On Monday, baseball fans witnessed a spectacular home run derby in Seattle with the hometown slugger, Julio Rodriquez, dazzling in round 1 with 41 balls flying into the stand. Ultimately, Vladimir Guerrero Jr pulled away in the final round to follow up in the footstep of his father to win the 2003 Home Run Derby. On Tuesday, the National League woke up from their sleepless slumber to escape Seattle with a dramatic 3-2 victory over the American League in the All-Star Game to snap a 9-game winning streak. It was the second-longest streak in All-Star Game history after the NL ended an 11-game from 1972-82. Today, the players return to the diamond after much-needed rest and are ready to deliver as October looms. In this article, we will discuss the three biggest storylines entering the second half of the baseball season.
1. Will Shohei Ohtani get traded and make history again?
Shohei Ohtani is the number one storyline entering the second half because he has become the face of the entire league. However, fans will be watching to see whether the Angels will trade him before the trade deadline to seek compensation before potentially losing him in free agency. The trade will likely depend on whether the Angels feel they are in contention for the wild card, and the team is currently reeling, losing nine of their final ten games before the All-Star break. Any team that trades for the two-way phenom will have to hand over the best players from their farm system and will want some assurance that Ohtani will likely remain with the team and receive what is likely to be a record contract. What makes the situation a real conundrum for the Angels is that Ohtani continues to produce on an unprecedented level as a two-way player. Entering the second half, Shohei leads the Majors with 32 home runs, six triples, a .663 slugging percentage, a 1.050 OPS, and 226 total bases. Ohtani is on track to challenge Aaron Judge’s American League record of 62 home runs, set by the Yankee slugger just last year. At the same time, as a pitcher, he has posted a 3.32 ERA and a 32 percent strikeout rate in 17 starts on the mound. He continues to lead the majors in batting average against (.189) and is behind only Kevin Gausman by 21 to win the AL strikeout with 132 punchouts. So can the Angels trade the potential MVP and Cy-young winner? That is something hard to fathom.
2. When will the Yankees get Aron Judge back?
One way to measure a player’s value is to statistically analyze what the team produces when he’s not in the lineup. The stats tell us that the New York Yankees need a fit Aaron Judge back in the lineup in order to contend for the postseason spot. On June 3, Judge injured his toe while making a spectacular catch and crashing through the outfield fence at Dodger Stadium. From that point, the Yankees have scored only 123 runs, ahead of the Twins (116) and the Royals (114). Ouch! So the big question on every fan’s mind is when will Judge be back in the lineup? That question is still a mystery at this point. However, the team will need their prized asset to return to stay in the hunt in the AL East, considered the toughest division in baseball. The Yankees trail the Rays by eight games and are only one game out of an AL Wild Card spot. All eyes will be on whether number 99 can suit up and keep his team in the hunt.
3. Will Luiz Arrerez Make History?
When your name is mentioned with Ted Williams, George Brett, and Tonny Gwynn, then you know you are having a historic season. Luiz Arrerez enters the second half with a .383 batting average, and the Venezuelan has his sights set on a .400 average. Nobody has hit .400 since the legendary Ted Williams did it in the 1941 season with a batting average of .406. Over the years, a few came close with George Brett in 1980 (.390) and Tony Gwynn in 1994 (.394). The dynamics in baseball today have changed, with pitchers having more analytics to get hitters out and a repertoire of pitches to challenge the best. Therefore, what Arrerez is doing is remarkable, and if he does close the season at .400, it will be a remarkable achievement in the modern game. Arrerez is also on pace to win back-to-back batting titles, which is quite a feat. So the big question is will Luiz Arrerez finish the season over .400? We will need to tune into this spectacular storyline.
The beauty of the second half of the season is that there are other storylines that we can put on our to-do lists. For instance, could Ronald Acuna Jr become the first player to hit 40 home runs and steal 50 or more bases? Can Elly De La Cruz continue to propel the rise of the Big Red Machine in Cincinnati? How will things play out down the stretch for the surprising teams like the Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, Miami Marlins, and Arizona Diamondbacks? What will happen to the Mets, Padres, and Cardinals as the trade deadline looms and they continue to lose? All will be answered as baseball returns to action starting today.