Jeanmar Gomez (SP-PHI): Gomez preserved the W for the Phillies to earn his 2nd consecutive save, enticing fantasy players to spend those FAAB dollars. Three issues, however, led me to limit my bids to less than 5% of my total budget: his 16% K-rate the past two seasons (fueled by a swinging strike rate that sits below league average), the fact that he pitches for the Phillies, and the quick trigger finger possessed by his manager. He owns the next save chance for now, and he continues to induce plenty of weak contact on the ground, but I wouldn't be surprised to see another Philly--perhaps Hernandez or Hinojosa again if he can put together a string of solid outings--garnering FAAB attention by the end of April.
Trayce Thompson (OF-LAD): TT delivered in his 1st start of the season, going 2 for 3 with 2 RBI, but his effort wasn't enough to overcome the rough outing by Scott Kazmir. With Carl Crawford on the DL, Thompson should see plenty of starts against righties as he did yesterday against Johnny Cueto. The youngster held his own last season during his first taste of the Majors when he was with the White Sox, posting a .295/.363/.533 line with a 30% hard hit rate and a 104 MPH speed off bat on his homers. If you miss out on Soler, don't forget about Thompson.
Eugenio Suarez (3B/SS-CIN): Eugenio continued his torrid start to 2016, homering off Jeff Locke for his 4th long ball of the season. After posting average marks in the EYE and hard hit departments, Suarez is making consistently hard contact in the early going and has 3 walks to 1 strikeout. While I envision him contributing in AVG and run departments the rest of the way, I don't see the power as legit, as his 101 MPH over the past two seasons is well below league average and one that won't sustain his recent HR/FB rates. The ballpark and his proclivity towards pulling the ball will enable him to hit 15-18 homers (as per our preseason projections), but don't pay for more than that based on the start.
Jimmy Nelson (SP-MIL): The Full Nelson logged another impressive outing, striking out 9 in 6 innings of 2-run ball, as he continues his sneaky development into a must-start option. He recorded 2/3 of outs on groundballs and looked much more confidence with his deepening repertoire. Let's not forget that Nelson logged a 10% swinging strike rate and a 60% first-pitch strike mark in 2015 after dominating in the upper minors throughout 2014 in some of the most hitter-friendly environments in the known universe. If he's out there, scoop him up.
Jeremy Hazelbaker (OF-STL): Priced at $2500 on DraftKings, Hazelbaker makes for a solid DFS play today. The career MiLB journeyman has plenty of speed and has swiped some of the AB's away from Randal Grichuk near the top of the STL lineup for the time being. Hazelbaker will likely face a pitcher in Taylor Jungmann who has struggled mightily in his young career on the road. Until his prices rises, as long as he's in the starting lineup, Hazelbaker makes for a solid OF play that allows you to spend up for an elite SP.
