The Biggest Busts of the 2024 MLB Season So Far

We’re checking in on the biggest busts in baseball through the All-Star break.

1B Paul Goldschmidt (.230, 13 HRs, 37 RBIs) and 3B Nolan Arenado (.270, 8 HRs, 40 RBIs), St. Louis Cardinals

The cornerstones and future Hall of Famers, with 15 All-Star appearances and 14 Gold Gloves between them, have been overtaken by a youth movement that’s helped catapult the Redbirds into the playoff race.

In his age-36 season, Goldschmidt—two seasons removed from NL MVP honors—has seen his offensive numbers tumble across the board for the second consecutive year. Has Father Time finally caught up with Goldy, a free agent after 2024? Most players don’t improve after their mid-30s.

As for Arenado, one of the best third basemen of his or any era, he’s on pace for his lowest full-season homer and RBI totals since early in his 12-year career. Has the 33-year-old hit the wall? Not likely after a solid 2023 campaign. 

He does have three more years left on a nine-year, $275 million deal, so if there’s no second-half resurgence, it’ll be time for Cards fans to worry.

LHP Blake Snell, San Francisco Giants (0-3, 6.31 ERA)

His perfect game bid on Sunday notwithstanding, the two-time Cy Young Award winner has been a monumental disappointment in his first season in the Bay Area.

The 31-year-old didn’t sign until the middle of March, then missed a month with an adductor strain after posting an 11.57 ERA in three April starts. His first half was the opposite of what the Giants were expecting when they signed him to a two-year, $62 million deal to be their No. 1 starter.

LHP Jordan Montgomery, Arizona Diamondbacks (6-5, 6.44)

Sticking with the theme of a 31-year-old, left-handed, free-agent pitcher signing with an NL West team late in spring training, he has flopped after playing a vital role for the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers.

Expected to bolster the rotation of last year’s National League winners, the southpaw has been so terrible that he’s been booed off Chase Field multiple times. To make matters worse, his $20 million player option for 2025 has already vested with his 10th start, and it will reach $25 million if he makes 12 more starts this season. 

The good news for D-backs fans? He’s out with a knee injury, so at least he’s not pitching.

OF Randy Arozarena, Tampa Bay Rays (.202, 12 HR, 31 RBIs)

The 2021 AL Rookie of the Year is one of three players to post at least 20 homers and 20 stolen bases each of the last three seasons, and while he might achieve that again in 2024 (14 steals at the break), his batting average has plummeted more than 50 points below his career average.

That’s not all that’s taken a tumble, as the 2023 All-Star’s slugging percentage (.362) and OPS (.671) are well below his season averages (.437 and .781, respectively). It’s no surprise that the Rays are languishing in fourth in the AL East, barely playing .500 ball, when players like Arozarena, who isn’t eligible for free agency until after the 2026 season, aren’t producing at their expected clip.

2B Vaughn Grissom, Boston Red Sox (.148, 0 HR, 3 RBIs)

Acquired in the offseason from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for All-Star Chris Sale, who couldn’t stay healthy in his last four seasons in Boston, the 23-year-old has followed in the left-hander’s footsteps, but not in a good way. Under team control through 2029, Grissom’s missed 73 games this season with strains of both hamstrings and hasn’t contributed when healthy.

Out for more than a month on his second IL stint, Grissom is slated to begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Worcester during the break, the Boston Globe reported on Monday. The Red Sox—one of MLB’s first-half surprises—haven’t missed him, and he may not take over as their full-time second baseman, especially with two minor league options remaining.