Fantasy Baseball SS Rankings: Shortstop Tiers, Sleepers, Draft Strategy

If there's one position to target early -- and late -- in fantasy baseball drafts, it's shortstop. Not only are there some elite players who will go in the first one or two rounds, but there are also true difference-makers in fantasy's scarcest category (steals). You can also find sluggers and high average hitters. Fortunately, even if you don't get one of the top-tier shortstops, there are plenty of value players and sleepers further down the SS rankings who can help you keep pace at the position. 

Draft strategy is important when it comes to shortstop. While you should always remain flexible and be ready to adapt, targeting a steals guy like Trea Turner (who you might not have the ability to draft, depending on where you pick in the first round) or Adalberto Mondesi could give you a solid blueprint for how you want your first five or six rounds to go. By grabbing one of the elite SB threats early, you could focus mostly on sluggers or perhaps 25-HR, 15-SB type with the rest of your early picks. You could also opt for a big power-solid speed SS like Trevor Story or Francisco Lindor or an elite-hitting dual-threat like Bo Bichette or Tim Anderson. 

Those latter players won't break the bank like the top six in terms of draft capital, but they will still likely go in the first five rounds (along with players like Corey Seager, Gleyber Torres, and Javier Baez). After those top couple tiers (which likely won't feature Manny Machado or Alex Bregman if you don't play on Yahoo), there's a perceived drop-off at SS, but there are still plenty of potential breakouts and bounce-backs.

You know Carlos Correa is going to have a big year at some point, and both Marcus Semien and Ketel Marte showed what they can do two years ago when they were MVP candidates. Dylan Moore is an emerging power-speed threat, and both Didi Gregorius, Willy Adames, and Paul DeJong could put up solid power numbers. Jean Segura, Dansby Swanson, and Tommy Edman all can chip in across the board, while Amed Rosario, Elvis Andrus, and Garrett Hampson could steal 20-plus bases. 

Many of these players are eligible at multiple positions, which not only makes them more valuable in all formats, but it also makes it more unpredictable as to when they'll get drafted. In shallow leagues, you don't need to worry as much about that, but in deep leagues, you will always want to be checking the SS list and trying to figure out when to grab a backup and which category you need the most help in. There's something for everyone.

We'll be updating our SS rankings throughout the spring, so check back for the latest player movement. Please note that players are ranked as if they're only eligible at SS. Certain players, such as Gleyber Torres or Dylan Moore, may be ranked higher overall because of their multi-position eligibility. 

Fantasy Baseball SS Rankings: Shortstop Tiers, Sleepers, Draft Strategy

Rankings based on 5x5 H2H leagues with Rs, HRs, RBIs, SBs, and Batting Average as hitting categories. 

Position eligibility based on Yahoo's default settings

* = player not eligible at a position on draft day but expected to play there during the season