You’re not going to get a ton of help at the shortstop position if you don’t pick Trea Turner or Carlos Correa. Both are the best at the position and are regular contributors in multiple categories.
Outside of those two guys, though, I don’t see a roster game-changer. That’s why sleepers are important in this position. If you don’t decide to go with those players in the first two rounds, then maximizing your value with a sleeper at the shortstop position can pay major dividends.
Here’s three shortstops with sleeper potential in the 2018 fantasy baseball draft.
Elvis Andrus, SS, Texas Rangers
For only being 29, he has a lot of wear and tear on his professional career. He’s played in at least 145 games each year since 2009, and finally it appears he’s putting everything together. Last year was a breakout season for Andrus with a career-high in home runs, runs and RBI. His stolen bases dipped a bit, but they’re still strong enough to make him a viable player in that category.
His batting average also has seen an uptick in recent years, reaching at least .297 in each of the last two seasons. He’s not a power hitter or a runner who will develop solid numbers because of walks. He’s a batter who depends on a good batting average to get the job done in fantasy baseball. He has plenty of talent, so I’m banking on him figuring it out at the plate and the other fantasy baseball categories will follow suit.
He has solid value as the 58th overall player, according to Average Draft Position, and sixth among shortstops. He has shown the ability to generate meaningful statistics in multiple fantasy baseball categories before, so he should get your attention.
Didi Gregorius, SS, New York Yankees
He’s going to provide a little different production than many of the other shortstops available in fantasy baseball.
He’s listed as the 10th-best shortstop and is being drafted 100th overall, according to ADP. He’s not going to produce as much as Correa or Turner, but he can give your lineup some power numbers in a position that generally doesn’t produce those kinds of statistics.
Gregorius doesn’t have a lot of full-time work to investigate, but when he’s gotten the chance, he’s progressively gotten better. Since becoming a full-time player three years ago, he’s seen increases in RBI, runs, home runs and batting average. He tied for the second-most homers among shortstops a year ago and tallied the third-most RBI at 87.
With that low of an ADP and his ability to increase his production, he deserves more respect than fantasy owners are giving him.
Andrelton Simmons, SS, Los Angeles Angels
I like the value I’m getting with Simmons. He’s listed as the 16th-best shortstop, according to ADP, being drafted 188th overall.
That means you don’t need to draft him as a starter, so you can see if his consistency increases like it did last year.
In his second season in the American League, Simmons looked more comfortable for the Angels. He had career highs in everything but home runs and batting average a year ago, and those numbers weren’t far off from his best numbers.
He’s a multi-tool guy, but has struggled in several instances in his career. That’s why many are likely avoiding him, but if he can continue to get more familiar in the American League with a pretty good Angels team, then he has the capability of being a top-10 option at shortstop. He’s worth the investment to test as a backup on your roster.
