LET us guess: a couple of players on your team haven’t been mimicking years past. Woe is you, we know. Get over it. Do us a favor and look at the rosters of some of the other squads in your league. First, you’ll notice at least one team that’s got it much worse than you do. Then you’ll notice that your predicament is the same as everyone else. That’s what we did and happily noticed that everyone suffers the same fate, be it an injured star or an underachieving one.
But a good player doesn’t just stop being good. Those pronounced first-half slumps are sure to give way to a second- half bang.
We went through each team in our league and found a player grossly underachieving and decided if he’s worth keeping or discarding.
Bartolo Colon: Maybe it’s because he’s back in a league with the designated hitter, and the bottom third of the order is no longer a breeze. That still fails to excuse his 6-8 record and ghastly 4.14 ERA. In the past three years, Colon is a combined 26-12 in the second half of the season and this year’s slow start isn’t his first. Keep plugging him in.
Pat Burrell: His line of the three major stats says it all: .191, 12 HRs, 34 RBIs. Last season, Burrell amassed similar numbers in the second half as he did in the first. But, this year’s team is better and with Jimmy Rollins and Jim Thome hitting in front of him and starting to heat up, he’ll have more RBI chances. Keeper.
Mark Buehrle: Don’t look at the 7-10 record, nor the 4.24 ERA. He’s won his last five decisions and, in his last six starts, he’s cut his ERA by a run. Last year wasn’t a fluke.
Torii Hunter: The home run and RBI totals are nice, but Hunter’s batting average and stolen base totals are a huge dropoff from last season. Last season, Hunter had a .224 BA in August and a .234 in September. Try to trade him if you can.
Derek Jeter: Yes, he was hurt. Yes, it’s the intangibles that make him valuable. Yes, we don’t care. His power numbers, though never spectacular, have been extra puny. Because of his position, he’s hard to say goodbye to, but you can certainly get something back. Especially if you’re playing for next year.
Greg Maddux: Blame QuesTec all you want, he still hasn’t been very good. Worst of all, you probably couldn’t get anything for him, either. His career pre- and post-All-Star game numbers don’t greatly differ, so there’s no precedent from which to work. Our gut feeling says he’s done. Get what you can for him.
Sammy Sosa: Power numbers are down considerably, but he has started to heat up. He’s been a notorious second-half stud, as his 2001 second half (35 HRs, 77 RBIs) can attest.
Kaz Sasaki: Sasaki’s been riddled with injuries in the first half, so we’ll excuse his 4.12 ERA and 10 saves. Keeping him is wise, but make sure to keep an extra reliever handy for the next time he goes down. Like now, for instance. He is set to make a rehab start this week.
Eric Chavez: Owners can’t be enjoying his .257 batting average, but that’s because of a poor May. He’s hot again and a must start.
Eric Hinske: One of the biggest disappointments in the first half, Hinske has become the poster boy for the sophomore jinx. It doesn’t look as if there’s any hope for a turnaround, either. Cut your losses on last year’s Rookie of the Year.
Shawn Green: We are the unfortunate owners of this underachiever. We keep plugging him in there, as others should do, and are hoping for a couple of four-homer games like the one we saw last season.