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The top fantasy option on the San Francisco Giants, at least entering Tuesday’s game, actually suffered a fractured leg Saturday and kept on playing until the team figured it out Wednesday afternoon and put him on the disabled list. Don’t worry, Madison Bumgarner owners, he’s just fine! It’s the same with awesome catcher Buster Posey, valuable middle infielders Joe Panik and Brandon Crawford and even closer Santiago Casilla. They’re healthy, and you’re thinking, who else is there who could have been that good? Well, it was actually outfielder Nori Aoki, the somewhat surprising contributor in batting average, runs scored and stolen bases, and the team’s valuable leadoff hitter, who is going to miss a bunch of time with this injury after he was hit by a Carlos Frias pitch Saturday. Because he’s just outside the top 20 outfielders on the Player Rater -- and was the top Giant on a balanced squad until Bumgarner whiffed 14 in his Tuesday outing -- this is relevant in fantasy. While I can’t make a great case to keep Aoki owned in 10- and 12-team standard leagues, I became instantly intrigued when I saw the San Francisco lineup without him. Center fielder Angel Pagan, himself capable of similar Aoki-like production and readily available, was shifted to leadoff, which makes more sense than hitting third because he has hit nary a home run, and Matt Duffy took his spot ahead of Posey. Matt Duffy? Well yeah, Duffy is actually doing nice work this season at third base. He drew a key walk in front of the Posey grand slam Wednesday, but saw his eight-game hitting streak end. He makes contact, as in on pace for 13 home runs and 73 RBIs, and the best part is he’s middle infield-eligible in ESPN leagues thanks to last season. Duffy is no star, but he’s nearly a top-10 second baseman during the past 30 days, which counts for something. In time, the Giants will get back Aoki and right fielder Hunter Pence, and the lineup will look different. For now, I’d call Pagan and Duffy interesting deep-league options and occasional DFS plays should Wednesday’s lineup construction remain the same. Gregor Blanco also should see time in the leadoff spot and it’s worth noting he has averaged 19 stolen bases per season in his three years in San Francisco. Frankly, the case could be made to add Blanco over Pagan. Word on Pence and his sore wrist is he won’t swing a bat for another week, and I’d say he’s not returning before the All-Star break. That’s fine, really. We’d prefer he’s healthy when he comes back and hits anyway. For those who owned Aoki looking for replacements, using 50 percent availability in ESPN standard leagues as a benchmark, the top options who are playing well the past few weeks are Randal Grichuk of the St. Louis Cardinals, Gerardo Parra of the Milwaukee Brewers, Michael Taylor of the Washington Nationals, and Kevin Kiermaier and Joey Butler of the Tampa Bay Rays. I’d personally go with those Rays. The other guys are each playing because someone else is hurt, and that someone else could return soon. Kiermaier runs -- and is a joy to watch defensively, though that has no bearing here, I suppose, other than it keeps him out there! -- and Butler continues to hit second in an underrated lineup, and overcome his swing-and-miss proclivities. NL report: Perhaps Pittsburgh Pirates ace right-hander Gerrit Cole just can’t deal with the Cincinnati Reds. Cole was pounded for four first-inning runs against them Wednesday, and ended up allowing eight hits and three walks, and five runs, in 4 2/3 innings. Cole, who entered Wednesday as fantasy’s No. 2 starting pitcher behind Max Scherzer, has made 15 starts this season. The 12 not against the Reds are all quality starts, and feature a 1.33 ERA. The three against the Reds are bad. Keep relying on Cole. He can’t face the Reds again for at least another month. … Philadelphia Phillies lefty Cole Hamels was no better at Yankee Stadium Wednesday, permitting five runs in five innings but again, don’t panic. He’s fine and a reasonable defense could have prevented all those runs. … Cardinals outfielder Jason Heyward, pretty much sans warning, has homered in three consecutive games and four of six. He’s raised his batting average 24 points in a week. Buying? Yeah, the ability has been there and now he’s lifting the ball, not hitting a grounder every other at-bat. Let’s see if it continues. … Giants right-hander Ryan Vogelsong, completely under the radar, won Wednesday and hasn’t permitted a run in his past two outings. There’s little upside but he’s usable as a spot starter, including next time out in Miami. … The San Diego Padres had outfielder Matt Kemp leading off against the Giants. It didn’t work out. Kemp owners should be realistic at this point. AL report: The beleaguered Boston Red Sox lost second baseman Dustin Pedroia and outfielder Hanley Ramirez to injuries during their 5-1 win Wednesday. Pedroia’s malady, a hamstring pull, appears more serious. Watch Brock Holt see time at his spot. Ramirez has a left hand contusion, after a batted ball hit him while he was jogging to second base. Insert joke here. Ramirez sure can hit, and we’re all technically day-to-day, but he seems to earn that designation more than most. … Yankees right-hander Ivan Nova made a triumphant return from Tommy John surgery Wednesday, tossing 6 2/3 shutout innings against the Phillies, though he struck out only one. Nova, who won 16 games in 2011, isn’t worth adding in standard formats yet, but keep on watching. … Los Angeles Angels lefty Andrew Heaney, one of the top pitching prospects in the sport, finally made his team debut Wednesday with six innings of one-run ball against the Houston Astros. Heaney’s numbers for Triple-A Salt Lake are misleading; it’s a tough place to pitch, but his K rate was excellent and he allowed only two home runs in 78 1/3 innings. Take him over Nova and I could see a top-60 pitcher here this season. … Minnesota Twins manager Paul Molitor continues to adjust his lineups. Rookie outfielder Byron Buxton led off against Chicago White Sox lefty Chris Sale Wednesday but went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts. Other Twins did better, as Sale allowed six runs (five earned). Keep Buxton owned. There’s major upside here, even at age 21. … Oh, and Sale still struck out 10. Top-three pitcher, folks. … Yeah, it’s time to take Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Marco Estrada seriously, after he brought a no-hitter into the eighth inning for the second consecutive game. Estrada fanned 10 Tampa Bay Rays. He’s made great strides to avoid allowing a home run every outing, like last year. This could be a top-50 starter soon. … Finally, congrats to Cleveland Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor for hitting his first big league home run Wednesday. Of course, the defense-minded Lindor isn’t a great fantasy option, and now would be a wise time to see if someone else in your league thinks he is.
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