The MLB regular-season schedule is a grind, and there’s a reason why they call it the “dog days of August.” For some reason, Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto and Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve aren’t paying much attention to that as they each chase history with torrid runs through the second half.
Basically, no opposing pitcher is safe, as they’re each looking to become the first hitters to hit over .400 after the All-Star game since some guy named Ichiro Suzuki did it in 2004:
No one's hit .400 post-All Star Break since Ichiro in 2004; both Joey Votto and Jose Altuve are on pace to do it pic.twitter.com/vhAefaWpie
— Baseball Reference (@baseball_ref) August 23, 2016
(This tweet is a few days old now, but you get the idea.)
While they’re grabbing all the headlines, they’re not the only ones tearing the cover off baseballs since the league’s brightest stars met up in San Diego. In fact, Votto and Altuve are just two of seven hitters with at least 30 second-half games played and a batting average higher than .350. Here’s a look at the list with some stats for perspective — especially since batting average doesn’t mean a whole lot these days:
How hard will it be for these hitters to keep up this pace? Well, there’s still about five weeks of regular-season play left, so that’s one big reason, but recent history tells us only a few will remain above this arbitrary .350 benchmark (I know, I like using .350 as a basis for things, but oh well).
According to FanGraphs, only 13 hitters have finished with a second-half batting average of .350 or higher from 2010-15. The high-water mark came during the 2011 season when four hitters accomplished the feat, but there was never more than two any other year. Even if every single one of the above players ends up falling below .350 by Game 162, their respective second-half surges tell us plenty. Here’s one quick takeaway for each player:
Maybe Votto won’t retire just yet
Remember how awful of a start Votto had? Through the end of May, he was hitting .213/.330/.404 in 178 at-bats. He was playing so badly that the first baseman himself said he’d rather retire instead of struggling through the duration of his 10-year/$225 million contract. That thought is probably a distant memory for him at the moment.
Altuve is a legitimate MVP candidate
If it wasn’t for Altuve, the Astros would’ve been in a much bigger hole than the 7-17 one they were in after the year’s first 24 games. He’s having a career year because of an emergence of power, which has enabled the second baseman to become a truly complete hitter. The AL MVP race is wide open thanks to Josh Donaldson, Mookie Betts and some others, but Altuve will certainly get some votes.
The NL Rookie of the Year race is over
The Los Angeles Dodgers handed the keys to the starting shortstop job to Seager back in Spring Training, and the 22-year-old has made the most of it by proving he was worth all the top-prospect hype. He’s been a catalyst all year for the Dodger offense by hitting over .300 each month since May.
The NL Batting Title is very much up for grabs
About a month ago, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Daniel Murphy would be winning his first NL batting title. His performance hasn’t exactly fallen off, which is a testament to how hot LeMahieu has been at the plate. As we head into action on Friday, the Colorado Rockies second baseman only trails Murphy by a couple points because he’s slashed a ridiculous .461/.554/.684 in 76 at-bats during the month of August.
Molina is still clutch
The St. Louis Cardinals have had themselves a really tough year. The pitching staff isn’t nearly as dependable as it was 2015, the defense hasn’t been stellar and big offensive pieces like Matt Holliday and Aledmys Diaz are currently on the disabled list. It’s been a true team effort as they currently hang on to the second NL Wild Card spot, but Molina has stepped up when St. Louis needed him most. He posted a .259/.329/.341 line through 290 at-bats in the first half, but the 34-year-old has turned back time — even if it’s just for a few months.
Is Miggy a human or a machine?
Cabrera is one of the game’s best right-handed hitters of this era. At some point, the 33-year-old is going to slow down. After an injury-shortened 2015 and a ho-hum (at least for him) first half, it seemed like it could start happening, but not yet. With Victor Martinez‘s resurgence and J.D. Martinez continuing to perform at a high level, the middle of the Detroit Tigers’ order is one of the toughest to navigate through in baseball.
It’s a good thing Atlanta held onto Inciarte
Upon receiving him in the infamous Shelby Miller deal, the Braves immediately took calls on Inciarte because he was coming off a strong season, can play all outfield positions and has some team control left. One would’ve imagined he might have been a target at the trade deadline (I wouldn’t have been surprised), but injury and a .227/.294/.306 triple slash in the first half prevented that. Now with a torrid second half under his belt, the Braves can decide whether he’s part of their future or a trade candidate this winter.
Votto and Altuve are getting the publicity, and rightfully so. Everyone is aware how hard it is to hit over .400 for any stretch of time. However, the performances of these other five players shouldn’t go unnoticed.
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