

Ross Blacklock Let Go By New York
Mickey Gasper55 mins ago

Sent To Triple-A St. Paul
Bennedict Mathurin1 hour ago

Expected To Play In Game 1 Saturday
Nicky Lopez1 hour ago

Designated For Assignment
Josh Smith1 hour ago

Still Out Of Lineup Friday Night
Pascal Siakam1 hour ago

Available For Playoff Opener
Zach Neto1 hour ago

Reinstated From Injury List, Will Make Season Debut Friday
Tyrese Haliburton1 hour ago

Returning From Two-Game Absence Saturday
Cade Cunningham1 hour ago

Available For Game 1 Against Knicks
Shohei Ohtani1 hour ago

Out Of Friday's Lineup For Birth Of First Child
Josh Hart2 hours ago

Back In Knicks Lineup Saturday
Eugenio Suárez2 hours ago

Eugenio Suarez Hits Grand Slam In Friday Afternoon's Loss
OG Anunoby2 hours ago

Good To Go For Game 1
Ian Happ2 hours ago

Hits Grand Slam In Massive Day At The Plate
Jalen Brunson2 hours ago

Available For Saturday's Game 1
Jazz Chisholm Jr.2 hours ago

Suspended For One Game, Will Appeal And Is Playing Friday
Karl-Anthony Towns2 hours ago

Returning To Action Saturday
Kyle Tucker2 hours ago

Hits Go-Ahead Homer In Cubs Win
Pelle Larsson2 hours ago

Good To Go Friday
Nikola Jović2 hours ago

Nikola Jovic Available Friday
Carson Kelly2 hours ago

Crushes Two Homers In Crazy Cubs Win
Trae Young2 hours ago

Officially Active On Friday
Giannis Antetokounmpo2 hours ago

Not On Game 1 Injury Report
NFL2 hours ago

Raiders Considering Drafting A Quarterback
Damian Lillard2 hours ago

Officially Out For Game 1
Irv Smith2 hours ago

Sticking With Texans
Ryan Lindgren3 hours ago

Set To Return Saturday
NFL3 hours ago

Texans Expected To Draft Wide Receivers
Greg Dortch3 hours ago

Returning To Cardinals
Josh Manson3 hours ago

Available For Game 1
Mark Andrews3 hours ago

Could Be Traded Soon
Ondrej Palat3 hours ago

To Return For Start Of Playoffs
David Savard3 hours ago

Will Retire After Playoffs
Gavin Sheets3 hours ago

In Padres Lineup Against Astros
NFL3 hours ago

Raiders, Falcons Could Have Interest In Jalen Ramsey
Robert Thomas3 hours ago

Good To Go Saturday
Shea Langeliers3 hours ago

Back In Lineup On Friday
Matthew Tkachuk3 hours ago

Expected To Return For Game 1
3 hours ago

Raiders Are High On Ashton Jeanty
Alex Verdugo3 hours ago

Hitting Leadoff In Season Debut On Friday
Jason Robertson3 hours ago

Considered Week-To-Week
Rome Odunze4 hours ago

To Hopefully Get More Involved
Dylan Moore4 hours ago

Not In Lineup On Friday
NFL4 hours ago

Dolphins Could Draft A Quarterback
Parker Meadows4 hours ago

Cleared To Begin Throwing Program
James Cook4 hours ago

Could Stay Away From Voluntary Workouts
Chandler Simpson4 hours ago

Called Up By Rays
Alex Bregman5 hours ago

Back From Paternity Leave
Noah Davis5 hours ago

Dodgers Recall Noah Davis From Triple-A
Pelle Larsson8 hours ago

Upgraded To Probable Against Hawks
Kevin Love8 hours ago

Away From The Team For Personal Reasons
Leon Draisaitl11 hours ago

Wins First Rocket Richard Trophy
Nikita Kucherov11 hours ago

Bags Third Art Ross Trophy
Bryan Rust11 hours ago

Scores Twice In Season-Ending Win
Igor Shesterkin12 hours ago

Shuts Out Lightning With 27 Saves
Dylan Cozens12 hours ago

Picks Up Three Points In Regular-Season Finale
Matvei Michkov12 hours ago

Caps Off Rookie Campaign With Three-Point Effort
Brady Tkachuk12 hours ago

Makes Early Exit For Precautionary Reasons
Jake Tonges20 hours ago

Signs Exclusive-Rights Tender
Denver Broncos20 hours ago

Broncos To Focus On RB Position In Next Week's Draft
Drew Lock20 hours ago

Sam Howell, Drew Lock Expected To Compete For Backup Job
New York Giants21 hours ago

Giants Leaning Toward Taking Best Player Available At No. 3
New Orleans Saints21 hours ago

Ryan Ramczyk Announces His Retirement
Buffalo Bills21 hours ago

Tre'Davious White Reunites With Buffalo
Aaron Rodgers21 hours ago

Willing To Play For $10 Million A Year
Jakob Chychrun1 day ago

Returns Against Penguins
Rasmus Andersson1 day ago

Out Against Kings
Jonathan Huberdeau1 day ago

Sits Out Regular-Season Finale
Ryan Pulock1 day ago

Out On Thursday
Jake Sanderson1 day ago

Back In Action Thursday
Thomas Chabot1 day ago

To Be Rested Against Hurricanes
Claude Giroux1 day ago

Active On Thursday
Dallas Cowboys1 day ago

Cowboys Add Hakeem Adeniji To Offensive-Line Room
Lucas Glover2 days ago

Looks To Rebound After Poor Performance
Daniel Berger2 days ago

Looking To Continue Solid Play At RBC
Sepp Straka2 days ago

Looking To Bounce Back At RBC
Justin Thomas2 days ago

Looking To Shake Off Poor Masters At RBC Heritage
Xander Schauffele2 days ago

Still Looking For Year's First Win At RBC Heritage
Maverick McNealy2 days ago

Is An Intriguing Play At RBC Heritage
Shane Lowry2 days ago

Looks To Shake Off Poor Masters Sunday At RBC Heritage
Will Zalatoris2 days ago

Eyes A Bounce-Back At RBC Heritage
Gary Woodland2 days ago

Could Add Some Surprise At Hilton Head
Sam Burns2 days ago

Hoping For Better Times At RBC Heritage
Sahith Theegala2 days ago

Still Trying To Put It All Together
Aaron Rai3 days ago

Might Be That Guy For Hilton Head
Robert MacIntyre3 days ago

All Or Nothing At RBC Heritage
Tom Hoge3 days ago

Still Playing Solid Heading To Hilton Head
Nick Dunlap3 days ago

Continues To Have Rough Stretch
Keegan Bradley3 days ago

Looks To Move On From Masters Performance
Matt Fitzpatrick3 days ago

A Boom-Or-Bust Option At RBC Heritage
Patrick Cantlay3 days ago

A Strong Play At RBC Heritage
Jordan Spieth3 days ago

Targets Another Strong RBC Heritage Showing
Collin Morikawa3 days ago

Eyeing Victory At RBC Heritage
Max Homa3 days ago

Breaks Through At The Masters
Alexander Volkanovski4 days ago

Reclaims Featherweight Title
Diego Lopes4 days ago

Drops Decision At UFC 314
Paddy Pimblett4 days ago

Remains Undefeated In The UFC
Michael Chandler4 days ago

Suffers TKO Loss
MMA4 days ago

Patricio Freire Gets Dominated In His UFC Debut
Yair Rodriguez4 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Bryce Mitchell4 days ago

Gets Submitted At UFC 314
Jean Silva4 days ago

Gets Submission Win At UFC 314
Dominick Reyes4 days ago

Wins Third Fight In A Row
Austin Dillon4 days ago

Nabs His First Top-10 Finish Of The 2025 Season At Bristol
Ryan Blaney4 days ago

Bold Strategies Fall Flat, Still Musters A Top-Five Finish At Bristol
Christopher Bell4 days ago

Finishes In The Top 10 After Falling Back Midway At Bristol
Ty Gibbs4 days ago

Earns His First Top-Five Finish Of The 2025 Season At Bristol
Chase Briscoe4 days ago

Quietly Scores First Career Top-Five Finish At Bristol
William Byron5 days ago

Denny Hamlin Cuts Into William Byron's Points Lead
William Byron5 days ago

Makes Best Of His Mediocre Qualifying Run With Sixth-Place Finish
Alex Bowman5 days ago

Despite Engine Failure, Alex Bowman's Improved Speed Looks Promising
NASCAR5 days ago

A.J. Allmendinger Enters Playoff Picture With Surprise Bristol Top-10 Finish
Kyle Larson5 days ago

Will Compete For The Win At Bristol
Chase Elliott6 days ago

Is One Of The More Favorable DFS Options Available For Bristol
William Byron6 days ago

Is A Solid DFS Option For Bristol Lineups
Tyler Reddick6 days ago

Could Tyler Reddick Be A Sneaky DFS Option For Bristol?
NASCAR6 days ago

Is Bubba Wallace Worth Rostering For Bristol This Week?
Ross Chastain6 days ago

Could Ross Chastain Be A Worthy DFS Choice For Bristol?
Carson Hocevar6 days ago

Is Carson Hocevar Worth Rostering For Bristol DFS Lineups?
NASCAR6 days ago

Should Fantasy Managers Avoid Rostering A.J. Allmendinger In DFS For Bristol?
Ryan Preece6 days ago

Is Ryan Preece Worth Rostering For Bristol Lineups?
Austin Dillon6 days ago

May Be One Of The Top Value Options For Bristol DFS This Week
Noah Gragson6 days ago

Should DFS Players Consider Noah Gragson For Bristol Lineups?
Riley Herbst6 days ago

Is In Play For Bristol DFS Lineups
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF