Top 20 Shortstop (SS) Rankings, Tiers and Projections

With names like Rodriguez, Jeter, Garciaparra and Tejada, shortstop used to be one of the most loaded fantasy baseball positions. For a variety of reasons, those days are long gone - but don't despair. Sure, you won't find many elite SS power options floating around anymore, but that doesn't mean there's a dearth of SS options either.

Top 20 Shortstop (SS) Rankings for 2014

Tier 1 (1-3)

Troy Tulowitzki, Hanley Ramirez, Jean Segura

Ramirez is the trendy pick as fantasy's top shortstop in 2014, but Tulo-- when not banged-up-- has been the far more consistent player. Meanwhile, Ramirez's disappearing act in 2011 and 2012 is cause for concern. Segura steadily faded after a strong start, but he has tremendous upside and is worth a relatively early selection on his base-stealing alone.

Tier 2 (4-8)

Jose Reyes, Elvis Andrus, Ben Zobrist, Ian Desmond, Jed Lowrie

Reyes was a good player for Toronto last season, he was just sunk by missing 69 games; injuries are always a concern with the former Mets All Star, but he has obvious Tier-1 upside. Andrus won't give you any power, but he's a high-end base-stealer, and Zobrist remains one of fantasy's true gems due to his versatility. Desmond will his hack his way to premium production this season, and Lowrie finally showed what he can do with an uninterrupted season.

Tier 3 (9-13)

Everth Cabrera, Jhonny Peralta, Xander Bogaerts, Andrelton Simmons, J.J. Hardy

Cabrera's slot is all about speed, but Peralta is a guy who could hit above his tier-- minus the concerns about him failing a PED test last season. Armed with an elite plate approach, Bogaerts is undeniably legit, and in time could he become one of the game's top option-- that's the type of player we're talking about here.  Simmons was a darn good "real" player last season-- if his bat even comes close to catching his glove, look out. Hardy's a bit of a beer-leaguer: take him for his power and keep your fingers crossed that his average stays over .250.

Tier 4 (14-20)

Starlin Castro, Brad Miller, Asdrubal Cabrera, Alexei Ramirez, Jurickson Profar, Jimmy Rollins, Stephen Drew

Castro is a major "sleeper" this season, if that makes any sense to say of a two-time All Star-- he's simply been too good of a player not to expect a bounce-back campaign, and he has the potential to be a steal in 2014 drafts. Keep an eye on Miller, who was quietly a top-10 option after his June 28 callup last season and has posted great minor league numbers. Not much more to see here except for Profar-- his upside remains monstrous, and you'll want to get on that train before it rolls out.