RealGM Analysis
Tier 1: Troy Tulowitzki
Tier 2: Ian Desmond, Hanley Ramirez, Jose Reyes
Tier 3: Starlin Castro, Alexei Ramirez, Jimmy Rollins, Elvis Andrus
Tier 4: Ben Zobrist, Erick Aybar, Xander Boegarts, Jhonny Peralta, Alcides Escobar
Tier 5: Jean Segura, JJ Hardy, Javier Baez, Andrelton Simmons, Danny Santana, Jed Lowrie
* Note: Players in bold are my picks to outperform their ADPs.
While first base, second base and third base each run deep, the same cannot be said for shortstop. Tulo gets his own tier, and the trifecta of Desmond, Ramirez and Reyes take residence in tier 2.
Then, we’ve got a MASSIVE drop down to tier 3. I’ve chosen Ben Zobrist to exceed his ADP, but this is more because I feel that he’s dropping too far.
Not going to sugar coat it – shortstop is not an exciting position this season. The strategy here should be quite clear: either grab a player from tier 1 or 2, or otherwise wait and grab a shortstop late. From tier 3 and down, it’s a free-for-all in terms of who ends up being the most valuable. Very likely, the difference between them won’t be much. So, not a bad idea to grab one of the top four shortstops, but don’t reach to get one. If they get overdrafted in your league, then put your resources into other positions and grab a shortstop late.
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