Are these the most overrated players in the MLB right now?

Baseball fans often overrate an individual due to the very nature of the sport. One player may be able to win you a game, but they won't be able to carry you to a series victory. This leads to a huge overvaluing of MLB stars, but we're here to set the record straight. All statistics are sourced from Baseball Reference.

It’s a narrative that most baseball fans are familiar with. The Los Angeles Angels have effectively wasted the prime years of one of the best players the game has ever seen. The Guardian and The Athletic took deeper dives into how unfortunate reality has befallen Trout and the Angels.

However, would it have been too much to ask for the MLB star to make the playoffs more than once in his first 13 big league seasons? Trout’s versatile skill set was the central focus of opponents’ gameplans for years, making it hard to believe that he couldn’t coax the Angels to the postseason a bit more often.

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When he’s on, McNeil is one of the most fun hitters to watch in the sport. The Athletic wrote a piece on his “subtle hitting genius” back in 2022, and it does feel like he sometimes has skills that most other players don’t.

However, McNeil also goes into prolonged slumps that make the aforementioned player difficult to recognize. He arrived in MLB at age 26, which begs the question whether his prime was just shorter than other players because of the late start he got.

It might a little unfair to compare present-day Turner to his prime with the Washington Nationals and the Los Angeles Dodgers, but it is fair to say that the shortstop isn’t the same player he once was.

Since signing his $300 million mega deal with the Philadelphia Phillies, Turner has had to answer questions about his declining productivity, as the Philadelphia Inquirer highlighted in 2023. Turner has played a lot better so far in 2024, but is missing significant time due to a hamstring injury. His contract, performance and availability leave him in the overrated arena for the time being.

Since leaving the Chicago White Sox after the 2022 season, Abreu has been pedestrian at best with the Houston Astros. He was brought in to provide power and run production, but has struggled to do so in his two seasons with the franchise.

Things got so bad for Abreu in Houston that he was sent down to the minor leagues on May 1 to work out his hitting troubles.

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Chisholm hasn’t been a terrible player for the Miami Marlins during his five-year stint, but his reputation precedes what he brings to the field. He seemed like a building block for the franchise a couple of years ago, but has not distinguished himself since.

Chisholm unleashed his frustration with the Marlins franchise to CBS Sports in March 2024, saying that the team had a terrible clubhouse environment early in his career. He said it has since improved heading into the 2024 campaign, but Chisholm will need to take matters into his own hands to get his career back on track.

Jimenez burst onto the MLB scene in 2019, slugging 31 home runs and driving in 79 RBI’s. He was viewed as one of the best prospects in the sport, with a future as bright as anyone’s for the Chicago White Sox.

It seems like the American League has figured Jimenez out, as he hasn’t come close to reaching the same level of production since. He’s still just 27 years old, so there’s time for him to figure it out, but the reality hasn’t been pretty.

Story was a star for the Colorado Rockies towards the end of the 2010s. The Denver Post noted that he hit 100 career home runs faster than any shortstop in baseball history. The shortstop wanted a change of scenery, however, as Colorado wasn’t competitive in the National League West.

Since joining the Boston Red Sox in 2022, Story has played in 94, 43 and 8 games respectively in three seasons. His 2024 campaign is over after undergoing shoulder surgery. It has been one injury concern after another for the former star infielder.

There are few players who have been more dominant on the mound in MLB history than DeGrom. His electric fastball and dynamic control flummoxed hitters since his days as a young pitcher with the New York Mets. Jake Arrieta told Sports Illustrated in 2022 that DeGrom might be the greatest pitcher ever, while Mookie Betts told CBS Sports that DeGrom was in that conversation.

However, the former Cy Young award winner hasn’t been able to stay healthy, pitching in just 44 games from 2020 through the 2024 campaign. It’s a worrisome development for the Texas Rangers, who signed DeGrom to a five-year contract worth $185 million before the 2023 campaign.

Baez’s talent was impossible to deny when he was making a name for himself with the Chicago Cubs. Every time he took the field, there was a chance he would do something that fans would remember for a long time.

The Athletic wrote a piece in August 2023 about Baez’s struggles since leaving the Cubs. They called his contract with the Detroit Tigers “a splash of cold water,” considering that his production has far underdelivered expectations. While strikeouts plagued Baez in Chicago as a young player, he has not been able to cut down on them as a veteran, which has led to his demise.

Another player who made his name with the Cubs tops our list of most disappointing players. Bryant was a four time All-Star in Chicago, but his career has taken a nose-dive with the Colorado Rockies.

Bryant told The Denver Post in May 2024 that he has the spirit and the talent to resurrect his career, and it seems like he’ll need every bit of the motivation. In addition to the injuries he’s dealt with, Bryant has also had to tap dance around comments he made in February 2024 which seemed to indicate he made a mistake signing a $182 million contract with the Rockies.

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