The Mid-Summer Classic was in Seattle this year. It was a successful event and lots of players who were playing well in the first half of the 2023 season were in the event. Those All-Stars had a great start in 2023 and performed well in the first half of the 2023 season. After the All-Star break, do they still play well? Perhaps, there are other players who just heat up after the All-Star break.
To understand a little bit more, I went to check on the MLB website.
Firstly, a former MVP has hit well after the All-Star break. Freddie Freeman had a great start in 2023. He was selected to the All-Star game and in the first half of this season, he was hitting .320/.396/.556 with 17 home runs and 61 RBI in 89 games. After the All-Star break, it doesn’t seem that he’s going to slow down. In the second half, he now has 46 hits in 31 games. Freeman’s OPS is over 1.000 after the All-Star break. Among those 46 hits, 20 of them are extra base hits.
In addition, another former MVP has been hitting well after the All-Star break as well. Cody Bellinger signed a 1-year contract with the Cubs last December. In the first half of the 2023 season, he was hitting .298/.355/.491 with 9 home runs, 29 RBI and 11 steals in 58 games. After the All-Star break, he now slashes .381/.423/.669 with 9 home runs and 30 RBI over 31 games. Bellinger already crushed 18 home runs this season. Last season, he had 19 HRs in 144 games.
In the meantime, Julio Rodriguez wasn’t off to a great start this year. He only batted .249/.310/.411 with 13 HRs and 49 RBI in the first half of the season. However, after the All-Star break, he has become one of the hottest hitters in the majors. He now slashes .321/.381/.560 with 7 home runs and 29 RBI in the last 31 games.
Moreover, Ronald Acuna Jr. and Whit Merrifield each have 42 hits over 31 games after the All-Star break. Additionally, Bobby Whit Jr. has 42 hits in 30 games after the Mid-Summer Classic. Acuna Jr. and Witt Jr. each have an OPS over 1.000 so far in the second half.
Finally, it’s worthwhile to take a look at Ha-Seong Kim. Kim finished the 2021 season with an OPS of .622 and last season, his OPS was .708. In the first half of the 2023 season, he played 85 games, slashing .258/.349/.411 with 10 HRs and 31 RBI. After the All-Star break, Kim has been one of the hottest hitters in the Padres lineup. He is currently batting .333/.427/.504 with 5 home runs and 11 RBI through 32 games in the second half of the season.
For some players, they weren’t off to a great start in the 2023 season. But, after the All-Star break, they are just unstoppable. Cody Bellinger missed some playing time in the first half of the 2023 season. But, in the second half of the season, he has an OPS over 1.000. Additionally, Ha-Seong Kim and Julio Rodriguez each have an OPS over .900. Furthermore, we have to keep watching Freddie Freeman and Ronald Acuna Jr., who have been hitting well this season. It seems that they are not going to stop. Will one of them win the NL MVP this year?
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