The All-Star break is a good time to evaluate your team and see where you need to make improvements heading into the second half of the season.
It’s also a time to predict which players will pick up their pace in the second half and which players will fall.
Here are five players who fit the latter category. You should keep an eye out for trade possibilities for them.
- Melky Cabrera, OF, Kansas City Royals – Cabrera is on pace to shatter his career highs in home runs, RBI, stolen bases and batting average. Don’t expect that to last. His average will probably fall into the .260s, his career average. He’ll set a new career high for home runs, but don’t expect him to finish with over 20 home runs. And, as the season wears on, his legs will tire, making it harder for him to steal bases. Trade him before he starts to slump.
- Chris Young, OF, Arizona Diamondbacks – Young’s .262 batting average in the first half of this season would be the best average of his career if it holds up. His career batting average is only .244. As his average dips in the second half of the year, his power numbers will slow down a bit too.
- Carlos Beltran, OF, New York Mets – Beltran’s days as a fantasy stud are over. He’s been battling injuries for the past few seasons, and I don’t expect him to make it through the rest of the season without missing some time. If you can trade him for an outfielder with a less spotty injury history, do it.
- Jhonny Peralta, 3B/SS, Detroit Tigers – Peralta is normally a pretty productive RBI guy, so his production should stay decent. But, he’s currently hitting .312, nearly 50 points above his career average. If you can trade him for a higher average 3B/SS, do it. If not, moving him to the bench later in the season might be a good idea.
- Alex Avila, C, Detroit Tigers – Avila could end up being just fine. But, he’s already caught 70 games this year and is on pace to catch more games than he’s ever done in his career. I’m not saying it will catch up to him, but it’s something to keep an eye on as the dog days of summer wear on. If his numbers start to slip at all, don’t hesitate to trade him for a veteran catcher.
