10 players homered in the All-Star Game; only one can hit the most in the second half
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Tuesday's All-Star Game featured an historic 10 home runs from both teams en route to an 8-6 victory for the American League. They came from sluggers like Aaron Judge as well as players like Jean Segura, who are perhaps less recognized for their power. They came from outfielders and infielders, American League players and National League players. One thing all 10 of those players have in common, however, is that they all have the same number of second-half home runs: Zero.
The burning question as we approach Thursday's start to the second half, then, is who among these 10 All-Star Game sluggers will hit the most home runs going forward? Let's check out the case for each player.
Aaron Judge
Judge led all of baseball with 52 home runs in 2017 and slugged 25 in the first half of 2018. Of the 10 players on this list, he's the only one we know broke a TV with a dinger.
Mike Trout
Fresh off an endorsement from Bryce Harper as the best player in baseball, Trout should enter the second half with a lot of confidence. Don't let his overall excellence cause you to lose sight of his power. He had the same number of first-half homers as Judge.
Willson Contreras
Sure, the Cubs catcher may have only slugged seven dingers in the first half, but he hit 21 homers in 2017 in just 428 plate appearances. He has more power than he showed in the first half, and Tuesday could be the start of Contreras making up for lost time.
Trevor Story
Story had 20 homers in the first half and plays his home games at Coors Field. This is a player who hit seven home runs in his first six MLB games, so he can definitely get hot and leave the rest of the field in the dust.
Jean Segura
Segura may have had only seven first-half dingers and 11 all of last season, but he'll be fueled by the adrenaline of the Mariners trying to make the postseason for the first time since 2001. Plus, he'll get to play plenty of games in parks friendly to right-handed hitters like Minute Maid Park and Globe Life Park in Arlington.
Christian Yelich
Yelich has always had a swing geared more for line drives than home runs, but when he gets into one, it can really go a long way.
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Scooter Gennett
Gennett hit a career-best 27 home runs in 2017 and will enter the second half with 16 already to his name in 2018. When he hits dingers, he hits them in bunches. Just last season, he hit four in one game:
Alex Bregman
Bregman had 20 home runs in the first half of 2018 after hitting 19 in all of 2017. The 24-year-old is growing into his power and, as a right-handed hitter, will continue to benefit from the short porch in left field of Minute Maid Park.
George Springer
The 2017 World Series MVP hit five homers in seven games to tie Reggie Jackson and Chase Utley for the most in a single World Series. One of them was so mighty, it set off an explosion:
Joey Votto
Votto may only have hit seven homers in the first half, but he has more career homers than any other player who homered in the All-Star Game. Like Story, he plays his home games in a dinger-friendly park. If his bat isn't up the task, he can always just throw balls out of the park:
You've read the arguments. Now it's time for you to decide: Which player who homered in the All-Star Game will hit the most dingers in the second half?