Please see our player page for Dansby Swanson to see projections for today, the next 7 days and rest of season as well as stats and gamelogs designed with the fantasy baseball player in mind.

It was a wild offseason for the National League, one highlighted by Trea Turner’s lucrative ($300 million) transition from the Dodgers to Phillies, along with fellow shortstop Xander Bogaerts’ introduction to the NL, via the San Diego Padres and $280 mil of his own. Two of the absolute best shortstops in the game are anchored […]

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It’s been a good time to be an MLB shortstop, given the overall depth of the position and the historical off-season we’ve had thus far. Marquee free agent shortstops Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Dansby Swanson, and Carlos Correa inked deals totaling around a billion dollars. Despite two failed physicals, Carlos Correa still made out like […]

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Last week, we walked through my initial top 25 as we began to count down, or rather count up our top 100 hitters for the 2023 fantasy baseball season.  While the top 25 was a star studded group on which fantasy dreams are born, the next 25 contain breakout potential and a number of reliable veterans.  Once we get past this group, the questions start to grow and the debate will certainly spark.  Without further ado, let us jump into our continuing view of the top 100 hitters for the 2023 fantasy baseball season with spots 26 through 50!

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If you are starting a team in a new dynasty league, take a look at the position breakdown of the top 200 players, using the main position for utility players except for one, who plays basically any position in the field.

What quickly jumps out is the lack of depth at second base and third base. The second and third base positions alone add up to only one more Top 100 player than the shortstop position. There are some great players at those two positions, but the overall quality lacks compared to shortstop or first base.

When it comes to catchers and relief pitchers, I can tell you right now that there are few of them ranked. There are a lot of good catchers, but many of them will get only 110 or so starts or they are getting up in age, making them less than desired dynasty options.

As for the relivers, I never chase saves (or holds if your league has them). How many players dread chasing Aroldis Chapman last year or a host of other top closers? Meanwhile, five new closer will come out the woodwork this year that you can get in the middle of the season.

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What a great Valentine’s Day.

Yeah, I had a nice date night with the wife, but more importantly, pitchers and catchers in Arizona and Florida are reporting for Spring Training! Baseball is officially back.

And you know what else is back? Another edition of the 2023 Fantasy Baseball Dynasty Rankings. This week we dive into my Tier 3 players – numbers 75 to 51 on the overall list.

Young Over Old, Position Players Over Pitchers

As we count down and get closer to the final tier of players, the number of pitchers and players older than 30 will be getting smaller and smaller. This goes back to my original rules concerning dynasty leagues:

Young over old
I’m always thinking five years down the road. 
Hitter over Pitcher
Since the introduction of the Rookie of the Year Award in 1947, 113 hitters have been awarded the Rookie of the Year compared to 39 pitchers. In this century alone, 33 hitters have been named ROY to 13 pitchers. Young hitters perform better than young pitchers, and veteran hitters are more consistent than veteran pitchers.

In this tier, only seven of the players are pitchers, and four of those appear in the first group. While there are five players who are 30-years-old or older, there are eight players who are 25 or younger. This is a ranking for dynasty leagues, so it only makes sense for the older players to be pushed aside for the younger players with more upside and more years ahead of them to help you win.

Building With Athletes

This tier is also heavy on athletic players. The masher who plays first or third is great to have, but let’s face it, those two positions, as a whole, do not deliver everything you need to win. Speed is always good to have as well as players who can simply get on base. The players who often do that the best are outfielders and middle infielders.

So, if you have been wondering where some of the top outfielders and middle infielders have been, you are going to love this tier as there are six outfielders and seven middle infielders. And you can probably guess that the next two tiers will be heavy on these two groups of players as well.

But for now, let’s concentrate on this week’s 2023 Fantasy Baseball Dynasty Rankings: Players 75-51

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The top 20 shortstops for 2023 fantasy baseball are so stacked we may as well be at an IHOP, standing on a booth, screaming, “Rooty tooty fresh and fruity is woke culture gone wrong!” As I say in the video up on our Youtube channel, that does not mean you should think you can wait on shortstops. *puts on a big smile* Like and subscribe. Okay, let’s get to it! Here’s Steamer’s 2023 Fantasy Baseball Projections for Hitters and 2023 Fantasy Baseball Projections for Pitchers. Subscriptions are up and running, and you can already get Rudy’s Draft War Room. Anyway, here’s the top 20 shortstops for 2023 fantasy baseball:

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It was clear where Dansby Swanson was going to sign once he got married. Mallory Pugh, his new wife, plays soccer in Chicago. Lucky Dansby didn’t marry Messi. He’d have to play for Argentina, which, I believe, is where Yasiel Puig is playing now. Imagine being so whipped you have to play for whoever your wife roots for. I’d be playing for the “Gilmore Girls reunion.” So, Swanson immediately makes the Cubs much better. Competitive? Well, maybe a Wild Card, then who knows, Their pitching staff’s got more question marks than the Riddler’s leotards, so, yeah, I don’t think the Cubs are competitive, but weirder things have happened. Their middle infield does look solid, though. I am Hoerny for Hoerner and have always loved me some Swanson. Last year, Wrigley played poorly for home runs, but, as mentioned previously, I think that was a flukey thing vs. a new thing. Though, the dead ball and the humidor might’ve finally overcome the Windy City to make it more like Fly Out City. Will need more than one year to determine that. Last year, Swanson did what he’s always done with just a little more luck on BABIP, and flashed more speed. His counting stats might take a little hit in a weaker lineup (though, now the Cubs have Cody Bellinger five exclamation marks). His power should remain around 25-28, steals around 12-15, and average around .260. Assuming he doesn’t get his new marriage annulled and start dating Marge Schott Jr. and throw every game vs. the Reds. For 2023, I’ll give Dansby Swanson projections of 78/27/84/.262/14 in 591 ABs. Anyway, here’s what else I saw this offseason for 2023 fantasy baseball:

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One week ago, I was lamenting the state of the second base position in Major League Baseball and thus fantasy baseball. Outside of a few top players, it is now overrun with utility players and doesn’t have much depth.

This week, however, we talk about one of the deeper positions in baseball. Today we unveil the 2023 Top Keepers – Shortstops edition.

Unlike second base, the shortstop position is populated with highly skilled athletes who can do it all – hit, hit for power, run and field.

The numbers shortstops are putting up support that statement, but so too does this simple fact: last season, 20 players (out of 30 MLB teams) played 100 or more games at short. Another two (Kyle Farmer and Bobby Witt Jr.) appeared in 98 games at the position while a third, Tim Anderson, missed half the season due to injuries. Then there is Fernando Tatis Jr., who we all know missed the entire year.

Unless a team is rebuilding or just doesn’t have a good player at short, it is a spot on the field where managers want to have the same player every day. And more often than not, those players are not glove-first players. Today’s shortstops are expected to hit.

What is Your Preference?

The goal, both in real life and in fantasy, is to get the great all-around shortstop. But if you want to use a utility slot or middle infield slot to boost a specific stat, this is a great position to pick a player from.

Want speed? Ten shortstops stole 20 or more bags this past season. Need power? There were 15 shortstops who walloped 15 or more homers. What about help with your average or on-base percentage? Eight shortstops in these rankings hit .290 or better and another 11 had an OBP over .330.

If your team has a specific need, a number of shortstops would be great keepers. Now, let’s dive in and take a look at the 2023 Top Keepers – Shortstops rankings.

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Now that we’ve recapped the top 20 catchers, top 20 1st basemen and top 20 2nd basemen, we’re starting to see clarity on depth of positions, and shortstops have bounced back in a major way since last year. Shortstops were not as deep as 2nd basemen last year. Shortstops are much deeper again. That’s not shocking, but good to see. So, here’s the final ranking from our Fantasy Baseball Player Rater with my comments. The Player Rater allows me to be impartial while looking at how I ranked them in the preseason. Anyway, here’s the top 20 shortstops for 2022 fantasy baseball and how they compare to where I originally ranked them:

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