Shortstop
- Troy Tulowitzki, 27.7 WAR
- Elvis Andrus, 23.5 WAR
- Jose Reyes, 21.9 WAR
Way back in 2010, the last time LeBron James was NOT in the NBA Finals, Troy Tulowitzki was injured for part of the season. This, of course, would be a running theme for Tulo, especially lately. He hasn’t played at all this season.
There was a stretch from 2009 to 2011 during which Tulo was a 5-WAR player three straight years. Now he hasn’t seen 5 WAR in a season since 2014, which was his last full season with the Rockies.
Elvis Andrus could be picking up ground on Tulowitzki if not for an elbow injury of his own. Before this year, Andrus had played at least 145 games in every year of his career and was coming off his most productive season. The Rangers hope he can be back on the field in mid-June.
Jose Reyes was still enjoying his first stint with the Mets in 2010. He would play with the Marlins, Blue Jays and Rockies before returning to the Mets in 2016. That was the year he served a 52-game suspension for domestic abuse. He’s now in the third year of his return engagement with the Mets and has been one of the worst players in baseball (-0.6 WAR).
The number four shortstop since 2010 is the fast-rising Andrelton Simmons, who is hitting a career-best .333/.400/.473 this year. He also has a terrific glove at shortstop and an incredibly low strikeout rate (4.5 percent). No qualified hitter has struck out less often than Simmons.