Denard Span
Span was gathering quite a bit of preseason buzz as a strong rebound candidate in 2016, and he made those writers feel smart, at least for a day, with a massive Opening Day performance. Span went 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and five RBI. Those five RBI are the most for Span since July 16, 2012, so don't expect many five-RBI games to come, especially out of the leadoff spot. However, Span should provide plenty of value atop a potent Giant lineup in 2016. Span hit five home runs and stole 11 bases in just 61 games last year, and could easily hit 12-15 home runs with 25 or so steals in 2016. That's pretty strong production, especially considering he's a lifetime .287 hitter, meaning he'll almost certainly contribute in BA this year. Ironically, the RBI that stood out so much Monday will probably be his weakest category, but having five in the bag is a nice start. It's unlikely that Span is available in your league (though if he is, go get him immediately unless your in a four-team league or something crazy), so this is mostly to say, good job Denard Span owners.
Matt Duffy
One of the main things pundits were saying about Duffy this offseason was that he was primed to see a drop off from the 12 home runs he hit in 2015. Duffy had never hit double-digit home runs in any minor league season, and the ESPN home run tracker info didn't bode well. He had an average true distance of 391.8 feet, in the lower tier of the league, and his average speed off the bat was well below league average (101.4). Naturally, Duffy went deep on Opening Day, as part of a 2-for-5 effort with four RBI. Duffy is now on pace four 162 home runs and 748 RBI!! Of course, that's the beauty of Opening Day, and the first day home run for Duffy doesn't really effect his 2016 projections, other than to likely add one home run and 3.5ish RBI to his end-of-season projections. The Giants lineup looked mighty potent on Monday, which might make prognosticators increase Duffy's projections a bit, except for the fact that they won't get to face the Brewers pitching staff in Miller Park every night. (Also, the whole "it was one game" thing.) Duffy, similar to Span, isn't available in most leagues, and rightfully so. If he is available, he should be owned, but don't go overreacting too much to one day and make a Tyson Ross-for-Matt Duffy type trade offer.
Bryce Harper
Bryce Harper is good.
OK, maybe you want a bit more analysis than that, but seriously, Harper is amazing. Harper got the McDouble on Opening Day, with a home run in his first at bat and a steal after a walk in his fourth at bat. Harper's ceiling is the number one player in fantasy baseball, and really the only thing that could keep him out of the top ten would be injuries. Opening Day didn't do much to worry owners about injuries, and had to make them feel pretty warm and fuzzy about getting that top-three pick that allowed them to secure the 23-year-old megastar. Harper drew a couple of walks on Monday, and pitchers may well start pitching Harper like early 2000s Bonds if he continues to hit like he did last season. The Braves announcers were already talking about pitching around Harper on Monday... With the bases empty and no one out in the sixth inning - that's respect. In that respect, a fair amount of pressure rests on Ryan Zimmerman and Daniel Murphy to protect Harper well enough that he actually gets to see some hittable pitches this season. They should, and Harper should make his owners happy quite often this season.
David Hernandez
The Phillies have one of the few unresolved closer situations in baseball, but David Hernandez might have made the situation a bit clearer on Opening Day, although not in a way that helped his own cause. Hernandez came into the game in the eighth inning with the Phillies holding a 2-1 lead. This already wasn't a good sign for Hernandez owners, as they would have to be hoping Hernandez would have been saved for a one-run lead in the ninth. Things only got worse from there, as Hernandez walked Adam Duvall (no, that is not a made up name, I swear), gave up a double to Scott Schebler (definitely had to Google that dude's first name), walked the all-powerful (....) Billy Hamilton, and then got yanked. Hernandez supposedly had a slight edge on the rest of the Phillie bullpen (Dalier Hinojosa, Jeanmar Gomez, Brett Oberholtzer, and James Russell et al), but the fact that he came into the game in the eighth of a potential save situation, and then imploded from there makes it unlikely he'll get the next save opportunity. Unless you're truly desperate for saves, Hernandez shouldn't be on any rosters, NL-Only or otherwise, right now, and even if he does get the closer nod at some point in the future, is an aggressively mediocre pitcher who will more than likely not be able to hold onto the position for any extended period of time.
Daily Fantasy Leagues
Domingo Santana
Santana had what is likely to be a pretty typical day for him in 2016 in his first game of the season, going 2-for-5 with a run scored and two strikeouts. DraftKings doesn't punish strikeouts for hitters, however, so Santana should be pretty valuable in days that he is in the lineup in 2016. Santana offers a nice power/speed combo in a format that greatly rewards home runs and steals. For Santana, the sky-high strikeout rate is canceled out, in part, by a solid walk rate that makes him less of a candidate for a Danny Santana (no relation)-like drop off this season. Santana is well below top tier outfielders in terms of price Tuesday, and is even cheaper than the middle tier of players like Melky Cabrera and Aaron Hicks. Santana will face Johnny Cueto, a pitcher who was no stranger to blow ups in 2015, and is pitching in Miller Park, where he owns a career 4.19 ERA, well off his 3.30 career ERA. Santana could be an excellent tournament play as well, as his ceiling with the HR/SB McDouble potential is very high.
DraftKings: $3,300
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