There are few things in fantasy that can really irritate fantasy owners, and one of the bigger ones is watching a top-tier player, who was drafted in the early rounds, go down before the season even begins. Anthony Rendon of the Washington Nationals just happens to have earned the ire of many fantasy owners by landing on the disabled list for a strained MCL. At this point, fantasy owners are going to have two major questions, and now seems like a perfect time to answer them.

The first thing owners are going to want to know is when is Rendon coming back. Sadly, that is not too clear at the moment since the team does not know either, and that is going to complicate things. The good news is that it is a strain, and while that does mean there is some slight damage, some rest and rehab should be able to get him back on the field.

The bad news is that the Nationals are playing this smart and are not going to rush Rendon back from the DL until the team is 100% sure that he is healthy. In the end, that is what fantasy owners want to hear since a fully healthy Rendon is a major asset. However, that also means this could, and likely will, go past the 15-day minimum that the team has to wait to activate him.

The second major question for fantasy owners is how to replace that level of production now that Rendon is out for maybe a month. Well, owners are up a certain creek and are going to be missing a certain item to help them move around. The best way to go about replacing Rendon is to focus the search to players that will help owners fill in a blank or two and not one that will fill in all the blanks. What this means is looking at the team and seeing what Rendon’s absence hurts the most. Was he going to help fill in for speed? Was he going to fill in for power? Was he the team's second baseman or third baseman? These are the questions owners need to ask themselves, and from there it can be easier to find a good fill in.

Now that we have an idea what to look for, let's see who could be available for owners. The first place to look is the team itself. The options are very limited since the team is likely running with a platoon of Dan Uggla and Danny Espinosa at second base while Yunel Escobar takes third base.

Espinosa is not a particularly intriguing option, but Uggla could be something to keep an eye on as long as the expectations are properly lowered. He is not the .260/.320/.500 hitter anymore -- more like a .220/.280/.460 -- but if owners are looking for power, there is a chance he can get fifteen home runs this year. Then again, he will not help in any other areas but power.

If the team does go through with this platoon idea, Escobar could become an interesting option, but, as with Uggla, do not expect too much even if he is a little underrated in OBP. Overall, if owners are looking for a replacement, it  other teams and players will likely serve owners better.

Limiting the search to either second baseman and third baseman, because those are Rendon's positions, take a look at players on other teams that owners can pick up. Luis Valbuena of the Houston Astros is a solid pick if owners are in an OBP league, and he will give a fair amount of power to owners. Marcus Semien of the Oakland Athletics may be a rookie, but he was with the White Sox last year, and he brings that talent to the A’s in 2015. Semien has the ability to be a pretty solid all around player who could develop into a 15/15 player this year though the odds are closer to 10/10 with a solid .350 OBP potential.

Joe Panik of the San Francisco Giants is actually a very good option, but at the same time, he will not help in any specific area but will give owners seven to ten home runs with about the same number of stolen bases and still maintain a solid OBP.

Other potential options for some power include Trevor Plouffe, Mike Moustakas, and Miguel Sano (if he gets called up that is). Speed-wise owners can look into Emilio Bonifacio, Jose Peraza, Micah Johnson, and Delino DeShields, Jr. For owners who lost Rendon, these players will not take away the pain of losing him, but they could be able to lessen it.