Fantasy Baseball Top 15 Shortstops for 2011

There has been very little movement among shortstops in recent weeks, but that doesn’t mean that there is little to talk about.  Who should we target?  Who should we pass on?  Let’s take a look at how my rankings currently look as we get close to draft day:

1. Hanley Ramirez – Florida Marlins
2. Troy Tulowitzki – Colorado Rockies
3. Jose Reyes – New York Mets
4. Elvis Andrus – Texas Rangers
5. Jimmy Rollins – Philadelphia Phillies
6. Derek Jeter – New York Yankees
7. Alexei Ramirez – Chicago White Sox
8. Starlin Castro – Chicago Cubs
9. Stephen Drew – Arizona Diamondbacks
10. Alcides Escobar – Kansas City Royals
11. Ian Desmond – Washington Nationals
12. Juan Uribe – Los Angeles Dodgers
13. Jhonny Peralta – Cleveland Indians
14. Rafael Furcal – Los Angeles Dodgers
15. J.J. Hardy – Baltimore Orioles

Thoughts

• Both Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins are heading into a contract year and have a lot of money sitting on the table.  Think they are going to be motivated to produce?  Click here for my thoughts on them and three other contract year players for 2011.
• Troy Tulowitzki or Hanley Ramirez?  Hanley Ramirez or Troy Tulowitzki?  Can you really go wrong with either?
• Are you willing to gamble on Rafael Furcal and his health?  Granted, there is plenty of potential production there, but his constant injuries make him a tremendous risk.  I’d much rather have him as an insurance policy to a high-upside option (Starlin Castro, Alcides Escobar, Ian Desmond, etc).  For more on why, click here.
• I know Alcides Escobar disappointed in 2010, especially in the stolen base department, but that had as much to do with the Brewers philosophy as it did Escobar’s ability.  Let us not forget that he is just a year removed from stealing 42 bases at Triple-A in 430 AB.  His 10 SB from ’10 is not indicative of his ability, and I would expect him to take a huge leap forward in his new surroundings.
• Alexei Ramirez is one of those players that always seems to struggle early in the season, isn’t he?  In 2009 he hit .214 with one HR and nine RBI in April.  In 2010 he hit .221 with one HR and eight RBI in the opening month.  Just be prepared to deal with a slow start in 2011, in case he isn’t able to reverse that trend.  Regardless, by year’s end he is going to be among the better options.
• How much does Derek Jeter have left in the tank?  We’ll soon find out, but considering his career .356 BABIP there is a lot of reason to think that he will rebound.  His .307 from 2010 was actually a career low.

**** Make sure to order your copy of the Rotoprofessor 2011 Fantasy Baseball Draft Guide, selling for just $5, by clicking here. ****

Make sure to check out our 2011 rankings:

• Top 15 Catchers
• Top 15 First Basemen
• Top 15 Second Basemen
• Top 15 Third Basemen
• Top 30 Outfielders
• Top 30 Starting Pitchers
• Top 15 Closers

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