While it doesn’t technically have anything to do with the game of fantasy baseball, the approaching All Star Game sparks all types of debate. The rosters have officially been announced, both starters and reserves, and the discussion as to who was selected and who was snubbed becomes a hot-button issue for fans. But rather than pick apart the decisions, I prefer to focus my attention on something I noticed with the announcement of the infamous Final Vote – the shortstop position has transformed from barren wasteland of below-average hitters to one rich with both talent and depth.

We’re not quite back to the days of A-Rod, Nomar, Jeter and Tejada, but we’ve seemingly come a long from the light-hitting middle infielders traditionally treated as throwaways in the fantasy community. Carlos Correa and Zack Cozart earned the starting positions on their respective league’s rosters with Francisco Lindor and Corey Seager as the top reserves at the position. The Final Vote, however, finds itself riddled with a number of shortstops as Didi Gregorius, Xander Bogaerts and Elvis Andrus are in competition of that last spot on the AL roster. Though not selected for the Final Vote, you certainly could offer up legitimate arguments for the likes of Trea Turner, Andrelton Simmons and even Chris Owings. Obviously there are a number of “snubs” you can make an argument for, but the point here is that, whether you’re looking for power or speed at the shortstop position, your options have become abundant.

Here’s a look at some of the top options at the position based on the five main statistical categories we use in the fantasy baseball game:

Home Runs

Carlos Correa, HOU – With 17 home runs to date, Correa leads the position here and few people are all that surprised. After his 22-homer rookie season, people were all-in on Correa as a potential 30-homer shortstop, the first we’d seen in quite some time. We expected some pullback, which we got, during his sophomore campaign, but his ISO has spiked back up to the .230 range again and he’s doing it without sacrificing batting average. Sure, the .356 BABIP helps, but even with a little drop-off there and in batting average, his power stroke and increase in hard-contact are helping him maintain the home run pace he showed two years ago. Projecting 34 for the season is tough to do, but somewhere between 25 and 30 on the season is definitely in the conversation.

Francisco Lindor, CLE – Probably the most surprising power of all the shortstops as Lindor never profiled as a power hitter during his time in the minors or when he was first called up. He’s already one homer shy of tying last season’s career best and based on his peripherals, it looks like he’ll maintain this power stroke throughout the year. He’s sacrificing batting average in a major way right now so if there is a drop in his home run pace, it should at least come with an increase in both his batting average and on-base percentage. It’s likely one or the other so don’t expect both, but regardless of which way he goes in the second half, fantasy owners can’t complain with his overall productivity.

Corey Seager, LAD – He may not have the raw home run numbers of Correa, but his .215 ISO which remains in-line with last year’s numbers show his consistent ability for both home runs and extra-base hits. His high contact rates should help keep both the BABIP and average up and given his plate discipline, batter’s eye and pitch recognition, he’ll remain a top option at this position for some time.

Chris Owings, ARI – He’s sitting on 12 home runs right now, but that .210 ISO is something very new for him. The bonus of playing half his games at Chase Field should help him approach the 20-homer plateau fairly easily this year, but expecting any more than that seems a little unrealistic based on his batting profile over his career. While I expect his power totals to pull back in the second half, he maintains strong value at the position because of the added speed. It will be tough to achieve, but the race towards a 20-20 season should be fun to watch.

Didi Gregorius, NYY – Similar to Lindor, Gregorius was more lauded for his glove than his bat while coming up through the ranks. The 27-year old has really blossomed since joining the Yankees and as a left-handed bat who plays half his games with a short porch in right field at Yankee Stadium, he should continue to benefit. Still wish he’d learn to draw more walks, but if we’re just looking at raw power numbers, he’s definitely serving you well.

Honorable Mention: Trevor Story, COL – the Coors effect should help, though you’re going to have to endure a really low batting average. Really low.

Runs Batted In (RBI)

The power bats from above are obviously all in the conversation here as the two stats go hand-in-hand. Still, there are a couple of names worth adding here.

Xander Bogaerts, BOS – He’s got 39 on the season which ranks him fifth among shortstops and given the struggles we’ve seen from the Boston lineup, the total number is pretty darn good. Manager John Farrell consistently has him batting third and he will continue to see strong RBI opportunities. At 24-years old, he is still developing and will continue to fill out as he matures. That should also help with the power stroke, but for run production, he’s in a fantastic spot right now and well worth your selection in drafts and trades.

Brandon Crawford, SF – There are plenty of negatives when looking at the Giants lineup and considering their struggles, reaching the 80-RBI plateau for a third-straight year might be difficult for Crawford to achieve. Still, a second half surge is always possible, especially if the rest of the lineup – players such as Buster Posey and Eduardo Nunez can heat up and present him with increased opportunities to drive in runs. It’s not ideal in comparison to some of the aforementioned shortstops, but could certainly help off the waiver wire if your league trading is tight.

Stolen Bases

Trea Turner, WAS – That month of June was insane as he swiped 22 bases to push to the top of the league leaderboard. As I’ve said in the past, I love the kid’s overall talent and think he has a lot to offer, but I don’t see the power ticking up to make him worthy of a first-round selection, injury or not. But as a stolen base machine, the guy is rock friggin’ solid. The wrist injury is a major bummer and he won’t be a factor until late August, but if you can stash him away, you can probably expect a nice stolen base surge for the final month of the season.

Elvis Andrus, TEX – You’ve probably been wondering why a guy with 11 home runs and 50 RBI has yet to be mentioned, but I feel like this is really where Andrus belongs on the overall. He’s already surpassed his career-best in home runs and is less than 20 RBI away from topping his highest total there as well. For a guy who owns a career .089 ISO, this .173 mark he’s sporting right now seems a little much. I won’t say he won’t hit for some power the rest of the way, but I’m more focused on his 20 stolen bases and a potential return to the 30-40 steal mark he once hit with some regularity. He should run those numbers up and everything he adds in the power department should be considered gravy….and you know how much I like gravy.

Jose Peraza, CIN – He still qualifies at the position, but is sitting in the one-trick pony realm right now with 15 stolen bases and a dismal .276 OBP. There’s also the concern over Scooter Gennett eating into his playing time, so while you can probably trust him to increase his stolen base totals, you can’t really count on much else. He’s a work in progress and has a lot to learn about plate discipline, but can still help you out in the one category.

Andrelton Simmons, LAA – The King of Pop-Ups no more, Simmons has finally found a way to return value for his selection, whether it was in your draft or off the waiver wire. The increase in hard contact has helped push his ISO to .148, a mark he hadn’t reached since his rookie season, but more importantly, he’s back to running. The Angels, on the whole, have altered their strategy to run the bases more and his 13 steals have already established a new career-high. So long as manager Mike Scioscia continues to give the green light and Simmons maintains his .330 on-base percentage, he should break the 20-steal barrier pretty easily this year.

Runs Scored

All of the aforementioned shortstops fall in here, but we can certainly make mention of the likes of Jean Segura and Addison Russell. Segura’s injuries have limited his output this season, but when healthy (and hopefully he remains so for the second half) he hits atop the Mariners lineup with the likes of Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz and Kyle Seager all batting behind him. His 36 runs right now rank him 11th overall among shortstops and that number is easily ticking upwards the rest of the way.

As for Russell, the current shoulder issues he is dealing with might hamper him through the rest of the first half, but he isn’t on the DL and can still contribute. We’d like to see him hit higher up in the lineup for added runs, but Joe Maddon isn’t moving him up there just yet. Perhaps a second-half hot streak is in the works and with it, a potential move up in the order. A girl can dream, can’t she?

Batting Average

Seven shortstops – Correa, Cozart, Segura, Bogaerts, Gregorius, Seager and Andrus – are all batting over .300 right now with Owings hovering closely with a .297 mark. We can certainly add Orlando Arcia (.279) and Tim Beckham (.274) into the mix here which gives you a solid 12 shortstops, factoring in Turner and Simmons, who are hitting .270 and up. That’s something you can expect when looking at the outfield and first base, but to now have that also at shortstop certainly adds a helpful element for fantasy owners. In an era where we’ve grown to accept a .240 batting average so long as it comes with 30-plus home runs, having a dozen shortstops contributing in this category is definitely worth noting when evaluating position depth in fantasy.