5 players who are struggling after playing in WBC

Early-season struggles in baseball are often tempered by two simple words: "It's early." After all, these guys play 162 games over six months; there's still a long way to go.

But a World Baseball Classic year is different. Many stars got their early starts in March, when they left the easygoing haven of spring training for competitive, heart-wrenching games representing their countries. Oh sure, some great WBC performances have carried over into the regular season, but there are quite a few prominent names who've been slow to get going after looking spectacular in the international tournament - not to mention those continuing to flounder after failing to step up for their countries.

Here are five players who are struggling after playing in the WBC:

Jose Bautista, Blue Jays (Dominican Republic)

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Post-WBC issues have hit the Blue Jays hard, and the struggles of Bautista, who hit .333 for the Dominican, may be the worst of them all. The 36-year-old's strikeouts are up, his walks are down, his power looks sapped - he's recorded just one home run - and he's even had some trouble catching up to fastballs. This has translated into a .520 OPS, three extra-base hits, and only six RBIs through 102 plate appearances. To put the ugliness in context, Bautista finished his rookie season in 2004 with a .502 OPS and zero homers across 94 PAs with four different teams. The 36-year-old's .276/.389/.379 line over his last eight games presents a glimmer of hope for a turnaround, but a return to his superstar numbers of old may be too much to ask for. That's a shame, because 2017 WBC Bautista (and 2009-15 Bautista, for that matter) would really help Toronto dig itself out of this awful 6-17 hole.

Eric Hosmer, Royals (USA)

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When he wore "USA" across his chest, Hosmer couldn't be stopped. He stole the American first-base job with a team-best 1.115 OPS, six runs scored, and a .385 average in eight games for the tournament champions. In Kansas City, they've got missing person flyers out for that guy right now, because WBC Eric Hosmer simply hasn't shown up. He's hitting just .224/.283/.294 with one homer and an ISO of just .071 - not to mention some poor fielding (minus-1.2 dWAR) - and is a major reason why the Royals are quickly dropping out of contention. Without a quick return to his WBC form, not only will this free-agent-to-be fail to get even close to the 10-year deal he's reportedly seeking, but the Royals may not even get to cash him in for prospects at the deadline. For everyone's sake, Hosmer better fix this fast.

Jose Quintana, White Sox (Colombia)

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With Chris Sale gone, this season was supposed to be Quintana's real coming-out party as an ace, and his gem of a start in the WBC against the U.S. only heightened expectations. Since then, the White Sox biggest trade asset has struggled to perform like the ace he's supposed to be, with an uncharacteristically high 5.22 ERA and a 14.3 home run-fly ball rate through his first five starts. That's a far cry from the performance everyone was expecting, especially the interested contenders who'd like to trade valuable prospects for his services. This was Quintana's first time pitching in the WBC (it was Colombia's first tournament), so perhaps that early workload has disrupted his rhythm early. The White Sox have to hope that's not the case, since they have a lot riding on his ability to find that WBC form in short order.

Carlos Beltran, Astros (Puerto Rico)

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The Houston Astros have been great this season. Carlos Beltran has been anything but. The 40-year-old, one of the most prominent Puerto Rican players of his generation, looked like he still had a lot left in the tank with a .435/.519/.478 performance in the WBC to lead his country back to the final. Unfortunately for the Astros, he's looking much closer to his age this April, with a .238/.273/.345 slash line, two homers, and only three walks. The Astros can't be too happy with the returns on their $16-million investment so far, especially after watching the ring-chasing Beltran put up those numbers for his country in March. It might be possible for them to win it all with a declining Beltran in tow, but that would make things a lot tougher, as he's supposed to be a huge part of their powerful lineup. If the WBC ends up being the last time we see the Carlos Beltran of old, that doesn't bode well for the Astros' hopes.

Roberto Osuna, Blue Jays (Mexico)

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Just two years ago, Osuna was a rookie stopper wowing baseball with his composure and dominance in October. But the 22-year-old just hasn't been right this year, beginning with his awful WBC. Osuna melted down in his first of two appearances for Mexico, allowing five runs (four earned) without recording an out in a ninth-inning walk-off loss to Italy. That awful outing has carried over into April. After starting the year on the DL, he's blown three saves in spectacular fashion, displayed a noticeable drop in velocity, and owns an ERA above 7.00. There could be many reasons for his struggles, including injuries, and it's not out of the realm of possibility that this could eventually be traced back to going full throttle too soon to pitch for Mexico. That would be the worst-case scenario for the Blue Jays, and would illustrate the WBC's major problem: For all the good is does, the injury risks for young players like Osuna are too great.