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Fantasy Baseball 2014: Early Top 20 Shortstop Rankings

Ray publishes his early top 20 shortstop rankings and discusses a few of them, including Andrelton Simmons, Xander Bogaerts, Hanley Ramirez and others.

By Ray Guilfoyle
Elsa

Today, I continue my early 2014 position rankings, and I give you my take on the top 20 fantasy shortstops for 2014. I will not offer much in comments here, as I will save them for our 2014 Consensus Position Rankings that will publish beginning in January.

To date, I have published my early catcher, first base and second base rankings, and you can find them in the links below:

Catcher

First Base

Second Base

Early Top 50 Hitters for 2014

Early Top 25 Starting Pitcher Rankings for 2014

Now let's take a look at my early top 20 fantasy shortstop rankings for 2014:

Rank

Name

Team

1

Hanley Ramirez

Dodgers

2

Troy Tulowitzki

Rockies

3

Ian Desmond

Nationals

4

Jose Reyes

Blue Jays

5

Xander Bogaerts

Red Sox

6

Jean Segura

Brewers

7

J.J. Hardy

Orioles

8

Starlin Castro

Cubs

9

Jed Lowrie

Athletics

10

Elvis Andrus

Rangers

11

Everth Cabrera

Padres

12

Andrelton Simmons

Braves

13

Brad Miller

Mariners

14

Alexei Ramirez

White Sox

15

Jimmy Rollins

Phillies

16

Asdrubal Cabrera

Indians

17

Jhonny Peralta

Tigers

18

Erick Aybar

Angels

19

Stephen Drew

Red Sox

20

Alcides Escobar

Royals

Hanley Ramirez, LAD

Ramirez had such a good season, he would have been an MVP candidate if he could stay on the field. He battled a thumb injury to start the season, then a hamstring injury, but in between the injuries, Hanley was one of the big reasons why the Dodgers went on that 42-8 run from early June. Hanley hit .345-.402-.638 with 20 HRs, 62 runs, 57 RBI and 10 stolen bases in just 86 games, or a little more than half a season. I have said before that he seems a lot happier and more comfortable in Los Angeles, and is actually having fun playing the game, so I could see him putting up another monster season in 2014.

Xander Bogaerts, BOS

I wrote this piece on Bogaerts during the World Series, opining that he will be the next superstar shortstop. My assumption was, at the time, that he will play shortstop for the Red Sox next season, but I am beginning to think there is the chance he may not. It will all depend on what the Red Sox do this offseason. I will rank him at shortstop and third base in my early position rankings.

I ranked Bogaerts at #5 in my shortstop rankings, and that might be too high, but he has the bat and the power to be one of the top fantasy shortstops over the next few seasons. Hitting in Fenway Park and in the Red Sox lineup should result in solid runs and RBI totals.

Andrelton Simmons, ATL

Simmons exceeded my expectations from him in 2013. He didn't hit for a great batting average, hitting .248, and he doesn't walk much, his OBP was .296, but he hit for more power than I expected. Simmons hit 17 home runs, with 76 runs scored, 59 RBI and 6 stolen bases this season, his first full season in the big leagues. I could see him approaching the 20 HR level in 2014.

Starlin Castro, CHC

I ranked Castro as my #8 fantasy shortstop for 2014, and he could move up a spot or two once I take a closer look at his stats, and the reasons why he had such a down 2013 season. Castro was a huge disappointment this season, as his stats were down across the board. I do wonder if the change in manager from Dale Sveum to Rick Renteria will provide a spark for Castro in 2014. That and he is a better hitter than was on display in 2013.

Fantasy Rundown

If you are looking for more fantasy baseball rankings, make sure you check out Fantasy Rundown, the one stop spot on the internet for all the fantasy baseball information you will need to win in 2014.

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