Just over three weeks ago, Detroit Tiger Brennan Boesch made his major league debut. He went 2-for-4 with a double against the Texas Rangers. Boesch has not stopped hitting since his entry into the Tiger lineup.

In his first 17 career games, Boesch has hits in 14 of them. The rookie outfielder has also had the good fortune of seeing base runners aboard nearly every time he advances to the plate. Hitting in the 5-hole behind Johnny Damon, Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Cabrera has given Boesch plenty of opportunity to drive in runs. Through Friday's games, Boesch had 17 RBIs.

One might think that this stretch of exceptional play has made Boesch a favorite free agent among fantasy owners. Alas, the 235-pound slugger remains a free agent in three of every four leagues. True, Boesch has only hit three home runs and has crossed the plate himself just six times; however, he is hitting .361.

Instead of dashing through the free-agent racks to acquire Boesch, fantasy owners are content to assume that his tenure in the Detroit outfield will be short-lived. The Tigers' projected outfield at the onset of the year contained Damon, Ordonez, rookie Austin Jackson and Carlos Guillen.

The odd man out would typically act as the designated hitter. A hamstring injury to Guillen opened the door for Boesch. Therefore, the common sentiment is that once Guillen comes back from his ailment, the veteran will regain his position in left field and the rookie will return to either the pine or the minors.

Such a scenario is unlikely. Carlos Guillen is three years removed from his hitting heyday in the Motor City. From 2004-07, Guillen hit .313 and had three seasons of at least 19 homers, 85 RBIs and 85 runs scored. In his next two campaigns, Guillen suffered mightily from the injury bug, playing only 194 games. He hit a mere .242 in 81 games in 2009.

When Guillen returns to the lineup, it is certainly possible that he will take away some of Boesch's playing time. Improbable is the development, though, that a run-producing machine like Boesch is relegated to pinch-hitting duty simply because a 34-year-old, injury-plagued veteran is temporarily healthy.

Boesch hit 28 home runs for Double-A Erie in 2009 and drove in 93 runs. In 438 games in the minors, he had 297 RBIs for a rate better than two ribbies for every three games. Boesch is a promising hitter and can fill a fantasy void in the outfield. Even if Guillen beats the odds and becomes an everyday player once he comes off the disabled list at the end of this month, owners will have two weeks to profit from Boesch's services.

One of the more interesting stories in baseball this year is the success of the customary denizens of the NL East cellar, the Washington Nationals. Through Friday, the Nats were 20-15 and a game and a half behind the Phillies for first place in the division. The Nationals have been quite fortunate in close games, going 13-6 in contests decided by two runs or less.

The biggest beneficiary of Washington's games not being decided until the latter innings is reliever Tyler Clippard. Through 35 team games, Clippard has seven wins. Not only does he have the most wins among relievers (the next closest is Texas' Frank Francisco with four), but he also leads the majors in wins.

In the last 20 years, no pitcher appearing primarily in relief has won more than a dozen games. Clippard is on pace to easily eclipse that total, and his ownership has skyrocketed in the last month. The 25-year-old is on rosters in roughly 40 percent of all leagues.

Outside of leagues that give credit for holds, Clippard has little value going forward. The fact that he has seven wins at this juncture of the season is anomalistic. His win total is a direct result of the fact that the Nationals are playing and winning a lot of close games. As these games become less frequent, Clippard will have fewer opportunities to win. Fantasy owners currently relying on Clippard may want to peddle him to an owner in desperate need of a relief pitcher.