Beltre

With the fat contract signed and after a few seasons of not living up to expectations, Adrian Beltre of the Mariners is slowly putting together a nice 2008 season. So far Beltre has 3HR's and 2SB's. This is a great sign for Beltre owners who drafted him in the 12-16 rounds. Beltre is even hitting in the 4th spot and with Ichiro ahead of him, it should give him plenty of RBI chances.

Owners, watch out and keep track of Beltre because of his injured hand. So far, everything looks fine but with a 162 game schedule minor injuries might slowly become bigger problems. Beltre is a great addition to spice up and add extra value in a deal to grab a premium hitter or pitcher in the near future. Watch his value shoot high and try to sell at the peak.

Suzuki - 7 Game Hit Streak

Are you thinking of Ichiro? Well, there's another Suzuki in the majors and he currently has hit successfully in all 7 games for the A's. Kurt Suzuki, a CATCHER, has his safely in every game the A's have played. We all know the catcher position is so shallow so as posted earlier, people who are hurting in the C position, please go out and grab Suzuki and ride his hot streak. He'll help with AVG and maybe provide some RBI's, but don't expect huge numbers like V-mart or R Martin.

First Day Notes

The first day of full action is finally finished.

Eric Gagne - He blew his first save opportunity (1IP, 3ER, 1BB, 1K, 1HR) but luckily he was on the right end of the stick and came out with a vulture win. Keep an eye on this situation in case this is the start of more blown saves. If you have space, grab Turnbow who might become the new Brewers closer.

Albert Pujols - Does this silence some of his critics? Big Albert hit a HR in his opener, which ended up being deleted due to rain, but shows us the upside he holds especially when he was drafted in the late first round and even into the early second.

Kosuke Fukudome - Had a great day at the plate for his first game in the big leagues (3Hits, 1HR, 3RBI, 1BB). Don't expect him to give huge power numbers but what was a nice sign was his attempt at stealing. He was thrown out but it does show that he will run. Add 15-20SB's this season while hitting 20+HR's. Would you like that on your team?

Erik Bedard - Allowing a HR in the first inning didn't seem like his spring numbers were just that, spring numbers. But after the HR he settled down and finished with 5IP, 3H, 4BB, 5K, 1HR. This was a positive step after a terrible spring.

Chris Young (OF) - Hit a HR in his first game. Taking a quick look at his 2007 stats (32HR in 569AB) shows he has power. But along with the power he has 141K's, 43BB's, and a disgusting .237AVG. Only if he could lower his K's and up his BB's because when he does find the bases he steals, evident by his 27SB's. Young might grow into a mold like Adam Dunn. Not a bad person to have on your fantasy team except for the fact you have to balance the low average with a very high average player like an Ichiro.

Alex Gordon - The highly touted 2007 rookie started his 2008 campaign with a HR and 2RBI's. After starting extremely cold last year fantasy owners hope he can bring the second half of 2007 into this year.