Pagan, Solarte among this season’s early surprises

One of the greatest things about sports is the element of surprise.

Every year, there are players we might not have ever known to exist who come out of nowhere and put up numbers similar to elite players, whether for a few weeks or an entire season.

On the other hand, surprises also can go the other way. There are players who don’t live up to lofty expectations. These, of course, are very much unwelcome surprises, but we find ways to deal with them.

Over the first two weeks of the season, there have been several offensive players shocking and disappointing fantasy owners. While it’s very early in the season, and many of these good surprises can turn bad (and vice versa), here’s a look at some of the good, the bad and the sad surprises so far:

The good

Angel Pagan, OF, Giants: How unexpected was Pagan’s red-hot start (.442, one home run, eight RBIs, two stolen bases, 1.094 OPS)? As of a week ago, he was owned in 22.5 percent of ESPN leagues. As of Friday morning, he was owned in 92.7 percent! If he’s available, grab him now.

Yangervis Solarte, OF, Yankees: Talk about out of nowhere. The 26-year-old has made a splash with the Bombers, hitting .387 with seven RBIs and a 1.022 OPS in the first nine games of his career. It’s tough to know how long it will last, but take advantage of Solarte while he’s hot (available in 70 percent of ESPN leagues).

Melky Cabrera, OF, Blue Jays: In 2012, Cabrera was an doing great before being suspended after testing positive for testosterone. Last season, he played in only 88 games, not doing anything remotely impressive. This season, Cabrera could be one of the steals of the draft/best pick ups (now owned in 92 percent of ESPN leagues) with his hot start — 15-for-45 (.333) with four homers, five RBIs and a .978 OPS in his first 10 games.

Charlie Blackmon, OF, Rockies: The most added player in ESPN leagues this week, going from being owned in 0 percent of leagues to 74.8 percent by Friday. His .471 batting average, 1.178 OPS, eight RBIs and two stolen bases make him quite attractive to those struggling to find early-season offense.

Dee Gordon, SS, Dodgers: Through the Dodgers’ first nine games, Gordon was hitting .394 with one homer (tied his career high), five RBIs, four stolen bases and an OPS of .978. Surprising? Most definitely, but this is a career .263 hitter who has never played more than 87 games in a season. Ride the hot start if you’re in need of middle-infield help, but don’t be shocked if his numbers take a nose dive.

The bad

Prince Fielder, 1B, Rangers: So much for Fielder rediscovering that power stroke (or any kind of stroke) at the plate early on at the hitter-friendly park in Arlington. In his first nine games, he was 6-for-37 (.162) with no homers, three RBIs and a .421 OPS. Fielder will break out of the funk, but it’s hard to rely on him until he does.

Jason Heyward, OF, Braves: Maybe his true potential is being a disappointing, mediocre outfielder who has flashes of brilliance at the plate.

Edwin Encarnacion, 1B/DH, Blue Jays: Yes, it’s troubling to see Encarnacion with a .162 batting average, no homers and no RBIs after 10 games. But, after 10 games last year he was hitting .132 with one homer and four RBIs and he finished the season hitting .272 with 36 homers and 104 RBIs. Don’t give up on him, he’ll wake up.

Curtis Granderson, OF, Mets: Well, at least the .125 batting average he took into Friday night’s game fits in well with the Mets’ offensive prowess (.198 team batting average).

Brian McCann, C, Yankees: So, this is what an $85 million catcher looks like (.167, no homers, three RBIs, .356 OPS). Nice! He’ll wake up, but Roto Files suggests plugging another catcher into your lineup until he does.

Chris Davis, 1B, Orioles: After 10 games last season, Davis had six homers and 19 RBIs. It would’ve been crazy to expect that again this year, but seeing one homer before Friday would have been nice.

The sad

Josh Hamilton, OF, Angels: Just when you start to get excited about Hamilton’s return to form (.444, two homers, six RBIs, 1.286 OPS), he is sidelined for 6-to-8 weeks after tearing a ligament in his right hand. Put him on your disabled list and hope he picks up where he left off when he returns.

Team Name of the Week: Enrico Polanco