NL East is Beast

Winston-Salem, NC – It’s no secret that the American League East has historically dominated the headlines of Major League Baseball.  There’s always drama between the Red Sox and Yankees, and more recently, the Rays have built a little powerhouse under the radar.  This year, by both serendipity and by carefully constructed front office blueprints, the National League East reigns supreme.  Before drilling into each team, let’s take a look at the major headlines.  First, the Florida Marlins became the Miami Marlins this offseason, complete with an image makeover that closely resembles the old “Baseketball” movie jerseys.  The Marlins will also move into a glistening new ballpark in the “Little Cuba” section of Miami.  To couple all of these changes, the Marlins were big spenders in free agency, rare behavior for a typically frugal team.  The Phillies, fresh off another division title and dominant regular season, return with high hopes despite Ryan Howard’s torn ACL in last year’s postseason (he'll be out the first two months of the season).  The Braves, who lost the Wild Card spot on the final day of the regular season a la the Red Sox, are armed with more young arms this season.  A team poised for a breakout season, the Nationals, look to reach the postseason for the first time in franchise history behind a stacked pitching rotation.  Lastly, the lowly Mets remain just that.  It’s odd to see a big market team be strapped by finances, but that is the case when your owner is the victim of a nearly billion dollar Ponzi scheme.  Here’s a rundown of each team in the order that I believe they’ll finish the regular season:

Philadelphia

The Phillies return virtually all of the same pieces as their 103-win team from 2011.  The only difference is that they could not come to terms with closer Ryan Madson (who eventually signed with the Reds).  Combustible Jonathan Papelbon takes over the closing duties for the Phils.  There are not too many holes with this team between the best “Big Three” arms in the rotation, and a deep lineup that features the return of free agent to-be Jimmy Rollins.  I like their chances to clinch the division for the fifth consecutive season if Ryan Howard can produce in the second half of the season.

Atlanta

The pitching rich Braves jettisoned their only weak link on the staff, Derek Lowe, to the Indians.  Pitching was not the problem for the Braves; it was hitting!  However, the Braves got deeper on the mound by adding Randall Delgado to the staff and Brandon Beachy looks like a sleeper middle of the rotation starter at worst.  I like their chances to nab the Wild Card that eluded them last season IF Jason Heyward hits and Chipper Jones can stay healthy.  Dan Uggla needs to continue his power stroke and not rely in a historic hitting streak to prop up his average above the Mendoza line.  The hitting is uber thin, but we all know what pitching can do.  The Braves have also added another jersey to the mix – a vanilla colored thread for Sunday afternoon home games.  The red jerseys will shift to Friday night home games.

Washington

As I’ve said on The Less Desirables podcast before, the extra Wild Card will surely benefit this team more than anyone else.  In a loaded division, the Nationals actually have a fighting chance to make the postseason with two wild cards in play.  Their rotation is stacked – Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, Gio Gonzalez, Edwin Jackson, and Ching-ming Wang.  Similar to the Braves, this team needs hitting.  Re-signing the franchise cornerstone Ryan Zimmerman was a nice move (despite vastly overpaying), but he needs to put up MVP numbers to justify the dollars and to give DC a chance at a winning record.  Speaking of justifying a contract, where are you Jayson Werth?  This team has a great young nucleus that will be fun to watch for years to come.  We’ll see if Bryce Harper makes the team; if not, we can count on seeing him near the end of May.

Miami

It’s tough to gauge this team given the superb amount of talent, but volatile personalities.  On paper, this team looks dazzling – Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, Anibal Sanchez, Ricky Nolasco, and Carlos Zambrano comprise an elite rotation.  The signing of Jose Reyes adds more speed and overall offense to the lineup.  Heath Bell has been a solid closer for the past several years in San Diego.  I can’t wait to see (and visit) their new ballpark.  Major questions loom – can the new hot-headed manager Ozzie Guillen “contain” these large personalities?  Will Carlos Zambrano make it a full season?  Will Hanley Ramirez break down at third base?  Does he resent the signing of Reyes?  Can Josh Johnson stay healthy?  Will Mark Buehrle’s make-up dominate National League hitters?  There are more questions than answers with this team.

New York

There is not much good news associated with this team other than their ace pitcher, Johan Santana, is expected to return this season after two plus years of shoulder and elbow problems.  David Wright needs a good season to regain the MVP numbers that seem so far in the past.  What happened to Jason Bay?  The Red Sox were smart not to re-sign him after the 2009 season.  It’s tough to see this team make any noise as the Wilpon ownership group is strapped for cash until a settlement is reached in the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme.