This might be the position at which there is the biggest drop between the top two players -- Troy Tulowitzki and Jose Reyes -- and the rest of the field.

With Hanley Ramirez playing third base now that Reyes is with the Marlins, our No. 3 shortstop is the Tribe's Asdrubal Cabrera. On the surface, Cabrera's numbers were pretty darn good last season -- 25 homers, 92 RBI, 17 steals and 87 runs. Keep in mind, however, that, after posting a .293 average and .836 OPS in the first half of 2011, Cabrera batted .244 with a .729 OPS in the second half.

Throw in the fact that Cabrera's previous career highs were six homers and 68 RBI, and there is cause for concern.

Will Cabrera be productive again this season? Probably. But we don't expect him to be nearly as good as Tulowitzki (.302, 30 homers, 105 RBI and nine steals in 2011) and Reyes (101 runs, 39 steals and a .337 average last year).

Our top five shortstops are solid, as you would expect, but after that, it gets dicey. The No. 6 player at the position (at least in my mind), the Rangers' Elvis Andrus, scored 96 runs and had 37 steals, but he hit .279 last year and has no power. No. 7 J.J. Hardy had 30 homers and 80 RBI in 2011, but he had a combined 17 homers and 85 RBI in 2009 and '10.

On to the top 20 ...

Note: All players are ranked at the positions at which they are expected to spend the most time in 2012, not all positions at which they are eligible. ... Stats are from 2011.

Rank, player, team R-HR-RBI-SB-Avg.
1. Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies 81-30-105-9-.302
2. Jose Reyes, Marlins 101-7-44-39-.337
3. Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians 87-25-92-17-.273
4. Jimmy Rollins, Phillies 87-16-63-30-.268
5. Starlin Castro, Cubs 91-10-66-22-.307
6. Elvis Andrus, Rangers 96-5-60-37-.279
7. J.J. Hardy, Orioles 76-30-80-0-.269
8. Derek Jeter, Yankees 84-6-61-16-.297
9. Jhonny Peralta, Tigers 68-21-86-0-.299
10. Erick Aybar, Angels 71-10-59-30-.279
11. Alexei Ramirez, White Sox 81-15-70-7-.269
12. Dee Gordon, Dodgers 34-0-11-24-.304
13. Yunel Escobar, Blue Jays 77-11-48-3-.290
14. Ian Desmond, Nationals 65-8-49-25-.253
15. Rafael Furcal, Cardinals 44-8-28-9-.231
16. Stephen Drew, Diamondbacks 44-5-45-4-.252
17. Alcides Escobar, Royals 69-4-46-26-.254
18. Jed Lowrie, Astros 40-6-36-1-.252
19. Alex Gonzalez, Brewers 59-15-56-2-.241
20. Zack Cozart, Reds 6-2-3-0-.324

Last three out: Cliff Pennington, Athletics; Jason Bartlett, Padres; Ruben Tejada, Mets.

Eligibility notes: We have the Marlins' Ramirez ranked as our No. 2 third baseman, but he will be eligible at shortstop. ... Marco Scutaro was traded from Boston to Colorado, where he will move from shortstop to second base. ... Another Marlin, Emilio Bonifacio, is ranked at second base on many sites, but he is an outfielder.

Key stats: The only concern with Tulowitzki is injury. The last four seasons, he has had 377, 543, 470 and 537 at-bats. That's an average of 482 at-bats. He missed 14 of the Rockies' last 19 games in 2011.

PREVIOUS: Catchers, first basemen, second basemen

NEXT: Third basemen

There are two hammers at shortstop — Hanley Ramirez of the Marlins (ranked No. 3 overall in our top 100) and Troy Tulowitzki of the Rockies (No. 7).

After that, you are forced to choose between a former stud who has been hampered by injuries the last two seasons (Jose Reyes), a Yankees legend who had a down year by his standards in 2010 (Derek Jeter) and a 2007 National League MVP who has batted .250 and .243 the last two years (Jimmy Rollins).

As Gus Johnson would say, “And he missed it!”

Reyes will be high-risk, high-reward choice late in the second or early in the third round of a 12-team league. The next shortstop to go off the board likely will be Jeter or Rollins late in the fourth or early in the fifth.

That brings us to our fourth positional breakdown of the season. In honor of Jeter and the possible passing of his days as a fantasy stud, let’s all agree to think of Minka Kelly after every shortstop is selected this year.

Rank, player: R-HR-RBI-SB-Avg.
1. Hanley Ramirez, Fla: 92-21-76-32-.300
2. Troy Tulowitzki, Col: 89-27-95-11-.315
3. Jose Reyes, NYM: 83-11-54-30-.282
4. Derek Jeter, NYY: 111-10-67-18-.270
5. Jimmy Rollins, Phi: 48-8-41-17-.243
6. Alexei Ramirez, CWS: 83-18-70-13-.282
7. Starlin Castro, ChC: 53-3-41-10-.300
8. Rafael Furcal, LAD: 66-8-43-22-.300
9. Elvis Andrus, Tex: 88-0-35-32-.265
10. Ian Desmond, Was: 59-10-65-17-.269
11. Stephen Drew, Ari: 83-15-61-10-.278
12. Marco Scutaro, Bos: 92-11-56-5-.275
13. Yunel Escobar, Tor: 60-4-35-6-.256
14. Alex Gonzalez, Atl: 74-23-88-1-.250
15. Asdrubal Cabrera, Cle: 39-3-29-6-.276
16. Reid Brignac, TB: 39-8-45-3-.256
17. Jhonny Peralta, Det: 60-15-81-1-.249
18. Miguel Tejada, SF: 71-15-71-2-.269
19. Jason Bartlett, SD: 71-4-47-11-.254
20. Yuniesky Betancourt, Mil: 60-16-78-2-.259

Preseason top 100 players (7): Ramirez (3), Tulowitzki (7), Reyes (25), Jeter (43), Rollins (50), Ramirez (60), Castro (89).

Short hops
Ramirez, who averaged 29 homers and 106 RBI from 2007 to 2009, had his power numbers drop to 21 homers and 76 RBI in 2010. ... Reyes averaged 66 steals, 16 homers and 69 RBI from 2006 to ’08. ... Jeter’s .270 batting average was 44 points below his career norm, and his 10 homers were his lowest since 2003. ... Rollins was limited to 88 games played in 2010 and had wrist surgery in the offseason. ... The consistent Ramirez has averaged 18 homers, 72 RBI and 13 steals in three years in the majors. ... Don’t overrate Andrus, who won’t help you at all in the power department (zero homers and 35 RBI last season) and batted .265. ... The Tribe’s Cabrera would be a bargain if he produces as he did in 2009 (.308, 68 RBI, 17 steals).

NOTE: Statistics are from the 2010 season. ... Players are listed only at the positions at which they are expected to spend the most time in 2011.

THIS WEEK: Shortstops, today; third basemen, Saturday; designated hitters, Sunday.

LAST WEEK: Catchers, March 7; first baseman, March 8; second baseman, March 9.

NEXT WEEK: Outfielders, starting pitchers, relievers and overall top 100.

Come ahhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnn.

There’s an amusing ESPN radio commercial in which Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins utters the above line in -- of all places -- the back seat of a car. It’s a relevant jab at the lack of creativity that is so prevalent in sports talk radio, and it’s a spot that’s made me wonder what I would say to Rollins if I had drafted him in the first round and just so happened to be driving him around town.

The answer wouldn’t be Rollins’ commercial catchphrase, but his recent play has certainly taken away some of the sting felt by owners who were expecting much more from a late first- or early second-round fantasy pick.

As we detailed in a column that appeared in print editions and online Saturday, there are more than a few struggling stars in the first six weeks of the season. What’s difficult is determining which players will snap out of their early funk and should be kept in the starting lineup and which are headed downward faster than an all-callers segment on Jim Rome’s radio program.

I would put Rollins in the no-worries category. Yes, he’s batting only .222 and has just two homers and four steals in eight attempts, but consider his numbers from his current seven-game hitting streak: 10 hits, eight runs, one homer, four RBI and three steals.

It’s fair to wonder if Rollins’ 30-homer season in 2007, when he was named National League MVP, was an aberration, since he had only 11 homers last season and has hit more than 14 long balls only twice in eight full seasons in the majors.

He probably won’t be a huge source of RBI, either (his average total from the previous eight seasons is 67), but he should steal at least 30 bases, hit for average and some pop.

First-round production? Maybe not.

Bench him? Enter catchphrase.

Pick Three

Our weekly look at three players who should help you in deeper leagues, with the caveat that each must be available in more than half of the leagues on ESPN.com:

Kendry Morales, 1B, Angels (owned in only 26.8 percent of the ESPN leagues): He’s batting .275 with six homers and 23 RBI, putting Mark Teixeira’s replacement in the Angels’ infield on pace for 27 homers and 104 RBI. His position is loaded with fantasy talent, but if you’re looking for an extra power bat, pick up this 25-year-old who hit .337 with a .939 OPS in his minor-league career.

Alberto Callaspo, 2B, Royals (19.9 percent): He’s proving to be an undrafted gem at a weak position. Callaspo, 26, is batting .341 with 16 RBI, 18 extra-base hits, one more walk than strikeouts (12 to 11), and he has an OPS of .919. If you need power, Callaspo isn’t the answer – his two home runs this season are the only long balls he’s hit in 525 big-league at-bats. He batted .316 in the minors, with 84 more strikeouts than walks (229 to 145).

Juan Pierre, OF, Dodgers (48.8 percent): All it took was Manny Ramirez getting suspended for him to start earning his hefty paycheck (a $10 million salary this season). In the 10 games Ramirez has missed, Pierre is batting .465 (20-for-43) with 11 runs, nine RBI and six steals. If you need power from your third outfield spot, seek help elsewhere, but there’s no reason he shouldn’t find a spot somewhere in your lineup.