Yunel Escobar (2B/3B-WAS) - Once Anthony Rendon (oblique strain) is ready to return in the next week or at most, two weeks, the Nationals will have to make a decision on their infield rotation. Surely Rendon and Ryan Zimmerman will play most every day at the corners and Ian Desmond at short, but that still leaves one of Danny Espinosa (.254/.355/.440) or Escobar (.319/.378/.396) on the bench every day. Espinosa has more power and is a better defender at this point than Escobar, but Denard Span out and the Nationals lacking a true leadoff man backup, Escobar's OBP looks pretty tempting at the top of the order. I'd look for Escobar to be the regular second baseman, but Espinosa should still have deep league value as a 3-to-4 days a week guy and pinch-hitter. At a $3,400 Draft Kings salary, Escobar doesn't have a lot of upside given the lack of power, but a decent BA and plenty of runs hitting ahead of Bryce Harper and company does him some daily value.
Alex Guerrero (OF/UT-LAD) - With Scott Van Slyke headed to the DL with a back injury and Juan Uribe in Atlanta, Guerrero should be in line for regular playing time in LF and 3B for the near future. Guerrero started game one of Tuesday's double header against the Rockies and went 1-for-4 with a double. He did not start game two, but he saved his dramatics for the ninth inning of that game when he tagged Rafeael Betancourt for a grand slame with the Dodgers down three runs at the time. The big fly left Guerrero with a .296/.327/.684 slash and 10 home runs in just 98 at-bats. Sure, his 24:4 K:BB is far from ideal, but it's tough to argue with an OPS over 1.000. Guerrero is a tough guy to recommend in Draft Kings formats given the sporadic playing time, but if you set your lineup just before your contest starts, you could know whether or not he's playing.
Paul Goldschmidt (1B-ARI) - This was going to be obvious once we saw the lineup the Diamondbacks were going to trot out this year. Paul Goldschmidt, some nice players, and question marks like Yasmani Tomas. Well, Goldschmidt was 1-for-1 on Tuesday, but no, he didn't sit the game out and then enter later as a pinch-hitter. He walked four times, including once with the bases loaded. For the year, Goldschmidt is batting a robust p, but why pitch to the guy at all? I guess Mark Trumbo is a bit of a power threat until he gets hurt again, but look for Goldschmidt to continue to rack up the walks. With 15 homers, 40 appear to be within reach, but not if pitchers get wise and avoid him. In OBP leagues though, he's easily the best first baseman in fantasy. Even in non-OBP formats, he's probably the same. He's right up there with Adrian Gonzalez with a $5,400 Draft Kings salary, tops among all first basemen, but there's hardly a safer bet, unless the walks continue to accrue.
Matt Kemp (OF-SD) - While Yasmani Grandal is turning into one of baseball's better hitting catchers, Matt Kemp is looking like a huge bust for the Padres. He fanned three times in four at-bats on Tuesday to lower his slash to just .242/.277/.322, and yes, that is a sub-.600 OPS. Kemp has just one homer all year and his 52:9 K:BB is awful, just like his outfield defense. Perhaps the Dodgers knew what they were doing after all by shedding $75 million salary, picking up a solid catcher, and having the Padres send a pitcher that was subsequently flipped for Jimmy Rollins. Kemp should eventually get things going, but if you argued that he's past his prime, I wouldn't argue. His Draft Kings salary ($4,100) would have to come down by at least $1,000 for me to get interested.
A.J. Pollock (OF-ARI) - Pollock may be among the more underrated outfielders in the game right now. Tuesday, Pollock was 2-for-5 with a two-run homer to give him six long balls on the year. He's also swiped 13 bases and is hitting a solid .314/.365/.474 on the season while playing a solid center field. Hopefully he'll get some All-Star consideration, though outfield is as loaded as ever and we know Paul Goldschmidt is a lock to represent the Diamondbacks. Pollock has been particularly effective against lefties, batting .378 against them coming into Tuesday's action, nearly 100 points above his pre-2015 career mark. That's allowed him to play every day and continue to blossom. His ceiling is somewhat limited, but it would not be a surprise to see him hitting .300 with 15-20 homers and 30 steals by year's end.
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