The biggest disappointments from the 2023 MLB season so far

Abreu appeared to be a safe free agent signing despite his age, posting an OPS no worse than .798 in his first nine MLB seasons with the White Sox. While it should be noted Abreu has been a streaky hitter during his career, he's been a dud for the Astros in the first half after signing a three-year, $58.5 million contract. The 36-year-old was hitting .234-10-56 with an awful .634 OPS through 110 games played, and is out with a back injury.

The reigning NL Cy Young winner, Alcantara, is slowly improving after a terrible start to the year but still has a 4.09 ERA through 24 starts. The good news is that his elite velocity remains intact, and the ERA metrics indicate the rebound will continue. The Marlins have also been able to remain in the NL Wild Card race despite his struggles.

After some hype during Spring Training, Anderson's season couldn't be much worse worse. He's missed time to injury and has only one home run. He's also facing a lengthy suspension after fighting Jose Ramirez.

The Tigers hoped Baez's first season in Detroit was a fluke, but that doesn't look to be the case. Now in the second year of a six-year, $140 million contract, Baez's .582 OPS through 109 games is even worse than last season. Baez has cut down on his strikeouts, but that's the only good news.

Cleveland rarely spends big in free agency, so Bell's struggles this season were particularly discouraging. The first baseman struggled down the stretch in San Diego last season and hit only .233-11-48 in 97 games before getting traded to Miami. Fortunately, he's started to turn it on for the Marlins with four home runs in his first 10 games. 

Burnes seemed disheartened by his arbitration hearing with the Brewers during Spring Training, and his early season hasn't lived up to his standards. While still treading water, Burnes has an uncharacteristic ERA of 3.60 in 24 starts. That's a far cry from the pitcher we saw over the last three seasons, with an ERA below 3.00 in each of those campaigns.

Buxton's case is particularly curious. He has yet to play the outfield this season for reasons that haven't been completely explained by team brass, and his bat has been inconsistent as the Twins DH. He's hit only ..207-17-42 in 85 games played, and is now on the IL.

The oft-injured Chisholm all but guaranteed he'd have a healthier season on social media earlier this year, but actions speak louder than words. He missed most of the first half due a lower body injury, and has hit only .251-11-25 through 55 games.

San Diego shifted Cronenworth over to first base full-time after signing Xander Bogaerts, with the hope his bat would support the move. That hasn't happened, as Cronenworth has hit only .227-10-44 in 115 games for the Padres. The lack of depth in the Padres offense, including Cronenworth, is one reason the team has struggled.

It's difficult to see how the Contreras signing could be worse for the Cardinals over the first few months. Now in the first season of a five-year deal as Yadier Molina's replacement, Contreras was briefly shifted away from catcher due to discord with the team's pitching staff, and those struggles carried over to the batter's box. However, Contreras has gotten back on track lately, and is hitting .259-13-49 in 99 games.

Awarded a huge seven-year extension before this season, Gimenez hasn't lived up to the hype yet. After a breakout 2022 season, Gimenez is hitting only .240-10-43 in 113 games. His outstanding defense has held up, fortunately.

Kirk remains a highly disciplined hitter, but the results haven't shown up on the field like they did last season. He's hit only .253-6-30 in 88 games.

LeMahieu continues to struggle at the plate since winning the Batting Title in 2020, but this year has been a new low. He's hit only .240-8-29 in 96 games as the Yankees try to muster offense beyond Aaron Judge.

Few pitchers have had a more befuddling start to their season than Lynn. He's among the league leaders in strikeouts after fanning 16 batters in one start in mid-June, but Lynn's ERA is a terrible 5.88 in 24 starts. The pending free agent has improved since being traded to the Dodgers.

Machado signed an extension with the Padres in Spring Training, but his bat is off to a slow start. He's hit ..256-21-67  with a .776 OPS through 101 games played, also missing time with a hand injury.

Manoah finished third in the AL Cy Young voting last season, but he's been one of the worst pitchers in baseball this season. He had a 6.36 ERA in 13 starts before getting demoted to the minors initially. Manoah was demoted a second time after a short comeback, still sporting an overall ERA near 6.00.

Giving a four-year deal to a hitter in his mid-30s is always risky, as the Mets are finding out with Marte this season. He's struggled at the plate, hitting only .248-5-28 in 86 games. Marte is also on the IL with a groin injury.

Few players in baseball are more frustrating than O'Neill, who has five-tool ability but continues to struggle with injuries. He's played only 47 games due to injury and struggled when he has played, hitting ..241-6-15 with a ..715 OPS. His time in St. Louis could be ending, with the team having significant outfield depth.

The most hyped pitching prospect in baseball coming into this season, Rodriguez didn't pitch well enough in Spring Training to win a rotation spot with Baltimore. When he did finally arrive, Rodriguez struggled and was sent back down. He's finally started to find his footing recently, but has a 5.84 ERA over 15 starts.

The Marlins signed Segura to a two-year, $17 million contract before this season, but would probably like a do-over. The veteran was one of baseball's worst regulars with a .556 OPS before he was traded to Cleveland for Josh Bell and released by the Guardians.

The oft-injured Severino has both missed time to injury and struggled when he's pitched. The hard-throwing right-hander has been unable to keep the ball down, allowing 18 home runs over 63.2 innings. The Yankees have had no choice but to keep throwing Severino due to injuries elsewhere.

Sandoval was one of the Angels top starters over the last two seasons, and the team hoped he would continue to pitch at the level of a No. 1 starter in 2023. He's progressed lately, but command has been a problem for Sandoval with a 3.86 ERA, nearly a full run higher than 2022. 

Singer was Kansas City's ace last season, but he struggled this year until July. The former first-round pick had a 6.34 ERA in 15 starts, though the ERA is now inching toward 5.00.

The expectations couldn't be higher for Turner, fresh off signing an 11-year, $300 million contract in Philly. He shined for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, but the bat hasn't carried over to the regular season with a .703 OPS and 12 home runs in 116 games.

Traded from Milwaukee to Seattle in the offseason, Wong struggled before Seattle released him in early August. The second baseman was hitting only .165-2-19 in 67 games, and his MLB career could be at the end of the line at age 32.