As expected, the Dodgers have emerged as the team to beat in the NL West with a smoking hot start. They currently sit at 10-2, one game up on the surpising San Diego Padres. In addition, to the team's success on the field there are several individuals wearing Doger Blue helping out fantasy owners early on:

SP Chad Billingsley - The right-hander has been nasty early on for LA, picking up a victory in each of his three starts while posting a 2.84 ERA. His 21 strikeouts in 19 innings has given owners and a boost and only reaffirms his potential fantasy ace status.

SP Clayton Kershaw - Despite not having a win to show for it yet this season, the Dogers' young hurler has gone from top notch prospect to solid producer. Through two starts he has yielded just two runs 12 innings of work. His 19:5 strikeout-to-walk ratio is a great sign of good things to come.

RP Jonathan Broxton - Broxton brings the heat and is going to see plenty of save chances ahead closing down games for Joe Torre.  He's converted 4 of 4 chances so far and opponents are only batting .050 against him. The only concern could be the offesne is so good, there could be a ton of Dodgers' blowouts ahead.

LF Manny Ramirez - The power numbers haven't been spectacular early on (2 HR, 7 RBI), but it's hard to complain about his .326 batting average and .491 OBP. He is going to keep on producing at a high level as long as he stays healthy.

RF Andre Ethier - Even though he's no longer hitting in front of Manny Ramirez (batting 4th, behind Ramirez), the young outfielder is picking right up on last year's solid finish. Through the first two weeks of the season Ethier leads the NL with 16 RBIs and is batting .298 with 4 HR's (2 two-homerun games). He's solid No 3 fantasy outfielder already with big time upside.

CF Matt Kemp - With Juan Pierre having played his way out of the lineup, Kemp is finally getting enough at bats to be considered a legitimate starting fantasy outfielder. He has delivered for those who have given him the chance early on with solid numbers (.383, 3 HR, 14 RBI) and steady play.

2B Orlando Hudson - O-Hud has already hit for the cycle and is off to a hot start. Second base is a thin position in fantasy baseball, making Hudson's .385 average, team-leading 12 runs, and 4 for 4 stolen base success rate that much more valuable.

C Russell Martin - It hasn't been the most triumphant of starts for Martin, but he has heated up of late. He's much better than his current .244 average would indicate and should be considered a top three fantasy backstop until further notice, particularly in this line-up.

Fantasy Baseball dodgers, chad billingsley, clayton kershaw, jonathan broxton, manny ramirez, andre ethier, matt kemp, orlando hudson, russell martin