To tier a position means to bundle players with a similar projected outcome, creating an alternate form of rankings that will better serve you on Draft Day. Knowing which position to target means knowing where the biggest drop-off is coming, and having tiers will make it immediately apparent during the heat of the draft.
Tiers 1.0: Catcher | First base | Second base | Third base | Shortstop | Outfield | Starting pitcher | Relief pitcher
Below are the starting pitcher tiers for 2021, depicting a incomparably large position that's mostly devoid of a middle class.
The Super Elite: Shane Bieber, Jacob deGrom, Gerrit Cole
The Elite: Trevor Bauer, Yu Darvish, Aaron Nola, Lucas Giolito, Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw, Luis Castillo, Kenta Maeda, Jack Flaherty, Walker Buehler, Zac Gallen, Carlos Carrasco, Brandon Woodruff
The Near-Elite: Lance Lynn, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Stephen Strasburg, Zach Plesac, Corbin Burnes, Dinelson Lamet, Zack Greinke, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Kyle Hendricks
The Next-Best Things: Max Fried, Zack Wheeler, Sonny Gray, Framber Valdez, Dylan Bundy, Jose Berrios, Chris Paddack
The Fallback Options: Ian Anderson, Sixto Sanchez, Jesus Luzardo, Lance McCullers, Patrick Corbin, Charlie Morton, Mike Soroka, Julio Urias, Sandy Alcantara, German Marquez, Kevin Gausman, Joe Musgrove, Triston McKenzie
The Last Resorts: Corey Kluber, Frankie Montas, Dustin May, Marco Gonzales, Pablo Lopez, Tyler Mahle, James Paxton, David Price, Michael Pineda, Jose Urquidy, Aaron Civale, Tony Gonsolin, Cristian Javier, Shohei Ohtani, Dallas Keuchel, Marcus Stroman, John Means, Michael Kopech, Deivi Garcia
The Deep-Leaguers: Brady Singer, Dane Dunning, Nate Pearson, Drew Smyly, Zach Eflin, Eduardo Rodriguez, Andrew Heaney, Masahiro Tanaka, Griffin Canning, Domingo German, Elieser Hernandez, Chris Bassitt, Adam Wainwright, Zach Davies, Luis Severino, MacKenzie Gore, Jordan Montgomery, Nathan Eovaldi, Sean Manaea, Chris Sale, Noah Syndergaard, Tarik Skubal, A.J. Puk*, Ryan Yarbrough, Brad Keller, Justus Sheffield, Jameson Taillon
The Leftovers: Mitch Keller, Spencer Howard, Adbert Alzolay, Matthew Boyd, Kris Bubic, Rich Hill, Carlos Martinez, Kwang Hyun Kim, Casey Mize, Yusei Kikuchi, Taijuan Walker, Matt Manning, Forrest Whitley, Brendan McKay, Luke Weaver, Ross Stripling, Caleb Smith, Robbie Ray, Merrill Kelly, Dylan Cease, J.A. Happ, Madison Bumgarner, Jake Odorizzi, Matt Shoemaker, Matt Shoemaker, Cole Hamels, Danny Duffy, Nick Pivetta*, Michael Lorenzen*, Jose Quintana*, Randy Dobnak, Dean Kremer, Kyle Wright, Mike Minor, Jon Gray, Steven Matz, Tanner Houck, Trevor Rogers, Chris Archer, Miles Mikolas, Garrett Richards, Tyler Chatwood, Anthony DeSclafani, Carlos Rodon, Michael Fulmer, David Peterson, Alec Mills, Spencer Turnbull, Adrian Houser, Antonio Senzatela
* RP-eligible
