Dispelled the smoke from the fireworks at the Denver All-Star Game and before the first pitch of the second half of the season took place, “Al Rojas Vivo” made a special selection of the best and worst Latin American players in the first three months of the current Major League Baseball season.
For the past 16 years, ESPN Digital publishes weekly rankings of the season’s top Latino hitters and pitchers. Chapter 12 of 2021 is a general assessment of the first half of the major league schedule. In the case of the most prominent, the statistics speak for themselves, but in the list of disappointments, both the numbers and the expectations about the particular player matter.
Previous Ranking: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13
THE MOST OUTSTANDING
1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays: He was simply the best hitter in both major leagues in the first half, when he hit .332 with 28 homers, 73 RBIs and .430 / .658 / 1.089 in OBP, Slugging and OPS. He crowned the stretch as Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the All-Star Game at Coors Field and is the Japanese’s biggest rival. Shohei ohtani in the race for the MVP of the American League.
two. Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres: A solid candidate for NL MVP, the Dominican hit .286 with 28 homers, 20 stolen bases, 60 RBIs, 67 runs scored and .364 / .656 / 1.020 in OBP, Slugging and OPS. All this, despite the fact that he missed about a quarter of his team’s schedule due to a shoulder discomfort.
3. Xander Bogaerts, Boston Red Sox: The Aruban was very deservedly the starting shortstop for the American League in the All-Star Game. Bogaerts hit .321 with 27 doubles, 15 homers, 51 RBIs and 57 runs, leading the Red Sox to finish the first half of the season with the best record on the young circuit.
Four. Ronald Acuna Jr., Atlanta Braves: Before breaking a knee in the final weekend of the first half, the Venezuelan outfielder was in the running for the National League MVP. Acuña hit .283 with 24 homers, 17 steals, 72 runs scored and .394 / .596 / .990 in OBP, Slugging and OPS. His injury is a terrible loss for the Braves and for baseball in general.
5. Rafael Devers, Red Sox: The Dominican started in the 3B of the American League in his first All-Star Game, hitting .282 with 25 doubles, 22 home runs and 72 RBIs for the Red Sox. “Carita” had 93 hits and had .350 / .564 / .913 in OBP, Slugging and OPS.
MENTIONS: Freddy peralta, Milwaukee Brewers; Julio Urías, Los Angeles Dodgers; German Marquez, Colorado Rockies; Carlos Correa Y Yuli gurriel, Houston Astros; JD Martinez, Red Sox; Pablo lopez Y Sandy Alcantara, Miami Marlins; Jose ramirez, Cleveland Indians; Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals; Nelson Cruz, Minnesota Twins.
GREATER DISAPPOINTMENTS
1. Francisco Lindor, New York Mets: In the first three months of his mammoth $ 341 million contract with the Mets, the great Puerto Rican shortstop hit .227 with 61 strikeouts and a terrible .702 OPS. Fortunately for the Mets, Lindor began to show signs of getting into a swing, hitting .333 in the first two weeks of July.
two. Marcell ozuna, Braves: In addition to hitting .213 with a .645 OPS in the first 48 games of his new $ 65 million contract with Atlanta, the Dominican outfielder faces possible jail time and a near-automatic suspension from MLB for breaking the policy. of domestic violence, following an ugly incident with his wife in May.
3. Luis Castillo, Cincinnati Reds: One of the best pitchers in the majors, the right-hander went 3-10 with a 4.65 ERA and allowed 100 hits and allowed 45 walks in 102.2 innings in the first half. His 1.41 hit-and-walk average per nine innings (WHIP) is the second-worst in the National League among pitchers eligible for the ERA lead.
Four. Jorge Soler, Royals: The American League home run leader in baseball’s last full season (48 in 2019) barely removed seven balls from the park in his first 82 games of 2021. The Cuban hit .186 with .320 / .599 in Slugging and OPS.
5. Gleyber Torres, Yankees: The Venezuelan has the talent to figure in all the conversations related to the best players in MLB today, but for some reason, Torres has suffered a power blackout that is almost two years old. After hitting .278 with 78 home runs and an .871 OPS in 2019, Gleyber dropped to .243 / 3 / .724 in 42 games in 2020 and .240 / 3 / .634 in the first half of 2021. The OPS de Torres is number 130, among 136 hitters with appearances to appear among the MLB leaders.
MENTIONS: Miguel Sanó, Twins; Antonio Senzatela, Colorado Rockies; Elvis andrus, Oakland Athletics; Eugenio Suarez, Reds.
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