Like many other sports, Major League Baseball is delayed in 2020. With this, fantasy baseball is also not operating as planned. However, there is still a possibility of the season happening, even if it is different than the typical Major League season. Should the fantasy baseball season happen this year, a lot of participants will be doing research prior to their draft. Position rankings are a way for people to get an idea of who they might want to target in their fantasy baseball draft. Here is a list of shortstops for the 2020 fantasy baseball season.
Note: To be eligible for these rankings, the player’s first position listed on ESPN fantasy baseball must be shortstop. For example, since Alex Bregman is listed as (3B, SS), he is eligible for the third base rankings in this series, but will not be included in the shortstop rankings.
Multiple players’ stats are according to Baseball-Reference.
20. Elvis Andrus, Texas Rangers (SS)
Elvis Andrus took more than 200 at-bats last season then he did in 2018 as he finished 2019 with 600. He played in 147 games, slashing .275/.313/.393 on the year. Andrus also picked up 72 RBIs in his 2019 campaign.
19. Amed Rosario, New York Mets (SS)
Amed Rosario had easily his best offensive season so far with the Mets in 2019. The shortstop had 177 hits, 30 doubles and 15 home runs, which are all career bests. He played in 157 games and could help fantasy teams get some consistent points if he continues to play in a high rate of games.
18. Kevin Newman, Pittsburgh Pirates (SS, 2B)
Kevin Newman also has second base eligibility which ups his fantasy value. His batting average was above .300 last year in the 130 games he played in. Newman also had an .800 OPS along with 38 extra-base hits as part of his 152 total for the regular season.
17. Didi Gregorius, Philadelphia Phillies (SS)
Didi Gregorius is now with the Phillies after playing 82 games with the Yankees in 2019. He was one of the multiple injured Yankees, limiting his playing time. Didi slashed .238/.276/.441 in 344 plate appearances last season.
16. Jean Segura, Philadelphia Phillies (SS)
Jean Segura will potentially be playing somewhere other than shortstop with Didi Gregorius being added to the club. Segura has shown some consistency over the last few seasons. He had 53 extra-base hits last year, his highest since 2016. Segura played in 144 games for the second year in-a-row.
15. Paul DeJong, St. Louis Cardinals (SS)
Paul DeJong cracked 30 homers last year, and also put up 31 doubles. He played in a career high 159 games, aiding in his single-season high of 664 plate appearances. DeJong also had 78 RBIs and 62 base on balls.
14. Jorge Polanco, Minnesota Twins (SS)
Jorge Polanco put up multiple single-season highs in 2019. He played in 153 games and had 704 plate appearances. Polanco collected 306 total bases and had 186 hits as well. In one of the more offensive heavy lineups in the league, Polanco could get some solid opportunities at the plate whenever the next season happens.
13. Adalberto Mondesi, Kansas City Royals (SS)
Like Polanco, Adalberto Mondesi also had a career high in games played. He saw action in 102 contests, and slashed .263/.291/.424. He tied for the league high in triples with 10, as well as hitting 20 doubles and nine homers. Mondesi had 62 RBIs in 2019.
12. Corey Seager, Los Angeles Dodgers (SS)
After playing in just 26 games in 2018 due to Tommy John surgery, Corey Seager participated in 134 games in the 2019 regular season. He led the National League in doubles with 44, and also hit 19 home runs. Seager also had 87 RBIs and could continue to be high in that category being in the Dodgers’ lineup.
11. Bo Bichette, Toronto Blue Jays (SS)
If the 46 games Bo Bichette played in are an indication of what he can do at the big league level, he could move up in the rankings. In those 46 games, Bichette slashed .311/.358/.571. He had 61 hits, including 29 for extra-bases.
10. Tim Anderson, Chicago White Sox (SS)
Tim Anderson had the highest batting average in the league among qualified players last season. He slashed .335/.357/.508. Along with his high batting average, his slugging percentage being over .500 is another factor into his fantasy value. Anderson finished the season with 50 extra-base hits in 123 games played.
9. Carlos Correa, Houston Astros (SS)
Over the past three seasons, Carlos Correa has only played in 110 games in 2017, 109 games in 2018 and just 75 games in 2019. In 2019, he had a slash line of .279/.358/.568. This line could look productive, but if Correa can play in more games with a similar line, it could increase his fantasy value.
8. Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres (SS)
In his debut season, Fernando Tatis Jr. played in 84 games, getting 372 plate appearances. He hit 22 homers, 13 doubles and had 53 RBIs. Although he doesn’t have much big-league experience, his first season could be an indication of how he can perform in years to come.
7. Marcus Semien, Oakland Athletics (SS)
Marcus Semien played in all 162 games with the A’s in 2019 and finished third in the AL MVP voting. Semien racked up 83 extra-base hits including 33 homers. Semien also led the MLB in plate appearances with 747 of them. His OPS of .892 is a single-season high by over 150 points.
6. Javier Baez, Chicago Cubs (SS)
Although Javier Baez had some numbers drop from 2018, he still produced on the field. He compiled 29 dingers and 38 two-baggers along with bringing in 85 RBIs. Baez also scored 89 runs on the year. Another upside for Baez could be being in the Cubs lineup with guys like Kris Bryant who may give Baez some solid RBI opportunities.
5. Trea Turner, Washington Nationals (SS)
Trea Turner played in 122 games in 2019 after playing in 162 back in 2018. His 569 plate appearances are lower than the 740 he had the year before. Even though Turner played in less games in 2019, he still tied his career-high in homers at 19, and set a new single-season high in doubles with 37of them.
4. Gleyber Torres, New York Yankees (SS, 2B)
Gleyber Torres had 38 homers and 26 doubles in 2019. That many homers should be seen as a positive in fantasy baseball. Torres also surpassed 600 plate appearances on the year, and he played in 144 games. If the Yankees do get to play some home games this season, that could help Torres hit some more homers.
3. Xander Bogaerts, Boston Red Sox (SS)
Xander Bogaerts won his third Silver Slugger award last year. The Red Sox shortstop came up just short of 700 plate appearances with 698 for the season. Bogaerts had 52 doubles, 33 home runs and 117 RBIs. He also slashed .309/.384/.555 in the 2019 regular season.
2. Trevor Story, Colorado Rockies (SS)
Trevor Story had another solid year at the plate, helping him win his second consecutive Silver Slugger award. He had 78 extra-base hits on the year, including 35 via the long ball. Story also compiled 85 RBIs and 111 runs scored on the year.
1. Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Indians (SS)
Francisco Lindor has now hit at least 40 doubles and 30 home runs for three years in-a-row. He has also scored at least 99 runs in each of the last four seasons. And as for total hits, 2019 was Lindor’s fourth in-a-row in which he had at least 170 hits. Lindor has played at a high level consistently for years, and a combination of those things can have him taken very early in fantasy baseball drafts.
Feature Image Courtesy of Mile High Sports.
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