With the All-Star Game behind us, fantasy managers need to prepare for the second half of the season. Even more important, managers will need to make decisions not only on their own players, but who to pick up off waivers. Further, possible trade targets must be explored. Without question, baseball will be busy this month and all involved in fantasy baseball must be ready. However, there is no need to wander through the wilderness alone. This fantasy baseball second half preview will help show the way.

As with all of my articles, debate and discussion are expected and encouraged. Let me hear from you!

A Trade Makes Dylan Cease a Second Half Ace

This past Sunday on the Sports Stove Fantasy Baseball Show, we discussed second half fantasy trade targets. At the top of my list was Dylan Cease. Full disclosure: Cease was a pitcher on my fantasy team a year ago and I was quite pleased with the results. Also, to be clear: Cease was on my do not draft list coming into the season. He would have to have an exact duplicate year to match the value of his ADP. I did not believe that he would do that.

Score one for team Wilson, although his first few starts wouldn’t have indicated that. However, in a four start stretch in late April and early May, Cease was blasted for 20 runs in 14 innings. He quickly got back on track, allowing more than three runs just twice in his next 11 starts. One of those was his last start of the first half against the Cardinals in which he allowed five runs on 11 hits in six innings.

That particular game might just make those that roster Cease a little nervous coming out of the All-Star break. That and another significant factor should make anyone comfortable negotiating a trade for Cease. With the White Sox completely out of the postseason race, it is my prediction that Chicago will trade Cease to a contender before the deadline.

After said trade, Dylan Cease will be one of the true ace pitchers of the second half. He is still a strikeout king, with 123 in 102.2 innings. He will be like the pitcher who gave up two or fewer runs in five consecutive starts in June. Cease is clearly a pitcher that will dramatically improve any fantasy pitching staff. Without question, the strongest recommendation that could be made on this fantasy baseball second half preview is don’t wait to make a move until a trade happens. Get the deal done ASAP!

Trea Turner Will Surge in the Second Half

In my MidSeason Fantasy Baseball Review, I nominated Trea Turner as my biggest fantasy baseball disappointment of the first half. In no way am I backing off that conclusion. However, I do believe that Turner will have a huge boost in his numbers in the season’s second half. The main reason for that belief is prior to 2023, consistency was Turner’s calling card. Not just consistency, but top-level consistency.

The All-Star break will give Turner the opportunity to assess what went wrong in the first months of the season and make the necessary adjustments, which he can easily accomplish. In his last four full seasons, Turner has produced these numbers: 298-21-100, 27 steals, .328 (1st in NL)-28-77, 32 steals (1st in NL), .298-19-57, 35 steals and .271-19-73, 43 steals. Consistent, no?

Not convinced? Turner can turn it on in the second half, as he did in 2021 after the trade to the Dodgers. In 52 games after the deal, Turner had a .338/.385/.565 slash line with 10 homers. Last season was no different. After the All-Star break, Turner finished July with hits in 11 straight games. In August, he had hits in 21 of 27 games, including 12 with two or more hits. Turner began September with hits in 18 straight, with two or more hits eight times.

Conclusion? Turner will be a top ten player (perhaps top five) in the second half, and he will make managers happy that they resisted moving him.

Lane Thomas is a Trade Worthy Second Half Target

When it comes to players who were waiver pickups in the first half, it can be argued that few had the impact that Lane Thomas provided. Certainly, Elly De La Cruz will be the waiver pickup of the year when all is said and done, but he needs a few more games under his belt to get there. In the meantime, Thomas had a monster first half and could easily have been Washington’s representative at the All-Star Game.

Thomas entered the break hitting .302-14-49, with 107 hits, 60 runs, eight stolen bases and a .347/.497 slash line. His batting average is ninth in the league, his hits rank fifth. Since June 24th, Thomas played 15 games. In that time, he was on fire at the plate with nine games of two or more hits. Even better, Thomas has 216 fantasy points. For reference, his points total is ahead of such All-Star players as Josh Jung, Will Smith and Nick Castellanos, among others.

First, it is of upmost importance to see in Thomas is available in your league. That is unlikely, as he has an ESPN roster percentage of 67 percent. However, check this minute just to see if he is there. Second, if he isn’t on the wire, managers that don’t have Thomas on their rosters will want to see what it would take to get him in a trade.

Even on a sad sack team such as Washington’s, this fantasy baseball second half preview sees Thomas having superb fantasy value coming down the stretch. Get the negotiations started and get a deal done. You will be glad you did.

Kenta Maeda Will be the Twins’ Best Second Half Pitcher

Next, let’s focus on Kenta Maeda. He had his moments in the first half but was otherwise held back by injury and a disastrous April. Maeda took the mound four times in the first month and lost all four. He really hit bottom on April 26th against the Yankees. In that game, New York lit him up for a mind boggling 10 runs on 11 hits in three innings.

The Twins shut down Maeda after that game because of a triceps strain until June 23rd against Detroit. He pitched five shutout innings against the Tigers, giving up just three hits and two walks while striking out eight. His next opponent, Atlanta, has been a buzz saw against pitchers this year (see Eury Perez). Even so, Maeda kept the Braves under control, allowing two runs on five hits in five innings.

Maeda’s last start before the break was the most encouraging yet. Pitching against the Royals, he went seven innings, giving up a single run on three hits. Further, he walked only one hitter while striking out a season-high nine. That one start against the Yankees makes his 5.44 ERA look much worse than it would be otherwise. In all other starts, Maeda has a 2.61 ERA.

Meanwhile, the Twins’ supposed ace has slid the opposite direction of Maeda. Joe Ryan made five starts before the All-Star break. He gave up five or more runs in three of those games. His season ERA of 3.70 is far too high for a staff ace. His WHIP is a solid 1.01 but has gone up significantly since starting on June 16th. Ryan will pitch better after the break, but the prediction here is that Maeda will outperform him.

The good news for those that need pitching help (and who doesn’t) is that Maeda is only rostered in 8.4 percent of ESPN leagues. Reaction: go and get Maeda off the waiver wire this minute!

Giancarlo Stanton’s Two-Homer Game is Fool’s Gold

Quite candidly, a discussion regarding Giancarlo Stanton is necessary. On more than one occasion, Stanton has been a topic of discussion on the fantasy baseball show. It should surprise no one to learn that those talks have not been positive. At the break, Stanton has become nearly invisible, hitting just .203-9-23 with a .276/.426/.702 slash line. He has been absent from the lineup with injuries more than he’s been in it, having played just 41 of the Yankees 91 games.

Two of those homers and three of those RBIs came last Saturday against the Cubs. Managers might be tempted to think that a breakout is coming for Stanton. Just one problem, though. In his previous 25 games, Stanton managed the same number of home runs: two. Since June first, he has a grand total of 12 RBIs. Eight of those came in three games. The rest of the Yankees games, Stanton was missing in action.

At this point, no one knows how long Aaron Judge will be out with his injury. Until he returns, if he does this season, there is little reason to have confidence in any of New York’s hitters. Even when Judge was in the lineup, Stanton was hardly crushing the ball. Don’t let those two home runs fool you. If he is on your roster, see if you can convince a fellow manager to trade for him. If not possible, there has to be a player on the wire that can help your team more than Stanton.

Other Second Half Fantasy Predictions:

The Angels WILL NOT trade Shohei Ohtani. Expect to see a decline in his hitting stats. First, how could they not? Ohtani’s June was the greatest offensive month that anyone has EVER had. Second, without Mike Trout in the lineup, opposing pitchers have little reason to challenge Ohtani. Those in leagues that roster Ohtani as a hitter only should carefully consider trading him now while his value is sky high. At the same time, his value as a pitcher will be unaffected.

Whatever happens to Shane Bieber, this fantasy baseball second half preview predicts that Aaron Civale will be the Cleveland staff ace down the stretch. Tanner Bibee could have been in the running, but an innings limit will curtail his season. It seems strange that the Guardians would trade Bieber while in the division race, but it is a distinct possibility.

Even if he remains in Cleveland, Bieber hasn’t pitched well recently. In four out of his last five starts, Bieber has allowed 17 runs in 23.1 innings. The other start was against Kansas City, so it really doesn’t count. Of course, Bieber is universally rostered. On the other hand, Civale is rostered in only 23.2 percent of ESPN leagues. In his last nine starts, Civale has allowed more than two runs just twice. If available, Civale is a must add second half starting pitcher. If not, strongly consider making a trade.

The Last Word

Thank you for joining me for this fantasy baseball second half preview edition! As always, I welcome any and all suggestions, comments and input from my readers. Let’s discuss! Follow me on Twitter @kevin62wilsea. Please feel free to share this article. Be sure to turn to Belly Up Sports and Belly Up Fantasy for all the MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL happenings and the latest sports news!

The Sports Stove Fantasy Baseball Show will be live this coming Sunday night, and every Sunday during the season, at 8 eastern. Make sure to tune in on whatever social platform you use!