September has a way of making a player’s last two months feel bigger than everything that came before, and this season has supplied plenty of examples. From Chicago and Cleveland to San Diego, Milwaukee and Atlanta, a group of hitters and pitchers has flipped the script after the All-Star break, turning rough first halves into meaningful late-season pushes. All statistics are through Saturday’s games.
Chicago’s Bregman finds the middle of the order
Alex Bregman arrived in Chicago on a five-year, $175 million contract and spent much of the first half searching for the production that deal was meant to bring. He entered the break batting .241 with nine homers and a .695 OPS.
Since then, the Cubs third baseman has looked like one of the game’s most dangerous bats. His .298/.376/.609 second-half line leads to a 168 wRC+, best among qualified Major League hitters entering Saturday. His 17 homers after the break were tied for fourth in the majors.
Bregman’s 5.1 FanGraphs WAR is already his best mark since his 5.4 total in 2022. With Chicago positioned to host a National League Wild Card Series at Wrigley Field, he has become a central piece of the lineup rather than a question hanging over it.
Table-setters and thunder in the National League race
The Padres have posted a 38-21 record since the break, matching the Brewers for the National League’s best second-half record, and Jackson Merrill and Fernando Tatis Jr. have been at the center of it.
Merrill had carried a .219/.278/.350 slash line into the break after seeing his OPS dip below .600 in late May. The center fielder, who finished behind Paul Skenes in 2024 National League Rookie of the Year voting before taking a step back in 2025, has rediscovered the form that once made him such a rising name.
In 59 second-half games, Merrill is batting .312 with 16 home runs, 48 RBIs and a .944 OPS. He has also continued to provide high-end work in center field. That turnaround has kept San Diego in position to chase the chance to host a Wild Card Series.
Tatis has supplied the force at the top. The three-time All-Star went 55 games before finally hitting his first home run on May 30, but the break sparked a different kind of season. He hit three homers in his first four games back and had reached 24 for the year by Saturday.
His 167 wRC+ in the second half ranked second in baseball, trailing only Bregman. Tatis has pushed his season OPS to .819 and given the Padres a leadoff hitter capable of changing a game before the heart of the order ever steps in.
Arizona’s Brandon Pfaadt is part of that crowded National League chase from the mound. Sent to Triple-A Reno in June after a difficult start, the right-hander has returned with a 3.01 ERA since the break. His best run came from July 28 through Aug. 14, when he threw 27 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings over four starts.
Pfaadt’s next major assignment could come in the season’s final series, a three-game visit to San Diego from Sept. 25-27. In a Wild Card field that includes the Cubs, Phillies and Padres, that start may carry October consequences for Arizona.
Kwan lifts Cleveland while Springer keeps Toronto alive
Steven Kwan’s recovery at the plate has helped Cleveland move into first place in the American League Central after its series victory over the White Sox. The left fielder has already won four straight AL Gold Gloves to begin his career, but his second-half offense has been just as important.
Kwan hit .225/.332/.282 before the break and batted only .188 in May. Since then, he has carried a .347 average, second among qualified hitters, and a .435 on-base percentage that was tied with Yordan Alvarez for the major-league lead.
He has provided needed traffic on the bases for a Guardians club receiving less than its usual output from José Ramírez, whose 94 wRC+ has been well below his standard. Cleveland is chasing not just the division crown, but a first-round bye.
George Springer has given Toronto a chance to stay in the AL Wild Card picture. After improving his OPS by almost 300 points from 2024 to 2025, when he batted .309/.399/.560 and finished seventh in AL MVP voting, Springer fell back to .218 with a .677 OPS before this year’s break. His early struggles followed a return from the injured list after a left big toe fracture.
The time off appears to have helped. Springer had multi-hit games in five of his first nine second-half contests, finished July with an .878 OPS, then batted .321 with an .858 OPS in August. He has cooled some in September while managing several injuries.
The Blue Jays remain three games out of an AL Wild Card position. Their pitching injuries and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s down season have made the climb difficult, but Springer’s revived bat has at least kept the door open.
Rotation repairs arrive when clubs need them most
Brayan Bello’s season has gone from emergency work to a key role in Boston’s playoff chase. The right-hander posted a 3.35 ERA as a starter in 2025, then opened 2026 with a 9.00 ERA over his first six starts and was shifted into a bulk-relief assignment. He still owned a 6.06 ERA at the break.
Boston caught fire late in the first half, winning nine straight before extending the streak to a franchise record-tying 15, and Bello has continued moving in the right direction. On Saturday, he held Tampa Bay to one run across eight innings while striking out 11. His improvement has helped stabilize a Red Sox club now sitting in postseason position and seemingly headed toward another AL Wild Card Series meeting with the Yankees.
Milwaukee’s Robert Gasser has also become a necessary answer. Tommy John surgery in June 2024 interrupted his rookie year, and although he made two encouraging starts late in 2025, his 2026 began unevenly. He brought a 5.24 ERA into the break after allowing seven runs in three innings in his final first-half outing.
Since the break, Gasser has produced a 3.00 ERA in 57 innings. He threw seven scoreless innings against Baltimore on Saturday, and his first four September appearances included only four earned runs over 21 innings, with two of those outings coming against the Cubs.
With Brandon Woodruff’s 2026 availability uncertain and Kyle Harrison struggling, Gasser has become increasingly vital as the Brewers pursue the National League’s No. 1 seed.
Tyler Mahle has been even more dramatic since changing uniforms. He had a 5.13 ERA through 18 starts with San Francisco, but Atlanta acquired him before the Trade Deadline in exchange for right-handed reliever Anthony Molina.
Mahle has allowed seven earned runs over eight Braves starts and has worked at least six innings in seven of them. His 1.28 ERA in that stretch ranked third among pitchers with at least 40 innings. With Spencer Strider, Spencer Schwellenbach, Bryce Elder, Reynaldo López and Hurston Waldrep all on the injured list, Mahle has done more than simply fill innings behind Chris Sale. He has given Atlanta frontline results.
Aaron Nola’s second half has offered Philadelphia a similar lift. An injury-affected 2025 included an ERA above 6, and the right-hander entered this year’s break with a 5.75 ERA after surrendering 20 home runs, tied for fifth most in the majors.
Nola has worked to a 2.78 ERA after the break, including a strong outing against the Mets on Thursday. He has struck out 67 over 71 1/3 innings, though the long ball remains an issue: 14 more home runs allowed in only 12 starts.
The Phillies have also received strong second-half work from Jesús Luzardo and rookie Andrew Painter, but Luzardo is currently sidelined with left shoulder inflammation. If he cannot return for the postseason, Nola’s ability to keep the ball in the yard could determine whether he can adequately take that place in the rotation.
