I have grown up living and breathing Chicago Blackhawks hockey. I attained my passion from my father, who also raised me a St. Louis Cardinals fan. I have grown to believe one sports season does not end until the playoffs or fire sale is over. With the Blackhawks raising Lord Stanley for the second time in four seasons, it is now time to focus solely on baseball.

St. Louis has me excited for the rest of the season, but the White Sox, my other baseball passion, are goofy bad. That said, Chicago’s impending sell-off has been excited to see what deals they pull off and what hot garbage they add to a putrid farm system.

The July 31 trade deadline is one month away, which means real and fantasy baseball will get its seasonal facelift in the near future. It is so much fun to see what happens to up to 30 rosters in a short time and how it changes fantasy rosters.

Goodbye hockey, hello baseball!

Peaking

Leonys Martin, Outfielder, Texas Rangers: 14-game hitting streak as of Monday aside, Martin has 15 steals in less than 200 at-bats, and most of those AB’s have been since mid-May. While his average may end up around .270, his steals will continue to pile up.

Nate Schierholtz, Outfielder, Chicago Cubs: This was one of the better under the radar signings this past offseason. Schierholtz platoons in the outfield, but sees majority of the plate appearances batting lefty. If he had full-time AB’s, he could very well hit 25-30 home runs. That said, his 5 RBI effort this past week is worth an add for your team’s bench.

Jacob Turner, Starting Pitcher, Miami Marlins: Turner has four quality starts in his six in 2013, and threw a complete game this past Saturday. Miami’s anemic offense will keep Turner from racking up the wins (two in six starts), but a WHIP over 1.00 and a sparkling 1.27 ERA makes him worth an add for now. The ERA is sure to finish higher, but ride the wave that Turner has been on for the past month.

In the Valley

Ichiro Suzuki, Outfielder, New York Yankees: Since his walk-off homer June 26, Ichiro has two hits in fifteen at-bats. Fools’ gold, people. He is not worth an add unless he magically starts scoring runs and gets on base more.

Lorenzo Cain, Outfielder, Kansas City Royals: His hot start to 2013 seems so far away. I rode the hot streak until about a month ago when I Adam LaRoche and stopped watching his production. I have not missed much. He should be owned in leagues by owners who do not check their teams, that’s it.

Jayson Werth, Outfielder, Washington Nationals: The power outage in the Nationals’ bats has hurt everyone, but when Werth returned from injury, that was supposed to change. It hasn’t, and outside of Sunday’s anomaly, Werth and Washington have been nothing short of blah. Werth’s injury history alone should keep you away from adding him.

For those of you who heeded my advice on Mark Teixeira, you’re welcome. For those who took time to chastise me, thanks for taking the time to contact me.

Follow me on Twitter @jeffrotull44, and check out my work with The Sports Bank, where I cover the Chicago White Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Blackhawks, and entertainment.