Clay Buchholz, SP, BOS
Buchholz was at the top of his game Monday, striking out 9 in seven shutout innings, only allowing three hits and one walk. The Phillies have one of the weaker lineups in baseball, but the outing was impressive nonetheless. Buchholz has been inconsistent over the years so it's hard to know what to expect going forward, but after this performance, owners may want to keep him around for his next start against the Yankees.
Rick Porcello, SP, BOS
Porcello has signed a four year, $82.5 million contract extansion with the Red Sox. Porcello is coming off a season in which he posted career bests in wins (15) and ERA (3.43) and the Red Sox obviously feel he can keep up those type of numbers. He has never been a big strikeout pitcher, only once having a K/9 over 6.0, but he had a career-low 1.80 BB/9 in 2014, and has always had a high groundball rate which should help him be successful even in the hitter-friendly Fenway. He will make his Red Sox debut on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
Masahiro Tanaka, SP, NYY
Tanaka took the loss Opening Day against the Blue Jays, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits and two walks in 4 IP. Despite the disappointing final numbers, there was definitely some positive for Tanaka in the game as he struck out 6 of the 20 hitters he faced, and his xFIP for the game was actually 1.56. He will hope for better results next time out against the Red Sox.
Alex Rios, OF, KC
Rios had a big debut for the Royals, going 3 for 4 with a three-run homer and a SB. Rios' value was low coming into the season after only hitting four homeruns for the Rangers last year, but if his power returns, he could be one of the better in fantasy. Prior to last season, he had nine straight years with double-digit homeruns and steals and has a career .278 average. There aren't many players who have a power-speed combo, hit for a high average, and don't strikeout often but Rios could fall into that category.
Stephen Vogt, C, OAK
Vogt hit right-handers well last season, hitting .291/.331/.439 and only striking out 13.9% of the time. That success continued on Monday, as Vogt went 2-4 with a double, homerun and 3 RBI. Like other left-handed bats in the A's lineup, Vogt has a good matchup against Rangers righty Colby Lewis on Tuesday. Lewis has never had success against left-handed hitters, allowing an .829 OPS and 1.33 HR/9 against them in his career, which is good news for the left-handed Vogt. There is also no need to worry that the Rangers bring in a left-handed reliever later in the game, as Texas has opened the season without a single southpaw in their bullpen. Value Play Draftkings Salary: $3,500
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