Today is the 60th game of the season for most MLB teams. Can you believe that this would have been a complete season in 2020? In case you're taking notes, that means The San Francisco Giants would be the NL #1 Seed, while the Padres and the Dodgers would duke it out for the Wild Card. Meanwhile, the Yankees wouldn't make it to postseason.

Pretty weird, right?

Baseball is meant to be a long season. Peaks and valleys. Hot streaks and cold streaks. But, just for fun, I wanted to review a few more rebound picks I made for this year. I'm taking the first 60 games of this season and comparing it to 2020. Who's winning? Who's losing?

Either way, the good news, or maybe the bad, is that all of these players still have plenty of time to alter their 2021 trajectory. And as a Fantasy Baseball manager, so does your team. It's a long season, buckle up.

Francisco Lindor , SS NYM

What I said then: 

Lindor put up decent numbers in 2020, though it was not what fantasy baseball managers had hoped for in a first-round pick. The lefty's .258 Batting Average, eight home runs, 30 runs, 27 RBI, and six stolen bases may have been affected by something many haven't considered: The Cleveland Indians' clubhouse. It was fractured, to say the least, and I cannot imagine that encouraged anyone to play at their best. Let's also not forget that Lindor was constantly being talked about as a player on the Cleveland club's trade block. Well, now Lindor is taking a Greyhound on the Hudson River line to a club that very much wants his skill and positive clubhouse vibe. Lindor is entering his age 27 year- the year often expected to be an MLB player's best- and he enters it hitting in a much more competitive lineup with a front office on a mission to win. I expect Lindor, a 3-time Top 10 MVP candidate, to return to form and do it with his trademark smile as the new face of the Mets Franchise. Expect 30 Home Runs and 20 stolen bases. This Superstar will thrive in Queens. 

What's happening now:

Well, Lindor did not get off to a hot start. 52 games into the season and Lindor has hit only five home runs with 29 runs, 13 RBI, and four stolen bases and he's batting a career-low .213. His 2020 season is looking much better at this point. Still, it's hard to count out a hitter that has had three 30+ home run seasons and has been a career .281 hitter, even with this bad stretch. He's still fast, he still has power, and he still doesn't strike out too much. It's just...weird. At least June is off to a good start. Over the last 27 at-bats, Lindor is hitting .346 with a home run and seven runs scored. Lindor can only go up from here, but at this rate, my thirty home run, 20 extra bag prediction looks pretty off-target. 

J.D. Martinez, DH/OF BOS

What I said then:

Beginning in 2016, power-hitter J.D. Martinez hit for .300+ four seasons in a row. In both 2017 and 2018, he hit 40+ bombs and then followed up with a 36-bomb season in 2019. It's unclear precisely what happened in 2020. His exit velocity was down, but his walk rate and strikeout rate weren't off from his five- year range. I am chalking this up to small sample size and putting him on my buy-low candidate list at his current NFBC average draft position. Now, I understand when fantasy baseball managers don't like to draft a DH. Depending on your league-settings, it can handcuff you in a lot of ways; but, when that DH is either Nelson Cruz or J.D. Martinez, it's a move worth making. We expect Martinez to be the everyday DH for Boston in 2021, and he should get enough starts in the OF to qualify more broadly in most leagues. 

What's happening now:

Well, this one IS on target. Across the first 60 games of the season, Martinez is batting .312 with twelve homers, 39 RBI, and 41 runs scored. That's exactly what we have come to expect from him. It seems in-game video was just what the doctor ordered. The Boston Red Sox are mashing, and what's more -- all of his expected stats are in the top 10% of the league. He will likely only get hotter as the weather heats up. Not only that, but he has already qualified at OF in nearly all leagues with ten OF starts in the 2021 season. Martinez to the moon!  

Gleyber Torres , SS/2B NYY

What I said then:

Gleyber Torres had a massive breakout in 2019, batting .278 with 38 home runs during the regular season and posting a monster 1.155 OPS in the postseason. No huge surprise considering his pedigree. Let's not forget, Torres was the jewel in the deal the Cubs made to rent Aroldis Chapman to win a world series. Let's also not forget the Yankees have made it to the postseason every year since, but I digress. Gleyber Torres had a down 2020. He batted .243 and hit a measly three home runs in 160 plate appearances. So, what happened? Torres spent much of 2020 dealing with a few injuries, including quad, hamstring, and being hit in the elbow early in the season. Then, In December, Brian Cashman was quoted as saying Torres didn't show up to summer camp in good shape and that it took him about 40-45 games of the regular season to catch up. Now the good news: Assuming Torres doesn't spend his entire off-season binging Chipotle and playing PS5, I believe we can expect Torres to return to stud status. His 2020 postseason numbers after he finally got going (.434 BA with two home runs, five runs, and five RBI) indeed argue he has plenty of production in the tank. And the cherry on top? Gleyber improved on one thing in 2020, and it is perhaps the most crucial thing for a major league hitter: plate discipline. Torres logged a career-high 14-percent walk rate while also logging a career-low 17.5-percent strikeout rate. Torres is currently going as late as the 5th or 6th round in most leagues, and he has the additional sweetener of qualifying at second base on many platforms.

What's happening now:

Well, this one is a toss-up. So far, Torres has only three home runs, but at least he's batting a respectable .272, and he's stolen four bases. Good news? His chase rate and walk rate all look very good, and he has improved his batting average each month this year. April was abysmally slow, with all three of his home runs coming after May 9th. But, where has the power gone? Maybe that's a question we should ask the entire Yankees squad. The Yanks have only scored 223 runs on the year -- the sixth-lowest mark in the league. They are also tied for the sixth-lowest slugging percentage at only .371. Is it the new ball? Poor management? Collective malaise? Here's hoping the Yanks get back on track, and Gleyber Torres helps lead the charge. 

Jose Altuve , 2B HOU

What I said then: 

Jose Altuve had a terrible 2020- no question about it. After previously never hitting for below .283 in his career, Altuve posted a career-worst batting average of .219, and he only had five home runs in 2020 after having a career-high 31 home runs in 2019. On top of that, Altuve has stolen only 8 bases over the past two seasons. He's 30 years old now, and maybe it's time to give up on this aging second basemen. I hope that's what your opponents are thinking, so he can slip further and further down the draft board. Let's squint and look a little closer. I don't think it's any secret Altuve was affected by the cheating scandal more than most. Now that's a little more in the rearview mirror- and reports out of Spring Training are that it's already a completely different atmosphere at camp than last year. Now- let's look into Altuve's 2020 postseason numbers. In 13 games, Altuve batted .375 with a 500 OBP, five HR, and 11 RBI. That's right, Altuve hit the same amount of home runs in the postseason as he did in the regular season and looked a lot more like his usual self. The 73 game numbers look quite a bit stronger than the 60 game numbers, reinforcing that a 60 game sample would be just a blip in a regular 162 game season. 

In the end, even with a tough stretch of 60 games, Altuve is a career .311 hitter at a shallow position. A six-time all-star and a former AL MVP, I can only see Altuve going back up. Sure, he's entering his age 31 season, and he may not run as much anymore, but he's currently going as late as the beginning of the 8th round. I'm willing to push the chips back in on Jose Altuve .

What's happening now:

He's back, baby! Jose Altuve is batting .302 with nine home runs, 39 runs and 27 RBI, and he's even thrown in two extra bases. His strikeout rate is in the top 10% of the league, he's making good contact, and he's batting at the top of a powerful lineup. That eighth-round pick looks like a steal.