The second half is all about second chances. A clean slate. An arbitrary but cosmetically pleasant split of the season into two manageable gaps. Great second halves will increase a players' draft stock for the following year, and sometimes serve as a harbinger of greatness to come: Jose Bautista hit two home runs before the All-Star break in 2009. He hit 11 in the second half and 54 the following season.
Of course, sometimes a poor second half will create fantasy sleepers. When the much-hyped Mike Trout was called up just prior to the All-Star break in 2011, he carried with him great expectations as one of the game's top prospects. His .220 average, five homers and four steals in 123 at-bats told us nothing of the MVP-worthy monster season that would follow in 2012.
But we're not worried about 2014 in these rankings. We're not even worried about the entirety of 2013. These rankings are for the next two and a half months of the season, and that is all. They do not attempt to predict how players will finish the season overall, as they do not take into account what has already happened. Troy Tulowitzki and Jose Reyes' injuries will impact their overall numbers, but today, they're healthy, and that's all that matters.
If you're interested in what has happened so far, check out the Player Rater. If you're interested in how to value a player such as Jurickson Profar long-term, check out Tristan H. Cockcroft's keeper rankings. If you're interested in how we think the rest of the season will play out, well, you've come to the right place.
The panel of voters includes Cockcroft, Eric Karabell, Brendan Roberts, AJ Mass and Todd Zola, as well as the Answer Guys' Shawn Cwalinski and Dave Hunter. Each was asked to submit his top 250 for the second half. A total of 322 players received at least one vote. When not assigned a rank by all of our panelists, a value of "260" was given to account in the average. All 322 players, from Miguel Cabrera to Manny Ramirez, are accounted for in the positional breakdown of the rankings. To sort by any one panelist's rankings, click on their initials at the top of the rankings column.