2013 Fantasy Baseball: 10 Sticks That Will Breakout In Second Half

Top 10 Sticks To Breakout In Second Half

This fantasy baseball season has already been full of jaw-dropping performances. We saw Baltimore Orioles’ Chris Davis keep up with Detroit Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera in every offensive category over the first couple months. They both entered the break with over 30 HRs and 90 RBIs, which would be considered a great season for most hitters.

Conversely, we also saw some superstars seriously struggle throughout the first part of the 2013 season. Big names like Josh Hamilton, Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, and Jacoby Ellsbury have been marred by some serious hitless streaks in the opening months of the season.

However, we are only at the midway mark in the season and there is still plenty of fantasy baseball left on the schedule. Superstars will start hitting home runs and speedsters will start stealing bases. Fantasy owners must simply remain patient and not give up on their stars.

In baseball everything evens out, especially hitting. Obviously Yasiel Puig won’t hit .400 all year long, but on the other side of the coin, Josh Hamilton won’t be hitting .224 by the end of the year either.

To help you the rest of the way, here are the top 10 sticks likely to breakout over the second half of the 2013 fantasy baseball season.

Adam McGill is the Senior Fantasy Sports Writer at Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @adammcgill83, like him on Facebook, or add him to you networks on Google here or here.

10. 1B Logan Morrison, Miami Marlins

1B Logan Morrison, Miami Marlins – Lo-Mo has been a pleasant surprise since returning to the team. Morrison has four doubles, two triples, four home runs, and 11 RBIs in his 24 games this season. He has become extremely popular waiver wire pickup over the last couple weeks and has been a hot bat to add for the summer.

Morrison will always carry around an injury tag, but the way he is slugging the ball right now has made him a must-start in deeper fantasy formats. Expect him to keep producing over the second half of the fantasy season as long as he can stay healthy.

9. 1B Justin Smoak, Seattle Mariners

1B Justin Smoak, Seattle Mariners - In the 22 games since coming off the disabled list with an oblique injury, Smoak has been one of the hottest first basemen in all of fantasy. He has blasted five home runs and 14 RBIs since returning to action. Before he went on the shelf he was battling for a spot in the lineup, now the Smoke Monster has been in the lineup for every game but two. Smoak has become a viable starting first baseman to rely on down the stretch and has proven that he can handle an everyday role.

8. SS Everth Cabrera, San Diego Padres

SS Everth Cabrera, San Diego Padres – It is funny how in just a couple weeks everyone forgets the amazing season that Cabrera was putting together before heading to the DL with a hamstring injury.

Cabrera just returned before the All-Star break and he has wasted no time getting back to action. In his last six games, he has six hits, four walks, five runs, and three stolen bases. He will quickly reclaim his thrown as the best base stealer in baseball, and will have another huge half for roto-league owners.

7. 1B Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins

1B Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins - Morneau had just one home run through his first 63 games of the season. His mechanics were all off and he was visibly frustrated with his play.

Morneau has looked much stronger lately though. He bashed five homers in the 23 games before the break and has really started flexing some muscle. Morneau is ready to get back to hitting long balls and will be a strong guy to stash away for the remainder of the fantasy season.

6. 1B Eric Hosmer, Kansas City Royals

1B Eric Hosmer, Kansas City Royals – If you haven’t heard already, Eric Hosmer has finally woke up for the Kansas City Royals. In his last 29 games, Hosmer has bashed eight home runs to go along with a very respectable 19 RBIs. His sudden offensive explosion was pretty shocking considering that he had just one home run and 21 RBIs in the 61 previous games.

Hitting coach, George Brett, has worked tirelessly with the 23-year-old over the last couple weeks and the hard work is finally paying off for the young slugger. Hosmer is maturing into a reliable everyday starter and the youngster is primed to have a monster second half.

5. OF Justin Upton, Atlanta Braves

OF Justin Upton, Atlanta Braves – After clubbing an absurd 12 home runs through the month of June, everyone was ready to anoint Upton the fantasy MVP. However, the slugger has only hit four home runs since the first month of the season and has seen his average drop all the way down to .255.

Upton still showed that he has amazing power in his bat during his hot start. He could get hot at any moment over the second half and easily finish the season with over 40 home runs.

4. OF Josh Hamilton, Los Angeles Angels

OF Josh Hamilton, Los Angeles Angels – Hamilton’s .224 batting average, .283 On Base Percentage, and 95 strikeouts through the first 86 games is extremely difficult to look at. Hamilton also has just 14 home runs and 39 RBIs, however, most expected him to be sitting at around 20 long balls and 50 RBIs at this point in the season. He has looked absolutely lost at the plate and at times has struggled to even make contact with the ball. Things honestly couldn’t get much worse for the Hambone.

On a positive note, though, Hamilton has been working tirelessly in the cage during the brief break and seems dedicated to getting his swing back. Don’t anticipate on Hamilton having many four-homer games in the second half of the season, but expect him to at least hit more than 14 long balls.

3. 1B Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Angels

1B Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Angels – If anyone needed a couple days off, it was Pujols. He has been limping around the bases all summer and the plantar fasciitis injury in his foot has been simply unbearable. He still has 15 homers with 57 RBIs, but the slugger’s .257 batting average is well below his .321 lifetime average.

Pujols finally appears to have fixed his swing and he said he feels more comfortable than he has in years. In his last seven games before the break, the nine-time All-Star bashed two home runs and drove in eight runs.

2. OF Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins

OF Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins – There is no denying that Stanton is an absolute behemoth at the plate, but some continue to doubt if he can be a reliable power hitter playing in Miami. The outfielder hit two home runs in the three-game series against the Washington Nationals and the slugger showed that he needs just one pitch to make a difference in the fantasy world.

Stanton had 18 home runs and 36 RBIs in 43 games following the All-Star break last season, so the Miami monster is set to explode this summer.

1. SS Jose Reyes, Toronto Blue Jays

SS Jose Reyes, Toronto Blue Jays - Reyes has only played in 28 games this season due to a high ankle sprain and the shortstop has missed 46 games in the first half with the injury.

Since returning from the shelf, though, Reyes has hit safely in 14 of his 16 games. He also has three home runs, six RBIs, 14 runs, and three stolen bases in the 16 games. He is primed to have a huge second half in Toronto and will reclaim his spot as the most dangerous shortstop in fantasy.