5 MLB Hitters Quietly Having a Tremendous Start to the Second Half

Matt Chapman, 3B, Oakland Athletics

With the Oakland Athletics committing themselves to a rebuild, they're focused on looking toward the future. One of the moves that helped usher in this new mindset was designating third baseman Trevor Plouffe for assignment to make room for rookie Matt Chapman. His first 42 plate appearances as a big leaguer didn't go all that well, though.

During that time -- which took place prior to the All-Star break -- Chapman struggled to a .132/.214/.184 triple slash, which sussed out to a wRC+ of just 11. And while he made landfall in the majors being known as a power threat, his ISO was just .053 because he'd recorded just two extra-base hits (both doubles).

As it turns out, the midseason break was the perfect opportunity for him to take a breath and hit the reset button, because the dude has mashed since getting back on the field.

Chapman has produced just a 7.4% line-drive rate so far in the second half, but he's covered that up a bit by hitting fly balls 70.4% of the time with a 40.7% hard-hit rate. So, it shouldn't be surprising that he's also hit five home runs since the All-Star break, helping him produce a league-leading .571 ISO heading into Wednesday night.

Despite just a .286 batting average through his last 39 plate appearances, he's managed to slug .857 during that time, which has produced a 202 wRC+ and .465 wOBA.