5 stars who are underperforming this season

For many of baseball's stars, 2015 was the launching pad to an even greater 2016 campaign. Others weren't so lucky: Several big names have, for a variety of reasons, failed to repeat their spectacular runs from a year ago. Many of these disappointing performances have had severe effects on entire teams that were widely regarded as playoff favorites going into the season.

Here are five players who have vastly underperformed in 2016:

Justin Upton

Justin Upton was an All-Star for the third time in 2015, his lone season with the Padres. When he reached free agency the Tigers handed him $132.75 million, and he promptly turned into his brother, Melvin Jr. Justin's .241/.297/.397 slash line closely resembles that of his older sibling (.245/.291/.411), and Melvin's out-homering Justin 16-13. Though he's turned it up a little bit in the second half, posting a .796 OPS with four homers, Justin hasn't been close to the forceful bat to serve as a complement to Miggy, Victor, J.D., et al that the Tigers envisioned when they signed him - and there are still five more years to go.

David Price

Last July, the Toronto Blue Jays made a stunning splash to acquire Price at the trade deadline; he rewarded them with the best two months of his career, dominating the American League East and vaulting the Canadian club to its first playoff berth in 22 years while finishing second in AL Cy Young voting. That's who the Red Sox wanted when they signed Price to a $217-million contract over the winter. Instead, they got a league-average pitcher who owns a 4.34 ERA and has looked lost at Fenway Park. It's only gotten worse as the year's moved along: Opponents are hitting .328/.367/.445 off Price in the second half. The Red Sox are fortunate to own an incredible offense that's helped shield Price's continued struggles in his new home.

Bryce Harper

The thing about Harper's 2016 is that it's not a terrible season - he's still producing for his team. It's just ... when you're the face of your sport you shouldn't follow up an incredible breakout MVP season by producing the same amount of WAR as Martin Prado. Harper's still got 20 home runs, he's stealing more bases, and he's leading the league in walks, but his OPS, BABIP, and isolated power are all down over 100 points from last year. He's also missed a few games here and there with some nagging injuries. Nobody seems too concerned about Harper - he is just 23 years old, after all, and still a wunderkind whose prime hasn't arrived yet - but the Nationals need a lot more from their star in order to win a title.

Sonny Gray

Billy Beane might have overplayed his hand just a bit here. One year after Gray finished third in Cy Young voting, made his first All-Star appearance, and led the AL in shutouts while posting a 2.73 ERA - third-lowest in his league - the 26-year-old owns a team-worst 5.74 ERA and leads all of baseball with 15 wild pitches. The man who had three complete games last year has failed to get out of the sixth inning in all but four of his 21 starts this year. And if all that wasn't enough, he was placed on the disabled list Sunday for the second time this year. Oakland was always going to have trouble competing this year; without its ace performing the team's completely lost.

Andrew McCutchen

The face of the Pittsburgh Pirates had himself a typical 2015, winning his fourth Silver Slugger and finishing in the top-five of National League MVP voting for a fourth straight year. He'll be lucky to even get a writer to consider giving him a 10th-place MVP vote in 2016. His OPS has dropped 172 points from last season, he's walking less - an average of 84 walks from 2011-15, and just 38 this year - and his 0.5 WAR is tied for 10th on his team. McCutchen's season-long slump has paralleled the decline of his Pirates, who won 98 games last year and are now struggling to stay above .500. For the sake of the franchise, the Pirates had better hope this is a one-year blip in an otherwise excellent career.