Fantasy Baseball Shortstop Check-In: Can Geraldo Perdomo and Jacob Wilson Keep Rolling?
Assessing the fantasy shortstop position as we near the end of May.
It's time to go in depth about another fantasy baseball position.
We've looked at first base, second base and third base so far, and now will tackle fantasy shortstops. Check back in the coming days and weeks for more position breakdowns.
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Top Performers
Using fantasy scoring and position eligibility from ESPN, let's first take a look at the top-performing fantasy shortstops.
Just like we all expected (not), Geraldo Perdomo leads the position so far. He's followed closely by Jacob Wilson, who again is a surprise name up there.
Mookie Betts is a familiar face finally, and he's in third. Bobby Witt Jr. checks in fourth. Elly De La Cruz is the No. 5 fantasy shortstop so far, and Francisco Lindor is just a couple points behind him.
Trea Turner, Jeremy Pena, Dansby Swanson and Oneil Cruz round out the top 10 right now. Bo Bichette and Anthony Volpe are just on the outside of it.
Betts and De La Cruz lead shortstops with 42 runs scored each. Witt and Wilson have 106 total bases each, leading the way in that stat. Lindor has 100 total bases.
De La Cruz leads the way in RBIs with 40. Perdomo is second with 39 RBIs, while Volpe is next at 33 RBIs. Betts and Lindor are at 31 RBIs each, while Witt, Wilson and Swanson all have 30 RBIs.
J.P. Crawford has a shortstop-leading 34 walks, while Perdomo has walked 33 times. Cruz is the only other shortstop over 30 walks, and he sits at 32.
Witt leads the way in stolen bases with 20. Cruz has 18 and De La Cruz and Jose Caballero have 17 stolen bases each.
De La Cruz leads the way with 70 strikeouts already. Cruz is next at 68 punchouts, while Trevor Story has 67 Ks. Willy Adames (64) and Matt McLain (63) are also over 60 strikeouts so far.
ADP Check In
Using FantasySP Average Draft Position data, let's check in on who is living up to preseason expectations or might be severely underperforming.
Witt was the top-drafted fantasy shortstop. Everyone would like to see him up top, but he's close enough to the top spot to be happy with his results so far.
The same could be said for Betts, who went second on average. He and Witt should be in the mix for the top fantasy spot at the position as long as they are healthy the rest of the season.
Gunnar Henderson was taken third on average. He sits 20th at the position so far. Henderson began the season injured, so he's been playing catch up - he's underperformed, but is working his way back up the ranks.
Lindor went fourth at the position on average. He's underperformed a bit, but is close enough to his original draft spot to be pleased with his results so far.
De La Cruz was next off draft boards among shortstops. He's ranked right where he was drafted, so he's lived up to his preseason hype so far.
Corey Seager was the sixth shortstop taken on average. He's been injured a couple times and ranks in the 40s at the position so far. There's time for him to climb up the ranks, but his injury-riddled past doesn't make things seem super positive moving forward.
Turner was the next shortstop taken. He ranks right where he was taken, so fantasy owners who drafted him have to be happy with his play so far.
Adames was the eighth shortstop taken on average. He's outside the top 20 right now, so he's been a disappointment and draft bust so far. There's time to get things turned around, but things don't look great right now.
CJ Abrams is ninth on the ADP list at shortstop. He spent some time on the injured list, so to only see him a couple slots outside the top 10 right now is a big-time positive.
McLain was the 10th fantasy shortstop taken on average. I was among the fantasy owners who loved McLain before the season, but he ranks a spot below Seager right now - McLain also spent time injured this season, but he's been a major bust so far when he's been healthy.
Perdomo was not part of our 401-player ADP list this year. Wilson ranked 338th overall, so both of their top-end spots right now have been pleasant surprises.
Pena was 164th overall, so he's exceeded expectations by quite a bit. The same could be said for Swanson.
Cruz was listed as an outfielder on our ADP list. He went around pick 110, which would have made him the No. 10 shortstop taken, so he's lived up to expectations there.
Trending Up
Among qualified shortstops over the past 15 days, Ezequiel Tovar leads the way with a .362 average. He also has a .400 OBP over 12 games and 47 at-bats.
Wilson is still hot at the plate, with a .349 average and .451 OBP over the past 15 days. Chase Meidroth is another young shortstop excelling, sitting with a .348 average and .412 OBP over that span.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa has a .333 average and .378 OBP over 12 games and 42 at-bats. Turner is hitting .326 and getting on base at a .373 clip over the past 15 days.
Zach Neto has a .314 average and .333 OBP over that span. Perdomo has a .293 average and .380 OBP. Crawford has a .200 average, but a .373 OBP.
De La Cruz has popped four homers over the past 15 days. He also leads the way in RBIs in that span.
How to Proceed
Betts, Witt and De La Cruz are top-five performers so far, and I think they all have great shots to stick there for the rest of the season. If I had to predict, I'm sticking with Witt as the top guy, followed by Betts. De La Cruz might strike out too much to move up.
Perdomo and Wilson have great chances to stick in the top 10, but I think it's going to be difficult for each guy to stick in the top five. I like Wilson more right now, but both are underappreciated. Wilson is somehow available in 10% of fantasy leagues synced here at FantasySP, so he should be added immediately.
Lindor is the other fantasy shortstop in the top 10 who I think for sure will stick there all season - everyone else has the chance to drop out of the top 10. Lindor has been there and done that, and I think he eventually sneaks into the top five, maybe finishing as high as No. 3 behind Witt and Betts.
Turner and Pena are the next two most likely fantasy shortstops to stick in the top 10, at least in my opinion. I like Turner between the two, and think he could have an outside chance to finish in the top five.
Swanson and Cruz are definitely capable of sticking in the top 10, but I also could see each falling outside it by the end of the season. Guys like Bichette and Volpe have just as good a chance to finish in the top 10 I think.
I like Abrams sliding into the top 10 eventually. Neto has a ways to go, but I think he could get there eventually too. Henderson, Adames, Xavier Edwards, Meidroth, Kristian Campbell, Seager, McLain and Tovar are others outside the top 10 right now who could push for a top-10 spot by the end of the season.
If you're looking for immediate help at the position, I like Meidroth and Tovar. Neto and Kiner-Falefa are also waiver options.
I'm really interested to do another update on the position later in the season to see how things are shaking out. This is one of the deepest and most talented fantasy positions in the game this season, and there's a number of hitters who can help out fantasy teams.