Five MLB players who must be better in second half of the season

Corbin Carroll, outfielder, Arizona Diamondbacks

Carroll is another young star that has experience a stunning drop off in production this season. There are, however, some signs that he could break out of it in the second half.

His walk rate has improved from last season (8% up to 10%) while his strikeout rate has dropped (19% down to 17%). One of the biggest changes for him has been some bad luck in terms of his batting average on balls in play, going from over .325 in his first two seasons all the way down to .250 this season. 

The lack of power is a concern, but a lot of his problems seem to be centered around bad luck on the balls he is putting in play. If he keeps drawing walks and making hard contact, you have to imagine hits will start falling. 

Arizona is still very much in the muddled down NL wild-card race and it is going to need a big push from Carroll to stay in it. 

Jeff McNeil, infielder, New York Mets

McNeil is just two years removed from being the National League batting champion, but has rapidly declined down to the point where he has been one of the worst regulars in the Major Leagues this season.

The Mets have played their way back into playoff contention in the National League but are going to need a lot more from players like McNeil if they are going to actually get into the playoffs.

Nobody should expect him to hit .326 and lead the league again. But given his four-year, $50M contract they need him to be better than the .591 OPS he has this season. 

Blake Snell, starting pitcher, San Francisco Giants

After winning the National League Cy Young award a year ago, Snell was one of the prized free agent pitchers on the market this offseason. He eventually signed with the Giants in the hopes that he could revamp their rotation.

But a late start to the season, as well as an injury, have limited him to just eight starts going into the second half and a 6.31 ERA. That is not what the Giants envisioned. 

The good news: Now that he is healthy his two most recent starts were exactly what the Giants were hoping for as he has allowed just two hits and zero runs in 12 innings. Him returning to form would give the Giants a huge lift in the wild-card race. 

Anthony Volpe, shortstop, New York Yankees

The Yankees have really struggled over the past month-and-a-half and now find themselves in a fight with the Baltimore Orioles for the top spot in the American League East. They are going to need more from pretty much everybody in their lineup outside of Aaron Judge and Juan Soto, and that is especially true when it comes to Volpe.

His bat has simply not come around the way the Yankees had hoped when he rapidly progressed through the minors, and now his defense has taken a step backwards from the Gold Glove level he played at as a rookie. 

If he is going to be a key contributor and a core player for the Yankees, this would be a great time to start showing it.