CJ Abrams is turning into a certified problem

There was a stretch not too long ago when CJ Abrams looked like a talented but streaky shortstop who'd rather steal a bag than take a walk. That guy is gone. Since the All-Star break, Abrams has been the most dangerous hitter in baseball, full stop, and the numbers are getting silly enough that even the most stat-averse fan has to notice.

Codify

@CodifyBaseball

Please understand that CJ Abrams is leading the big leagues in runs batted in right now.

That RBI lead was just the appetizer. Jeff Passan put a number on exactly how absurd Abrams' second half has been: a 1.632 OPS with 7 home runs and 15 RBIs since the break, numbers that don't just lead all of MLB, they make individual teams look silly by comparison. Passan pointed out Abrams has more second-half homers by himself than the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mariners, Twins, White Sox, Cardinals and Angels have combined.

Jeff Passan

@JeffPassan

CJ Abrams is the hottest hitter on the planet. Post-All-Star break, Abrams leads MLB in OPS (1.632), HR (7) and RBIs (15). He has more homers by himself in the second half than the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mariners, Twins, White Sox, Cardinals and Angels.

Context matters here because Abrams has a history of fading in the second half — a pattern that made this trade-deadline-adjacent hot streak feel almost too on-brand for a guy who was reportedly a name floated around this year's rumor mill. He was named the NL's Player of the Week for the July 20-26 stretch, and instead of cooling off after that honor, he's kept stacking at-bats that look like video game settings.

There's also a poetic layer to all of this that Jon Heyman flagged. Abrams and James Wood are two of the pieces Washington got back from San Diego in the blockbuster Juan Soto trade a few years ago, and now all three of those names are sitting at the top of the NL OPS leaderboard together.

Jon Heyman

@JonHeyman

Top 3 in NL in OPS: Soto and 2 guys traded for Soto (Wood and Abrams)

It's a wild bit of full-circle validation for a trade that took years to fully judge. Soto obviously became one of the sport's signature superstars, but Washington's return is finally starting to look less like a consolation prize and more like a legitimate haul — Wood has emerged as a middle-of-the-order force, and Abrams is now doing things that put him in the same offensive tier as the guy the Padres wouldn't part with.

Abrams is still a year away from free agency and remains under team control through arbitration for two more offseasons, which means Washington gets to enjoy this run without an imminent bidding war attached. For now, the only question is whether this is a real step forward or just the hottest heater of his career — but with the numbers he's putting up, that's a debate worth having down the stretch.