WBC Glory or Hidden Curse? The Shocking Truth Behind MLB Stars’ Post-Tournament Performance Slumps

Raleigh, Tatis, Machado Trying to Find Power
Raleigh, who captured the imagination of the baseball world in 2025 by winning the All-Star Home Run Derby, becoming both the first catcher and switch hitter in MLB history to smash 60 homers, has unwillingly become one of the focal points of the post-WBC malaise.
A year after finishing runner-up to Judge for AL MVP, Raleigh’s RV+ (raw value) is an almost-unthinkable 58 (league average is 100; he’s sixth lowest among qualifiers) and his OPS+ is 60 points below his career average (122.3). He, too, is on the IL (right oblique strain), hitting just .161, slugging only .317 and with eight times more strikeouts (57) than home runs (seven).



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