New York Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner always has fantasy value due to his extremely high amount of stolen bases and a batting average that is normally solid enough not to hurt your team.

This year, Gardner's value is even higher due to a rare burst of power. Yes, being a left-handed hitter in Yankee Stadium could have something to do it...then again, every home game of Gardner's career has been in Yankee Stadium. So let's throw that explanation out the window.

The fact is that at thirty years old, Gardner has hit eight home runs this season - tying his career high for a full season - through exactly 81 of 162 games.

In addition to the power surge, Gardner's batting average has been up this season. He is a career .270 hitter and hit a career-high .277 back in 2010, but he is all the way up to a .288 clip halfway through this season.

Gardner is still a valuable player, but do not count on him to continue hitting home runs and getting base hits as frequently. He is about due for a slump and a regression to the mean.

In fact, Gardner hit as many or more home runs in the first half of this season as he has in any other season in his career. You should not expect him to repeat those same statistics in the second half.

The steals will still come, but there are still better options out there for stolen bases (Dee Gordon, for example, has forty of them). Gardner is still fast, but he is not above-and-beyond other speedsters anymore.

You can get a good return for a trade involving Gardner as you can convince your opponent to see him as someone excelling in all areas of the game. Gardner will inevitably slump and have a worse second half than first half, so take advantage of his hot start and get someone who will help you out even more.