Here are my five tiers for fantasy shortstops during exhibition play, with a nod toward 5x5 roto leagues.
In 12-team drafts, it's imperative for owners to grab one of the stars listed in the first two tiers. Mathematically speaking, though, one or two teams would be left out in that scenario ... meaning they'd have to get creative when the draft-day game of musical chairs ends (Rounds 1-7).
Would they go the middling "safe" route, courtesy of Jhonny Peralta, Everth Cabrera, Jed Lowrie and Yunel Escobar? Or would the owners swing for the fences, snagging untapped, but high-upside assets like Hiroyuki Nakajima, Adeiny Hechavarria or Jurickson Profar — the consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball?
Here's one more thing to consider: If Reds prospect Billy Hamilton makes the parent club out of spring training, it would trigger a fantasy hysteria not seen since Vince Coleman's rookie campaign (1985 — 110 steals).
Last year at Double-A Pensacola, Hamilton set the single-season record for steals (155).
For a look at the continually evolving Average Draft Position values for shortstops, click here for FoxSports.com's ADP page.
Tier 1
Troy Tulowitzki, Jose Reyes, Starlin Castro, Ian Desmond, Jimmy Rollins
Tier 2
Hanley Ramirez, Ben Zobrist, Asdrubal Cabrera, Derek Jeter, Alcides Escobar, Elvis Andrus, Danny Espinosa
Tier 3
J.J. Hardy, Erick Aybar, Alexei Ramirez, Andrelton Simmons, Jean Segura, Zack Cozart, Marco Scutaro, Dee Gordon, Josh Rutledge (should have 2B eligibility sometime around April 20)
Tier 4
Hiroyuki Nakajima, Jhonny Peralta, Everth Cabrera, Jurickson Profar, Yunel Escboar, Adeiny Hechavarria, Jed Lowrie, Stephen Drew, Mike Aviles, Tyler Greene, Rafael Furcal, Jamey Carroll, Cliff Pennington, Eduardo Nunez, Maicer Izturis, Billy Hamilton (would immediately vault to the second tier after MLB promotion)
Tier 5
Sean Rodriguez, Willie Bloomquist, Brent Lillibridge, Brian Dozier, Ruben Tejada, Nick Franklin (a future star with the Mariners)
Jay Clemons can be reached on Twitter, day or night, at @FOX_JayClemons.
