Fantasy Baseball Rankings IV: Shortstops

Below is my fantasy rankings for shortstops. All stats are from Baseball Reference.com. The tiers refer to similar groupings of players. I haven't specified rankings within the tiers...that I leave up to the individual drafter. Please let me know your thoughts...whether you agree, disagree, think I've lost a couple of marbles while working in the lab, etc. As you can see, shortstop is deeper than expected with some combination of speed and power guys. The position also has 3 potential first round picks. I only ranked those whom I considered to be "draftable" in a 12 team 5x5 draft.

Let the presentation begin!

Name	Age	Strength Stats	Key Stats from 2008	Projected Draft Position	Comments	Tier
Hanley Ramirez	25	AVG, HR, R, SB, RBI	125 R, 33 HR, 35 SB, .400 OBP, .540 SLG	1	Consensus top 2 pick in the draft. 5 category stud because will not hit 3rd in Florida lineup	1
Jose Reyes	26	R, SB, AVG	113 R, 56 SB	1	Consensus top 4 pick in the draft. Steals are his biggest asset, but can contribute across all categories.	1
Jimmy Rollins	30	R, HR, SB	47 SB, .349 OBP, .437 SLG	1	Great asset at speed. Scores a lot of runs with Utley and Howard hitting behind him. Stats last year depressed because of ankle injury	1
Rafael Furcal	31	R, SB	36 G , 8 SB, 34 R	4-7 round	He may be overrated because he's over 30 and had injury problems last year. But with potent Dodger lineup can score 100-120 runs and steal 25-35 bases with respectable AVG and HR	2
Alexei Ramirez	27	HR, RBI	22 HR, 77 RBI, 13 SB, .475 SLG, .313 OBP	3-6 round	Free swinger with great power. Will be overdrafted based on potential. Also eligible at 2nd base	2
Stephen Drew	26	R, HR, RBI	.502 SLG, 21 HR	5-8 round	Similar in fantasy profile to Hardy and Ramirez, but his skills can portend a greater improvement for 3rd full season	2
JJ Hardy	26	HR, RBI	24 HR, .478 SLG	7-10 round	Streaky power hitter in the prime of his career who will contribute 25 HR and a decent AVG	3
Troy Tulowitzki	24	R, RBI	.332 OBP, .401 SLG	7-10 round	Extemely disappointing '08 with injury and performance. This ranking is more of a bounceback hope. Still only 24.	3
Derek Jeter	35	R, AVG	.363 OBP, .408 SLG	5-8 round	Still useful, but not for the value most people give him. Declining trend in power and speed is real.	3
Jhonny Peralta	27	R, HR, RBI	104 R, 23 HR, 89 RBI, .473 SLG	6-12 round	Power is there consistently. Place in Indians lineup will matter for other categories	3
Miguel Tejada	35	R	.314 OBP, .415 SLG, 13 HR, 66 RBI	6-12 round	Will not approach power of years past. Also, extremely slow (32 GIDP). Has lost batting eye as well	4
Orlando Cabrera	34	R, SB	93 R, 19 SB, .334 OBP	12-15 round	Solid contributor in all categories, however, has less than .400 SLG previous 2 years.	4
Brandon Wood	24	HR	not enough info	18-21 round	Amazing power numbers in the minors. Hasn't figured out major league pitching yet.	4
Yunel Escobar	26	R, AVG	.366 OBP	12-15 round	Above average hitter with developing skills and good strike zone control who will give you a solid contribution.	4
Ryan Theriot	29	R, SB, AVG	22 SB, .387 OBP	15-18 round	No power, but good speed, great plate discipline. Expect .300 AVG with 20 SB and 90 R	4
Edgar Renteria	33	AVG	.317 OBP, .382 SLG	15-18 round	Has clearly lost a step, but has moved to NL, where he seems to play better. Strictly a backup in this stage of his career	4
Christian Guzman	31	AVG	.316 AVG, 23 BB	18-21 round	Had one of career best year last year with surprising doubles power and high average. Has poor pitch recognition, but makes contact. Might maintain AVG, but offers nothing else	4
Elvis Andrus	20	SB	No MLB stats	18-21 round	Take a chance, get some steals. Very high talent ceiling, but probably too young to approach it this year	4
Mike Aviles	28	AVG	.325 AVG/ .480 SLG	15-18 round	High contact hitter who surprised last year. Might get double digit HR again. Also eligible at 2B.	4