Everyone can have a good day every once in a while, right? I think the most repeated cliche to represent this is "Every dog has his day".
Well, let me give you another cliche, "A river begins with one drop of water". To slant that one into fantasy baseball speak I'll say that even though it's just one game, players who shined on day one of the Major League baseball season might just be starting a trend that will last a long time. Joe DiMaggio had to start his 56-game hitting streak with the first hit, right?
A lot of players shined yesterday in baseball's Opening Day. Here are ten players who are available in many of your fantasy leagues, ranked from highest percentage of ownership to lowest.
1. Hank Blalock, Rangers - Blalock went 2-4 yesterday with a home run and three RBI. Most people are waiting for some part of his body to fall off or spontaneously combust, which is why he's only owned in 52% of Yahoo leagues. Until that expected injury occurs, Blalock isn't a bad fantasy option. He does hit in the heart of a somewhat potent lineup in a great hitters park.
2. Adam Lind, Blue Jays - Lind continued a fantastic spring by going 4-5 with a home run and, count them, six RBI. He's owned in 40% of Yahoo leagues, but anyone on pace to drive in 972 runs should be considered for your fantasy squad.
3. Emilio Bonifacio, Marlins - The new Marlins leadoff hitter shocked everyone yesterday with a 4-5 performance with a home run, four runs and three stolen bases. He's owned in 35% of Yahoo leagues now, but that number grew exponentially from the day before.
4. Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Rangers - Salty won the starting catcher's job in Spring Training, and he'll hold onto it for sure with more 2-4 performances with three RBI and a home run. He's owned in 34% of Yahoo leagues and as long as he's the Rangers' go-to backstop, he's a safe pick-up.
5. Michael Bourn, Astros - Bourn is one of the fastest guys around. The knock on him is that he can't get on base enough to be a really valuable fantasy option. He went 2-4 yesterday and although they were both singles and he didn't steal a base, if he continues to reach base like this he could lead the league in swipes. Bourn is only owned in 13% of Yahoo leagues.
6. Mike Fontenot, Cubs - The presence of Fontenot made it easier for the Cubs to stomach Mark DeRosa's departure. Fontenot went 3-4 yesterday with a double and has a decent enough power stroke to predict 15 homers from him if he can reach 500 at-bats this season. He'd make a great MI addition as he's only owned in 9% of Yahoo leagues.
7. Ryan Church, Mets - Adding Church is a tricky suggestion as nobody knows yet how Gary Sheffield is going to fit into the Mets outfield mix. Church went 2-4 yesterday with a stolen base but is only owned in 8% of Yahoo leagues.
8. Kevin Millwood, Rangers - Millwood looked like the old heralded Braves prospect he once was. He out-dueled Cliff Lee by pitching seven strong innings while only giving up one run and five hits with a five to one strikeout to walk ratio. Millwood is only owned in 6% of Yahoo leagues.
9. Nyjer Morgan, Pirates - Morgan had six stolen bases this spring and kept that trend going yesterday with a stolen base in the Pirates opener. He also went 3-5 with two RBI and is only owned in 2% of Yahoo leagues.
10. Tony Clark, Diamondbacks - And for Mr. Irrelevant on today's list, Tony Clark is only owned in 1% of Yahoo leagues. He went 2-4 yesterday with three RBI and two home runs.
