The 3 R's have dominated the position, and are all first round talents.  But there are other elite options that can be had, and quality options can be had in the middle rounds as well.  The NL is particularly blessed, but we'll get to that in a minute.  Here are the rankings.

1st Tier:

1. Hanley Ramirez- A top 3 fantasy player.  Hanley gives you production in all categories, and is one of the few 5 category contributors in Fantasy baseball.  If I have the top pick in a draft, he's my guy. 

2. Jose Reyes- Reyes is the model of consistency, scoring 110 runs in 3 consecutive years, stealing 50 bases for the 4th straight year, and hitting double digit homers for the 3rd straight year again.  If I get Reyes in round 1, i'm taking a lot of power in round 2.

3. Jimmy Rollins- When he leads off ahead of Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, there should be no way Rollins scores less than 100 runs.  But he did, last year.  That won't happen again.  J-roll is a stud, and he's stolen 40+ bases for the past 3 years.  He'll be worth it.  Same caveat with Reyes applies, you'll need power.

4. Mike Young- A funny thing happens when you have Josh Hamilton and Milton Bradley following you in the lineup.  That's how Young scored his 100 runs last year.  Chris Davis will be taking over Bradley's roll, and if he goes alright, Young will be up over 90 again.  The issue coming though is age, as Young is no longer his name.  You can't expect 200 hits anymore, but he's a threat for it. Still a decent 3rd-4th rounder.

5. Rafael Furcal- When healthy, he was outstanding.  I wouldn't worry about his back this year.  If Manny is back in a Dodger uniform, Furcal is a solid 3rd rounder for those who went Power-Power in the 1st two rounds.  If not, he's a great 4th rounder for steals and a decent average.  Age is a concern though.  He's 31 and not getting younger.

6. Jhonny Peralta- Ok, he did it again.  It's now time to put him as a solid 5th to 6th rounder.  Here's the problem.  One day, Eric Wedge will realize that Grady Sizemore is one of the best hitters in baseball, and put him 3rd in the lineup, taking away from Peralta's production.  Until that happens, he's a great option. 

2nd Tier (rounds 6-12)

7. JJ Hardy- Here's the thing.  There are some good SS to be had in the first 6 rounds.  But if I don't get one of the top 3, I'm waiting.  This is due to the fact that JJ Hardy is so underrated in the fantasy world.  The only thing that keeps Hardy's overall numbers down is the fact that he hits 2nd in the lineup.  His runs are up there, but JJ can drive in a ton of runs given the opportunity.  He'll give you a homer every week, and drive in about 80.  He just won't steal bases.  He's a good option if you have a weak hitting 3B like Chone Figgins.

8. Troy Tulowitzki- He got off to a horrendous start, but was strong in the 2nd half.  He's another that will allow you to address other positions in the earlier rounds.  But realize he's going to go in the 6th, perhaps even earlier.

9.Derek Jeter- His power has fallen off, as has his speed.  In fact, he may struggle to get double digits in both, and drive in more than 80.  But he'll still score a lot of runs and hit over .300. 

10. Stephen Drew- Usually I say "OK Kid, do it again."  Drew is a case where I don't doubt he will.  It's up to his compatriots to allow him to drive in more runs, but I like him better than most people out there.

11. Orlando Cabrera- He's good for 20 steals  Everything else is pretty average about the guy.  Just a word of warning, the majority of his steals were in the 1st half, so you might want to go elsewhere.

12. Mike Aviles- I'm not as high on this guy as others, but I won't knock his results thus far.  i just don't like 27 year old rookies who come out of pretty much nowhere to repeat their performance. I think a good guide will be Yunel Escobar's numbers last year.

Tier 3 (rounds 13-18)

13. Edgar Rentaria- He's back in the NL, where he does his best.  I wouldn't expect more than 15 homers or steals, but definitely an improvement in average.

14. Ryan Theriot- He's not as good as he was last year, but not as bad as his '07 numbers.  I still like him for 20+ steals. 

15. Jed Lowrie- He's supposed to be a decent prospect, but sure didn't show much in half a season worth of PAs.  He's got more power than he showed last year.

16. Yunel Escobar- He doesn't steal bases, but will be scoring more as the Braves leadoff guy this year.  Oh, and he hit .318 in that lineup position.  A sleeper for the higher end of the 2nd tier next year.

Specialists:

- Christian Guzman will probably hit over .300 again, and give you not much else.  Same with Yunieski Betancourt.

- Bobby Crosby will kill your team in average, but does hit some homers and give you some RBIs when he's on the field, which is rarely.

- Cesar Izturis will steal you 20+ bases. 

- Ben Zobrist has SS eligibility, but won't get many opportunities.  He does go yard often though, with 12 homers in his 61 games last year.

Late round fliers: Alcedes Escobar, Reid Brignac, Elvis Andrus

AL and NL Rankings.  This is the way I'd rank them, not necessarily where they will be drafted.

AL

1. Mike Young

2. Jhonny Peralta

3. Derek Jeter

4. Orlando Cabrera

5. Jed Lowrie

6. Mike Aviles

7. Yunieski Betancourt

8. Marco Scutoro

9. Macier Izturis

*I only ranked 9 becuase Alexei Ramirez may be SS eligible in your league, at which point I put him 3rd in the AL, and just ahead of Hardy overall.

NL

1. Hanley Ramirez

2. Jose Reyes

3. Jimmy Rollins

4. JJ Hardy

5. Troy Tulowitzki

6. Rafael Furcal

7. Stephen Drew

8. Edgar Rentaria

9. Ryan Theriot

10. Yunel Escobar

Leave some comments, let me know how I'm doing