MLB Preview: NL East

Starting tonight and running throughout the next few weeks I will be going through each MLB Division and giving you a preview, prediction, and any other things to look out for in that division. I will give a short preview of each team as well and what to look out for. I will start with the NL East and work my way through.

Last Place: Miami Marlins

This comes without any surprise. New part-owner, Derek Jeter, has basically traded away the bulk of the Marlins lineup with the moving of Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna, Christian Yelich, and Dee Gordon. The plan behind these moves? Get rid of big payroll and stack a minor league system while doing so. Yes, the plan will eventually payoff, but in the meantime the Marlins and their fan base will suffer. In my opinion, they may lose north of 90 games this year. Marlins fans, get ready for a long season and a long rebuilding process.

4^th Place: Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies have gone through a solid rebuilding process. Their lineup has immense potential with the signing of Carlos Santana and arrival of prospects, Rhys Hoskins, Nick Williams, and Jorge Alfaro. Not to mention the veterans of the team in Odubel Herrera and Maikel Franco. For the first time since their streak of 5 straight NL East Championships, the Phillies have the ability to score runs and to score them consistently. The problem? The majority of the run scoring ability is simply potential. Hoskins, Williams, and Alfaro all have very limited MLB experience, so who knows how the young ones will handle this pressure. The other question mark, pitching. The Phillies have young pitchers in the minor leagues and they have a few established big leaguers in Aaron Nola and Jerad Eickhoff. They will be the 1 and 2 in the rotation with holes in the backend and questions in the bullpen. Overall, the Phillies have the potential to be a surprise team, but I think being a contender is still a year or two away. Be patient just a little longer Phillies fans.
 

3^rd Place: Atlanta Braves

The Braves had endured a long and painful rebuilding process since their run of 14 straight division titles. With arguably the best farm system in baseball and the #1 prospect in the game in Ronald Acuna, the near future is bright. In fact, the Braves could make a run as a Cinderella team this season. In reality, the Braves are full of potentially young stars in Dansby Swanson, Ozzie Albies, and Ronald Acuna. They have an insane amount of young pitching in Luis Gohara, Kolby Allard, Kyle Wright, and Mike Soroka. The problem is that not all of these players are ready. Especially on the pitching side of things. I would expect Gohara to make the opening day rotation and I would expect to see Kyle Wright and Mike Soroka make their debuts as well at some point this season. I would also expect a huge bounce back year for Dansby Swanson, a solid year from Ozzie Albies, and a MVP like campaign for Freddie Freeman. With this being said, I don’t think the Braves are ready to contend just yet. In my opinion, the Braves will have a better season than last year, but with a possibly young rotation and a questionable bullpen, don’t expect contenders just yet.

2^nd Place: New York Mets

The Mets season depends on one factor. Will the rotation stay healthy? The lineup is there with Yoenis Cespedes, Jay Bruce, and Todd Frazier. The pitching is there with Noah Syndergaard, Jake deGrom, Zach Wheeler, and Matt Harvey. The problem is most of these pitchers spent significant time on the DL last year, allowing the Mets season to plummet. If these guys stay healthy, I’d look for them to compete with the Nationals for the top spot, or to at least lock up a wild card berth.

1^st Place: Washington Nationals

Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, Trae Turner, and Daniel Murphy. The names of the guys who will lead the Nationals to another NL East title. They have the pitching and the bats to get it done. They must stay healthy. If they do that, they will win the division pretty easily. The question is how far will they go in the playoffs? Or will they disappoint D.C. fans like they have done every October.

Written by Justin Raley