Many years ago I had a girlfriend from whom I hid my passion for fantasy sports. This led to some truly Three’s Companyesque moments with me, in Chicago, where said girlfriend lived, speaking on the phone in code with a friend in the Bay Area who I co-managed a team with, saying “yes” for “start” and “no” for “bench” as she and I walked down the street.

I unearth this up now as a roundabout way of indicating the complex relationship I have with fantasy sports, even today. I (and I think I fairly speak for both of us here) still get butterflies when entering a draft room. In fact, I can’t think of many things I get more excited about. That crunching feeling as the pick winds down to you, finger hovering above the mouse, leaning into the screen. Like a kid on Christmas.

But see? There’s no way around it, this sh*t is pure D&D. So, what to do? Well, if you have a baseball blog you exploit the fact that you have a small loyal audience that will help you somehow validate your sad little hobby. Hence: the Roto Massage Parlor.
Without anything further, here are some preliminary thoughts on the 2008 shortstop crop. Jackson already hit us a few days ago with some expert draft analysis, and we’ll follow in the coming weeks with some more. Please enjoy.

Aaron Shinsano: So obviously at SS you’ve got the big three at the top. I’m already seeing a lot of Reyes/Ramirez debate that reminds me of the “Who Do You Take After Pujols?” debate from last year. I even saw Andy (Behrens, again of Yahoo!) took Hanley #2 overall in a mock draft yesterday. You’ve had Hanley as a cheap keeper in the Kingman league…what are your overall thoughts on him?

Thing is, when you have one player getting so much hype I think it can cause others to be a little undervalued. Rollins, who could easily have a better 2008 than Reyes or Hanley, might fall a bit, and Jeter, who I took late in the 2nd round last year, will probably fall to the 4th round in most leagues. He might be taken after Tulowitzki, which I think could be a mistake.

I should qualify this and say I’m not a Yankee fan. I think Yankees always create a lot of sway in fantasy drafts — both by people who love them and take them too early and people who hate them and unreasonably avoid drafting them.

Jackson Broder: Hanley is not only a smart #2 pick overall, in my opinion he the no-brainer #2 selection. You’re talking about a player entering his 3rd season who’s only 24 who went 29/51 last year, drove in 81 runs from the leadoff spot, and got on base at a .386 clip. Power/speed numbers like that can carry a fantasy team, and he hasn’t even entered his prime yet. He produces consistently. You could argue that there are a lot of quality SS available, but he’s in a class by himself right now.

Reyes strikes me more as first and foremost a speed demon, and if you get any power production from him it’s gravy but nothing you can count on. Rollins doesn’t get on base as frequently as Ramirez does and I can see him having already hit his plateau power-wise. Not that his 30/41 line is anything to sneeze at, but the sky’s the limit with Hanley.

As far as Derek Jeter goes, let me state this unequivocally in bold letters and write it in broad strokes with my own blood: SPENDING A HIGH PICK ON DEREK JETER IS A SURE FIRE WAY TO LOSE A FANTASY LEAGUE. In this alleged experts draft we’re using as a template, Bedard, Webb, Beckett, Hafner, Hamels, Sabathia, Lee, and Lackey all went after Jeter. That’s balderdash. He has value in name only at this point unless you play in a league whose only categories are on base percentage and runs. At this point in his career, Jeter’s job is to hit opposite field singles and let A-Rod drive him in. His real life value as a player depends on how much you think his clubhouse leadership factors in, but if you want to spend a top pick on a player who hit 12 HR and stole 15 bases in over 600 at bats, go ahead. Jeter’s second half statistical output last season was nearly equivalent to Dustin Pedroia’s, and Pedroia will be available much later in drafts.

Tulowitzki seems like a much more reasonable fantasy pick than Jeter to me this season, although he’s gonna have to cut down on his K’s to be worth reaching too high for him if your league counts K’s. Tulowitzki will most likely double Jeter’s HR output this season and score an equivalent amount of runs. If he becomes a better, more patient hitter in his second season his production will be greater than DJ’s.

A:Well, I think this raises a good question for the coming season — which is, if you’re sitting there at the start/middle of the 4th round and you’ve got your choice of Jeter and Tulowitzki, who do you take? Personally I think I go with the guy who’s almost a lock to flirt with 110 runs, flirt with 20 steals, and is going to have an .OBP in the .375-.400 range. Tulowitzki has more upside in the coming years, but I don’t expect Colorado to be the team they were down the stretch last season, all during 2008.

J:Regardless of Colorado’s performance, Tulowitzki is a rising star with .300/100 run/30 HR potential from the SS position. Fifteen steals over the course of your season really won’t benefit you as much as Jeter’s lack of power/RBI production will hurt you. There are a lot of SS’s you can find out there that will give you a high average and score runs without spending your 4th pick on him.

A:Moving on, I think you head into some dicey territory in Tejada and Furcal, and I’m not a big Michael Young fan. Guillen I do like, but I think he’ll typically be at the front of this group and not be a great value because I don’t think he belongs in the tier with Jeter and Tulowitzki. But once those guys are gone, one guy I might be on the lookout for around the 8th round, around the 90th or 100th pick would be Edgar Renteria. Of course, a lot of people thought the same thing two years ago when he went to the Red Sox, but hitting in a great Tigers lineup could put Renteria up into the 100 run, 70 RBI range, and make him a nice after-the-upper-tiers bargain. His highish .OBP and AVE are a nice bonus as well.

J:I’ll take Guillen over either of them easily. Guillen has emerged into a stud hitter in what is sure to be an insanely productive lineup, and he’ll also be 1B eligible this season. I doubt Renteria will last that long. Any reasonable fantasy owners know that everyone’s getting rich on the Tigers’ gravy train, and that he’s a good bet to hit .320-.330 with a bunch of runs. He’ll be a great fit in that offense.

A:So lets say shortstop of one of those positions you’ve let go during the draft and you’re looking at taking someone in that 10-15 range who’s going to be your starter. Who do you take? I actually think there are some good options here, so good that I’d think about passing on a lot of those middle guys and take a shot here. You’ve got Jhonny Peralta and JJ Hardy, two players capable of hitting 20 HRs, driving in around 70-80 and scoring 80-90 runs in good lineups. And I think Khalil Greene might even have more upside than either. I think he’s capable of touching 30 HRs and driving in 100 — but he may have peaked last year. He also strikes out a lot.

J:I like Peralta if you can stomach the K’s and low OBP. He’s a cheap source of power hitting in a potent lineup. Greene I’d only recommend if you’ve got a lot of good average hitters surrounding him and you can deal with his prolonged strings of 0-for-4 games that he puts up in between power surges.

Hanley illustration by Ted