Top 3 Youngsters Poised For Second-Half Breakouts

With the All-Star Break wrapping up, teams will be gearing up for the run down the stretch of the season, and while trades will be on many teams' minds, further developing young stars could be difference-makers as well. 

Here are three elite young prospects who could be poised for big second-half breakouts:

Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals

He came out of the gate in spring training like a house on fire, flashing that immense power, and then batted .342 through the regular season's first 10 games. But things fell off quite a bit after that, and he was sent back to the minors by the end of April. 

But since getting the re-call back to St. Louis at the beginning of June, he's looking like a star again — batting .288 with an .860 OPS and a 30-HR pace. He's also 90th percentile in the majors in average exit velocity and hard-hit rate. He's right on the verge of a major second-half breakout.

Brett Baty, New York Mets

The Mets traded away Eduardo Escobar, Baty's safety net, so the third base job is all his. He hasn't quite lived up to expectations yet, batting .244 with five homers and 21 RBIs in 234 plate appearances. He's been having trouble tapping into his power because he's simply been hitting the ball on the ground too much. But if he can add a little more lift to his game, he could take off. He batted .293 in his rise through the minors with a .903 OPS. 

Spencer Torkelson, Detroit Tigers

Yes, Tigers' fans must be frustrated at the struggles of the former No. 1 overall pick (2020 Draft), but he's been showing signs of figuring it out recently. He has seven long balls and 19 RBIs in his last 30 games. That's a 35 HR, 100 RBI pace. Overall, he's still sitting on a .228 average, but that's up to .273 with an .863 OPS in July. 

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