After yesterday’s win, the Mets are now a game over .500. I have to be honest here, they are playing a lot better than I thought.
But as I glance at the standings of the N.L. East, I notice that not only are the Nats 18-9 but the Phillie’s are 13-15. The Braves, who looked so bad in the start of the year, are 17-11 and those Marlins sit behind the Mets at 13-14.
Today’s questions are: Is the East upside down? Are the Nats for real and the Phillie’s in trouble? Are the Mets staying where they are? Can the Braves hold on and can Miami get it together?
Pick one or all and let’s hear it!
8 comments
srt
5/6/2012-9:47am at 9:47 am (UTC -4)
As many predicted before the season, the NL east was going to be more tightly packed together this year than in years past. It’s still early and anything can happen but I don’t think anyone is running away with this.
- Yes, I think the Nats are for real.
- My prediction going in was the Braves for the division if their pitching held up.
- No way the Marlins are going from last to first. Just goes to show that just spending money doesn’t guarantee you anything.
- Much to mine and Stick’s delight, this looks to be the year of the Phillies decline. I’m predicting they won’t look much better than this until Howard and/or Utley return. Might not look much better even with their return as they probably don’t hit the ground running.
- Mets were predicted to finish last. I thought around 77 wins. If they iron out their current problems with SP depth and the BP straightens out, no reason this team can’t finish .500 or maybe even a little better. That SP though is a big if.
Stickguy
5/6/2012-10:40am at 10:40 am (UTC -4)
The Nats are a good team, but not this good. And have been lucky so far. At some point, some slumps, regression to the mean, or injuries are going to hit and they will tail off a bit. But they certainly could stay up in or near the lead.
Braves, somewhere in between. But a good team.
Phils probably aren’t this bad, but at some level, they could be in trouble. Depends if the pitching is going to continue to have a combination of inconsistency and a few more injuries. My guess, they start winning more, but are not going to be close to last year, and will not run away with the division. Howard and Utley should be back at some point, but who the hell knows what they will be able to do.
I also hate the Phils, so don’t expect me to be objective.
The marlins are the Marlins.
and yes, the Mets have the potential to hang with the rest of the flawed teams.
Bryan
5/6/2012-10:44am at 10:44 am (UTC -4)
-The Nats are definitely for real, they’re young and they can pitch.
-The Phillies are old, and without steroids in the game that’s going to catch up with you at some point. Plus they have injuries.
-The Mets are certainly capable of hanging around in 3rd and making things interesting with a second wild card. Will they is a different question.
-The Braves are more like the team they’ve been lately than the team that started so poorly.
-The Marlins have “self-destruction” written all over them.
Mr North Jersey
5/6/2012-10:48am at 10:48 am (UTC -4)
Too early to say. I know I’ve been liking the last few years the moves the Nats have been making (other than Werth) as they built their team so while I can’t say I expected the Nats to get off to the start they have I am also not surprised to see them playing this well.
The Phillies offense is seriously lacking can they hang around till Howard & Utley get back? The answer for me is a Roy Halladay yes.
Miami is interesting to watch. Are they struggling due to trying to live up to expectations? In the Winter many said that on paper they looked good and they do. The talent is there so how does one explain their terrible start? Bell keeps blowing saves, Reyes is hitting in the low .200′s, The young bats are not hitting and they have been relatively healthy thus far. Guillen is going to work harder than he might of imagined in making this group of acquisitions a winning team.
The Mets I speculated could be a .500 team this year and they have thus far lived up to that speculation.
gategem
5/6/2012-11:50am at 11:50 am (UTC -4)
From a pure talent point of view the last time I saw two youngsters with the talent of Strasburg and Harper their names were Gooden and Strawberry. From what I’ve seen of the Nats they are as good as any team in the NL.
The Marlins have too much talent to continue to languish at the bottom. Unlike football, baseball doesn’t require a constant balls to the walls attitude nor the players gathering around the campfire singing Kumbaya. At some point they will get hot and contend for possibly the 2nd WC spot.
With Heyward and Freeman starting to put it all together the Braves will contend. The issue I see for them will occur at the end of the season when the ghost of last season’s collapse hangs over them.
I understand that Howard and Utley are starting to engage in baseball activities. With the Philies starting pitching they will contend for the 2nd WC.
Finally our beloved Mets. On paper the other teams in the division have superior talent. But the game is not played on paper. Of course if you believe that then you don’t believe in sabermetrics. I believe in the application of statistics and over a season the projections will win out. But I believe the Mets will be at the top end of the projected range. Will they contend for the 2nd WC? No, but they will have a hand in determining who that team is.
Hazmet
5/6/2012-12:14pm at 12:14 pm (UTC -4)
The Nats are for real. We’ve been waiting for the day when their kids start to arrive and that day is here. I believe they are playing above their record right now and will probably fall back some but they are a team on the rise.
The Marlins are already rebounding having won their last 5, just in time for us to go play them, so I expect them to get above .500 and stay there. They still have self destruct in their DNA but I sense their investments are about to start paying off.
The Braves are the Braves. They’ll still be good and consistant at least this year as they look to send Chipper off on a high note.
The Phil’s are in decline with their injuries but they still have that rotation when healthy that is going to get them in the hunt if they get healthy with Utley & Howard with enough season left.
The Mets: I figured them to win 73 games so they are playing better than I thought. If this season can come in at .500 while introducing players like Kirk and getting Ike & Duda producing then it’s been a positive step towards the rebuild.
kingman 26
5/6/2012-12:51pm at 12:51 pm (UTC -4)
Mets–Based on the offense, the bullpen, the defense, and the run differential, one could easily make an argument that the Mets are damn lucky to be 14-13. As much as I love this team and am thrilled with the results, I cannot see them remaining over .500 much after June 1 when the schedule gets brutal. The first 13 games in June are STL, WASH, NYY, and TB. I think where they are on June 15 will really tell what we can expect.
Nats–Most definitely for real. Great pitching–depth, youth, starters, relievers–a staff like that alone makes a team for real. And with a productive Werth and LaRoche and adding Harper? And one of the game’s best managers? For real without a doubt. They aren’t going to match the 1986 Mets’ 108 wins this year. But they might next year. This is a team that is here, and here to stay.
Braves–Having the record they do with their rotation being pretty awful seems to say that when the rotation improves, which it almost certainly will, they will be tough all year.
Phils–Hard to say. They will get more production offensively, but perhaps the aging process which Stick has been citing for five years is finally here. However, if Worley and Blanton keep this up and Lee returns and pitches well, they will certainly not finish below .500.
Marlins–Other than their two most important pitchers, Johnson and Bell, the staff has been very good. If and when Hanley and Jose get hot and Johnson and Bell improve, this will not be a sub-.500 team. Their four arguably best players have been pretty bad other than Hanley’s power, and they are 1 game under .500 with a 5-game winning streak. The Marlins’ many detractors might be disappointed very soon. Way too much talent here to finish under .500.
Overall? After looking carefully at all of the teams and their results thus far, I still think that other than the Mets, there are not a lot of surprises here. And I still think the Mets could finish 81-81 and in last place.
Prismo
5/6/2012-1:00pm at 1:00 pm (UTC -4)
Mets – The Mets admittedly are better than I thought they’d be (talking how they’re playing, not their record). However, I think finishing the season above .500 is still a stretch. Given that this year should be the worst year for talent on the team, I’m just thrilled to be around the .500 mark.
Nats – They’re for real, but not THIS for real. Their crappy offense is doing about what it should be doing, but their pitchers are overachieving. It’s just unsustainable IMO. They could still in the NL East, but I think they’ll run away with it or anything that dramatic.
Braves – No clue, haven’t watched them enough to be honest. But I always expect them to be above .500.
Marlins – For real! Sorry but I never thought this group of mercenaries could function as a coherent team. I don’t think this team is playoff-bound.
Phillies – No way to tell. With their current roster, I’d say for real. However, with Utley and Howard eventually coming back, I think we really have to wait and see.