Steve Gardner

USA TODAY Sports

It’s the same old story.

Every year, a handful of players have unexpectedly great opening weeks — sending fantasy owners into a frenzy trying to pick them up — only to end up being major disappointments the rest of the way.

Detroit Tigers first baseman Chris Shelton (.583, five home runs, nine RBI, 1.458 slugging percentage) did it in 2006.

Emilio Bonifacio (.500, nine runs, five RBI, four stolen bases) did it in 2009.

The example fantasy owners remember most fondly is Chicago Cubs outfielder Karl “Tuffy” Rhodes, who hit three home runs off Dwight Gooden on opening day in 1994.

Those lucky enough to add Rhodes got a grand total of five home runs and a .234 batting average the rest of the season.

And we celebrate those early-season outliers with our annual Tuffy Awards.

USA Today Fantasy Sports

This year’s story might be different.

It doesn’t hurt that Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story is 2016’s central character. Starting at shortstop because of the suspension to veteran Jose Reyes, Story homered in each of his first four games — and hit a pair of them in two games — to finish his first full week in the majors with a .368 average, six homers and 11 RBI.

The plot twist here is Story, 23, is a legitimate prospect who last season hit a combined .279 with 20 homers and 22 stolen bases in Class AA and Class AAA. He was named to the U.S. team for last year’s All-Star Futures Game and had an RBI double.

But along with his power and speed, he has shown a tendency to swing and miss fairly often (31% strikeout rate in five minor league seasons). That might be why some fantasy owners might be worried about Story becoming the next Tuffy.

But didn’t we say the same thing about another 23-year-old last spring? And Kris Bryant went on to become National League rookie of the year. Of course, Story never put up the kind of power numbers Bryant did in the minors, but he has the majors’ best hitters’ park to call home.

With Reyes suspended and Story coming off a strong spring training (.340 average/.407 on-base percentage/.792 slugging percentage with six homers), he was most likely taken on draft day. So instead of the first-week waiver-wire frenzy, the fantasy focus shifts to whether to sell high.

The problem is, it’s hard to guarantee Story will continue to receive regular playing time. We still don’t know how long Reyes will be out of action or what the arrangement will be once he returns.

No fantasy owner would give up a top-150 player for a rookie with that uncertain of a future. The bar needs to be set lower. (My offer of Philadelphia Phillies rookie pitcher Aaron Nola for Story in Mixed LABR was rejected.)

Perhaps the best way to capitalize on Story’s value is to include him in a 2-for-1 upgrade trade, preferably with the person who has Reyes. (Carlos Gonzalez and Story for Andrew McCutchen, for example.)

Pitchers still have plenty of time to adjust, and Story could still be this year’s Tuffy. But I think we’ll see a happier ending.

The Non-Tuffys

We now turn our attention to the players who have the best chance of carrying on the Tuffy tradition. First, the ones who might look like flukes but aren’t.

• 1B Tyler White, Houston Astros. The 25-year-old wasn’t in the opening-day lineup, but he has taken hold of an everyday job with his hot bat, collecting 10 hits in his first 15 major league at-bats.

Throughout the minors, White has been proficient at getting on base. At only one minor league stop did he post an on-base percentage below .400 (a still-excellent .362 in low Class A). Although White didn’t get a walk until his fifth game with Houston, he had two doubles and three homers.

Power-hitting prospect A.J. Reed was the early favorite to win Houston’s first-base job, but White’s polished approach at the plate will make him hard to displace.

5 fantasy headlines from Week 1 not involving Trevor Story

• SP Juan Nicasio, Pittsburgh Pirates. Nicasio revived his career as a reliever last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but putting him back in the rotation (where he has a 5.06 career ERA) took guts. But we’ve seen these reclamation projects succeed regularly in Pittsburgh.

Pitching coach Ray Searage tweaked Nicasio’s spot on the rubber and saw him dominate hitters this spring with 15 scoreless innings, 24 strikeouts and five walks. In his first regular-season start, he limited the St. Louis Cardinals to a run in six innings and struck out seven.

Nothing in Nicasio’s track record indicates he can maintain this level of success, but Searage’s track record carries enough weight to override it.

This year’s finalists

• 3B Adonis Garcia, Atlanta Braves. A home run on opening day and hitting cleanup are factors in Garcia’s favor. After three games, he was off to a .444/.583/.778 start (before going 0-for-4 Saturday). But Garcia isn’t another hot young prospect. The Cuban is 30 and has never hit for power in four previous minor league seasons.

In addition, his three walks and two strikeouts in the opening series show no resemblance to the 5-to-35 walk-to-strikeout rate he had with the Braves last season. Garcia might have extra opportunities to produce hitting behind Freddie Freeman, but the Braves offense still projects as one of the worst in the majors.

• SP Jeremy Hellickson, Phillies. On his third team in three seasons, the 2011 American League rookie of the year was the Phillies’ opening-day starter. He gave up three hits and didn’t allow an earned run over six innings, but the bullpen couldn’t close things out. He struck out six and has upside, but Hellickson isn’t enough of a power pitcher to be a fantasy factor.

Hellickson’s average fastball velocity was down more than 1.5 mph from last season, not a good sign for a 29-year-old.

• SS Jean Segura and Nick Ahmed, Arizona Diamondbacks. They’re a package deal, because both are seeing everyday at-bats and playing above their heads.

Segura had a .423 average and three home runs in his first six games (including an inside-the-parker that resulted in a season-ending injury to the Cubs’ Kyle Schwarber). Segura seems entrenched in the leadoff spot, despite a .301 career on-base percentage entering the season.

Ahmed had a .222 career average yet hit .300 and had a homer through six games.

Arizona seems content with Segura and Ahmed as its double-play combo. Don’t let their hot early starts cloud your opinion.

The 2016 Tuffy goes to …

SP Ross Stripling, Dodgers. Perhaps the best pitching match for Rhodes’ hitting exploits, Stripling tossed 71/3 no-hit innings in his first major league start.

It was quite an accomplishment for the 26-year-old, who missed all of 2014 while recovering from Tommy John elbow surgery and had never pitched above Class AA. But the Dodgers’ reluctance to push him too far led to him being taken out with a runner on base and a 2-0 lead. The bullpen blew the lead to deny Stripling the win, but not before he made a statement.

But he was in the rotation as an injury replacement. Once Mike Bolsinger and Hyun-jin Ryu are healthy, there’s no room for Stripling. While he deserved a better fate in pursuit of history, he wasn’t going to be able to stay in the game long enough to become the second player to throw a no-hitter in his first major league start.

He’ll have to settle for the Tuffy Award.

It’s probably for the best. Maybe the only baseball name better than Tuffy Rhodes is the only player to throw a no-hitter in his first major league game — Bumpus Jones of the Cincinnati Reds in 1892.