Here’s the NL East rundown. I tried to mask my Braves bias as much as possible, but don’t be surprised if they’re as good or better than I advertise!
Florida Marlins- If ever there were a team that the Pittsburgh Pirates should model themselves after, the Florida Marlins are it. Working with a budget that makes the Pirates look like they have owners who care about winning, the Marlins are always capable of surprising the world by remaining competitive throughout a season. Featuring a lineup that is completely loaded with speed and anchored by five tool player Hanley Ramirez and led off by promising young speedster Cameron Maybin, the Marlins will look to play a lot of small ball again in 2009. On the other side of the diamond the Marlins showcase a below average rotation that largely consists of middle tier starters from top to bottom. Andrew Miller could have a breakout season after a year of experience when he came over in the trade for Dontrelle “one year fluke” Willis and Miguel Cabrera. The Marlins are an interesting team, because on paper they look downright pathetic (with the exception of Hanley Ramirez and possible prospects like Maybin and Miller), but they always seem to surprise. Unfortunately, I don’t see this being one of those years where they’re able to surprise anybody.
My Prediction: Last in a stacked NL East
Washington Nationals- Ah, the good old Washington Nationals. The Nationals GM Jim Bowden must be hanging out with Marvin Lewis and Al Davis because he seems to be willing to take in all the misfit young players that everybody else has given up on. If you don’t believe me, just check out the MLB wrap sheets of Elijah Dukes, Lastings Milledge and Austin Kearns. However, who can blame them? Nobody wants to play baseball in our Nation’s capitol. When fifty percent of the crowd is made up of lobbyists who score tickets for selling their souls to corporate America and the other half are transplants rooting for the other team, it’s difficult to want to play for a cellar dweller even if they have a new stadium. So, the Nats take whoever they can get, and the scary thing is on paper they’re not as awful as you’d expect. Dukes and Milledge still have tremendous upside if they can stay on the straight and narrow, and the addition of Adam Dunn (despite his 200 k’s) should really benefit returning cornerstone Ryan Zimmerman. Actually, the offense is pretty formidable from top to bottom, being led off by respectable speedster Christian Guzman. If teams only had to hit, I might even call the Nats a wild card sleeper. However, unfortunately for them, they have to pitch too. When Scott Olsen is your ace, you’re in some trouble. Admittedly, I’m a Braves fan who sees a lot of Nats games during the course of the season when they play the Braves and I don’t even recognize half of the names in their starting rotation. That’s ok though, because I don’t think most of the names will still be in the Majors by midseason anyways.
My Prediction: 4th in the East
Philadelphia Phillies: The Phillies brought the city of Filthadephia their first championship since Rocky knocked out Clubber Lang to avenge Mickey’s death. Unfortunately for the Phillies, shortly after Rocky knocked out Clubber Lang he lost his reliable friend Apollo Creed, and the Phillies lost their Creed when they lost Pat “the bat” Burrell which is in my opinion the biggest offseason loss that nobody is talking about. However, everything is still sunny in Filthadelphia as their lineup still includes familiar faces like Ryan Howard, J Rollins and Chase Utley. Utley’s offseason surgery is a concern but Rollins looks great in the World Baseball Classic so far. Their lineup returns ace Cole Hamels. After Hamels, I’m not sold on their rotation with the likes of the ancient Jamie Moyer being counted on. The Phillies don’t have a lot of holes, but I feel like the city of Philadephia deserves another 75 years of misery and the odds of repeating are stacked against the Phillies.
My Prediction: 3rd in the East
Atlanta Braves: The braves were the most talked about NL team of the offseason. Unfrurtunately, like their decade of the nineties, they were talked about for being second best. They got burned by Rafael Furcal and Ken Griffey Jr. They had a deal on the table for Jake Peavy until the Padres demanded the first born child of every player in the Braves organization. In the end they still managed to upgrade by bringing in aging but reliable Garrett Anderson to their offensive lineup. The rotation is completed rebuilt and arguably one of the deepest in the league with the additions of Derek Lowe and Javier Vazquez, who despite their ages are as reliable of solid inning eating starters you can find, and Japanese pitching sensation Kenshin Kawakami. Returning young star Jair Jurjjeins and Tom Glavine round out their starting rotation. Tim Hudson could return as early as late August from Tommy John surgery to further bolster the rotation. Perhaps the most exciting things for Braves fans is the next crop of minor league studs that are ready to be called up. Minor league phenom Tommy Hanson is probably the closest thing to a can’t miss pitching prospect since Felix Hernandez came up for Seattle. He was the first pitcher in history to win the MVP of his Minor League. He’s being blocked from the rotation and will likely begin the season in AAA but the firs
t sign of struggle for either Tom Glavine or Japanese import Kawakami could give Hanson the green light into the bigs. On the offensive side of the ball the Braves should benefit from the extra year of experience to young players on the rise like Yunel Escobar, Kelly Johnson, and Jeff Francouer. Brian McCann looks like he’ll be the cleanup hitter and don’t be surprised if he’s good for 35 and 120 in that spot the way he’s killing the ball in the Classic right now. Jordan Schaeffer, a top 5 minor league prospect last year before getting suspended for HGH, looks to take over the leadoff spot and man center field. If Chipper Jones can stay healthy I think the Braves can compete for the wild card and possibly push the Mets for the division title. If he gets hurt, the Phillies will easily take over this second spot in the East. For now, I’m feeling more optimistic about the Braves than I have in recent years and think their depth will have them playing meaningful games in late September.
My Prediction: 2nd in the East
Florida Marlins- If ever there were a team that the Pittsburgh Pirates should model themselves after, the Florida Marlins are it. Working with a budget that makes the Pirates look like they have owners who care about winning, the Marlins are always capable of surprising the world by remaining competitive throughout a season. Featuring a lineup that is completely loaded with speed and anchored by five tool player Hanley Ramirez and led off by promising young speedster Cameron Maybin, the Marlins will look to play a lot of small ball again in 2009. On the other side of the diamond the Marlins showcase a below average rotation that largely consists of middle tier starters from top to bottom. Andrew Miller could have a breakout season after a year of experience when he came over in the trade for Dontrelle “one year fluke” Willis and Miguel Cabrera. The Marlins are an interesting team, because on paper they look downright pathetic (with the exception of Hanley Ramirez and possible prospects like Maybin and Miller), but they always seem to surprise. Unfortunately, I don’t see this being one of those years where they’re able to surprise anybody.
My Prediction: Last in a stacked NL East
Washington Nationals- Ah, the good old Washington Nationals. The Nationals GM Jim Bowden must be hanging out with Marvin Lewis and Al Davis because he seems to be willing to take in all the misfit young players that everybody else has given up on. If you don’t believe me, just check out the MLB wrap sheets of Elijah Dukes, Lastings Milledge and Austin Kearns. However, who can blame them? Nobody wants to play baseball in our Nation’s capitol. When fifty percent of the crowd is made up of lobbyists who score tickets for selling their souls to corporate America and the other half are transplants rooting for the other team, it’s difficult to want to play for a cellar dweller even if they have a new stadium. So, the Nats take whoever they can get, and the scary thing is on paper they’re not as awful as you’d expect. Dukes and Milledge still have tremendous upside if they can stay on the straight and narrow, and the addition of Adam Dunn (despite his 200 k’s) should really benefit returning cornerstone Ryan Zimmerman. Actually, the offense is pretty formidable from top to bottom, being led off by respectable speedster Christian Guzman. If teams only had to hit, I might even call the Nats a wild card sleeper. However, unfortunately for them, they have to pitch too. When Scott Olsen is your ace, you’re in some trouble. Admittedly, I’m a Braves fan who sees a lot of Nats games during the course of the season when they play the Braves and I don’t even recognize half of the names in their starting rotation. That’s ok though, because I don’t think most of the names will still be in the Majors by midseason anyways.
My Prediction: 4th in the East
Philadelphia Phillies: The Phillies brought the city of Filthadephia their first championship since Rocky knocked out Clubber Lang to avenge Mickey’s death. Unfortunately for the Phillies, shortly after Rocky knocked out Clubber Lang he lost his reliable friend Apollo Creed, and the Phillies lost their Creed when they lost Pat “the bat” Burrell which is in my opinion the biggest offseason loss that nobody is talking about. However, everything is still sunny in Filthadelphia as their lineup still includes familiar faces like Ryan Howard, J Rollins and Chase Utley. Utley’s offseason surgery is a concern but Rollins looks great in the World Baseball Classic so far. Their lineup returns ace Cole Hamels. After Hamels, I’m not sold on their rotation with the likes of the ancient Jamie Moyer being counted on. The Phillies don’t have a lot of holes, but I feel like the city of Philadephia deserves another 75 years of misery and the odds of repeating are stacked against the Phillies.
My Prediction: 3rd in the East
Atlanta Braves: The braves were the most talked about NL team of the offseason. Unfrurtunately, like their decade of the nineties, they were talked about for being second best. They got burned by Rafael Furcal and Ken Griffey Jr. They had a deal on the table for Jake Peavy until the Padres demanded the first born child of every player in the Braves organization. In the end they still managed to upgrade by bringing in aging but reliable Garrett Anderson to their offensive lineup. The rotation is completed rebuilt and arguably one of the deepest in the league with the additions of Derek Lowe and Javier Vazquez, who despite their ages are as reliable of solid inning eating starters you can find, and Japanese pitching sensation Kenshin Kawakami. Returning young star Jair Jurjjeins and Tom Glavine round out their starting rotation. Tim Hudson could return as early as late August from Tommy John surgery to further bolster the rotation. Perhaps the most exciting things for Braves fans is the next crop of minor league studs that are ready to be called up. Minor league phenom Tommy Hanson is probably the closest thing to a can’t miss pitching prospect since Felix Hernandez came up for Seattle. He was the first pitcher in history to win the MVP of his Minor League. He’s being blocked from the rotation and will likely begin the season in AAA but the firs
t sign of struggle for either Tom Glavine or Japanese import Kawakami could give Hanson the green light into the bigs. On the offensive side of the ball the Braves should benefit from the extra year of experience to young players on the rise like Yunel Escobar, Kelly Johnson, and Jeff Francouer. Brian McCann looks like he’ll be the cleanup hitter and don’t be surprised if he’s good for 35 and 120 in that spot the way he’s killing the ball in the Classic right now. Jordan Schaeffer, a top 5 minor league prospect last year before getting suspended for HGH, looks to take over the leadoff spot and man center field. If Chipper Jones can stay healthy I think the Braves can compete for the wild card and possibly push the Mets for the division title. If he gets hurt, the Phillies will easily take over this second spot in the East. For now, I’m feeling more optimistic about the Braves than I have in recent years and think their depth will have them playing meaningful games in late September.My Prediction: 2nd in the East
New York Mets: The Mets are the ugly step child of New York. Lost in the shuffle of the Yankees wild offseason spending spree on CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeria, the Mets solidified what should be an absolutely filthy bullpen. K-Rod and JJ Putz basically shortens each game to a 7 inning affair. Johan Santana headlines a rotation that drops a lot after him, but their offense is loaded and unfortunately for the rest of the East, Beltran and Delgado seem to have found the fountain of youth because both have just killed the ball in the Classic so far. There was talk about moving Reyes down in the order and I hope that the Mets make the move because I think it’s ridiculous. He has power but I don’t see him hitting more home runs than Beltran, Delgado or Wright so what’s the point. I think this is finally the year that the Mets pull it all together and get their money’s worth and win the NL East. However, if they want to march deep in the playoffs they’ll be shopping for another top end member of the rotation by June because a short 5 game series could be ugly for the Mets once you get past Johan and are relying on Mike Pelfrey and Oliver Perez in the clutch.
My Prediction: 1st in the East
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