Aaron Harang (SP-ATL). Harang's magical mystery tour continued on Sunday afternoon, as he held the Nationals to 1 run over six innings, while striking out 5. Harang has now put up a 0.96 ERA and 17:6 K:BB ratio over his first 18.2 innings. This level of performance is clearly not sustainable, as it is being supported by a .191 BABIP and an 86.7 strand rate, which are way out of line with Harang's career .303 BABIP and 73.0% strand rate. The regression monster is going to hit Harang in a big way at some point, although he's not a bad streaming option this week, as he gets the feeble Mets in New York. Just don't forget that we're talking about a pitcher who posted a 5.40 ERA in 2013, despite pitching in two very favorable environments (Seattle and New York(N). It would be wildly unrealistic to expect Harang to post an ERA better than his current 3.98 xFIP.
Chase Utley (2B-PHI). Utley had another big day on Sunday, going 3 for 4 with 2 runs, an RBI and his third home run to raise his season line to .500/.565/.875. While Utley is obviously not going to maintain his current BA (which is supported by an unsustainable .486 BABIP), if Utley can stay healthy (which is always the issue with him), he looks like a good bet to at least match, if not surpass, his 18 HRs from 2013. You should have a backup plan in place if you're an Utley owner, because he will almost certainly spend some time on the DL in 2014, but early indications are that he will wind up being one of the more valuable fantasy 2B this year.
Jason Heyward (OF-ATL). Heyward went 1 for 4 with 3 runs, 1 RBI and his third SB on Sunday afternoon. Even with this performance, Heyward's season line sits at an ugly .149/.286/.298. However, Heyward owners should exercise patience, as the early indicators show that Heyward should be in line for a big season. Heyward's BA is being suppressed by an extremely unlucky .156 BABIP and he has already collected 2 HR and 3 SB (which is already one more than he had for the entire 2013 season). Further, despite the low OBP in the early going, Heyward has already scored 7 runs. The early returns indicate that, assuming Heyward can avoid the bad health luck that plagued him in 2013, he could post numbers similar to 2012, when he hit 27 HR and stole 21 bases, with the added bonus of a possible 100 runs scored hitting at the top of a potent Braves lineup.
Andrelton Simmons (SS-ATL). Simmons had a big day on Sunday, going 2 for 5 with a run, 3 RBIs and his first HR of the season, to bring his season line to .306/.325/.472. Interestingly, Simmons batted 5th in the Braves order. While this is probably not going to be an everyday occurrence (both Chris Johnson and Evan Gattis were out of the lineup), Simmons' lineup positioning is something to keep an eye on, as the higher he hits, the greater his fantasy value will be, as he could drive in 75 runs if he hits 5th or 6th in the Braves order. Simmons' 2013 BA of .248 was dragged down by a .247 BABIP, and a normalization of this number should allow Simmons to hit at least .270 in 2014, which, if he can maintain his increased power numbers, would make him a top ten fantasy SS.
Gio Gonzalez (SP-WAS). Gonzalez got roughed up by the Braves, giving up 6 ER on 9 hits and 4 walks over six innings, while striking out six. The beating increased Gonzalez' ERA for the season to 3.50. Gonzalez owners shouldn't panic, as this was likely nothing more than just one of those days for the lefty. Gonzalez' fastball velocity has shown no decrease and he should probably post numbers similar to 2013. One thing to keep an eye on, though, is Gonzalez' control numbers. His 17:7 K:BB rate for this season shows some slight slippage from 2013 and if that continues, it could negatively impact his fantasy numbers.
