The World Series champions came from the National League East in 2019, when the appropriately named Nationals took home their first-ever title. It has been an active few months in the division since then. Even the notoriously low-budget Marlins have gotten in on the act, having added multiple veterans in an attempt to climb out of the gutter in 2020. Odds are that the Marlins still won’t be in the race, though, so who’s the front-runner among the other four to win the division this year? It appears they’re all legitimate candidates.
Although the Nationals just won it all, they did so by getting into the playoffs by way of a wild-card berth, not an NL East title. That honor went to the Braves for the second year in a row. The Braves still have not been victorious in a playoff series since 2001, and they lost their No. 1 free agent, third baseman Josh Donaldson. However, even in the wake of Donaldson’s departure, they still bring a formidable roster to the table. Outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., first baseman Freddie Freeman, second baseman Ozzie Albies and right-hander Mike Soroka haven’t gone anywhere. They’re now complemented by free-agent additions in outfielder Marcell Ozuna, lefty Cole Hamels and reliever Will Smith, among others.
Like the Braves, the Nats lost their marquee free agent, another third baseman in Anthony Rendon. There’s no easy way to replace him, though the team does have Asdrubal Cabrera on hand as a stopgap until standout prospect Carter Kieboom is ready to assume the reins. Rendon’s exit hasn’t deterred Washington from trying to go for a second straight title in 2020, as the club has re-signed righty Stephen Strasburg, to name one of several players, and picked up first baseman Eric Thames, second baseman Starlin Castro and reliever Will Harris from outside.
The Mets and Phillies were the next best teams in the division last season, and both clubs have new managers (Luis Rojas for New York, Joe Girardi for Philadelphia). They also have different-looking rosters compared to then. The Mets lost righty Zack Wheeler to the Phillies, whose $118MM guarantee ranks among the richest of the offseason. They still boast a quality rotation, though, with Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman, Steven Matz and the newly signed Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha in the mix to complement back-to-back Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom. They also continue to feature a solid lineup headlined by the powerful Pete Alonso, last season’s NL Rookie of the Year, as well as Michael Conforto and Jeff McNeil.
The Phillies did far more heavy lifting last offseason than this winter, but they’ve still been aggressive with the signings of Wheeler, who should give them a true No. 2 starter behind Aaron Nola, and shortstop Didi Gregorius. On paper, they look like a better team than the one that finished an even 81-81 a season ago.
Philly was a fourth-place squad in 2019, but it may be in line to push for a division title this year. However, it’ll have to overcome three strong clubs in the Braves (97-65), Nats (93-69) and Mets (86-76). The offseason isn’t over yet, but as of now, which team do you think is the favorite?
(Poll link for app users)
Rn??? People are going to much based on last year… roster wise it’s probably like this
Braves Mets or Nats (1-3 depends on injuries and luck)
Phillie(4th place)
Garbage
Marlins
Thank you. You are starting to make sense now. Every other post you have said that the mets would win the east confidently when in all reality its a toss up. Its a good division.
Lol I was trying to give the marlins fan a hard time. I’m reality the Mets could finish anywhere between 1-4 and same with the other 4 team. I’m just predicting Mets to be 1st lol.
That’s exactly right. The NLE is wide open, which makes it interesting and fun these days. I don’t think any attentive fan of the Nats, Braves, Phils or Mets would be very surprised at any order of those four teams at the end of the season. They are close enough that, as many others have noted, a couple key injuries, hot streaks or slumps can be the difference between winning the division and missing the postseason.
If you have to bet, you wager on the Braves because they just won the NLE twice and are bringing back mostly the same team, but healthier (e.g., Freeman). The Nats caught chemistry magic last year and, writing as a Nats fan, it was a fantastic run. But can they catch it again? Can the key older guys, particularly Max, Anibal and Stras, stay healthy and dominant? How do the new guys fit in? The Mets and Phils just never seemed to “click” from a chemistry vibe last season, but the talent was there. The Mets were getting on track in the second half, rallying around Pete’s good energy and humility. Can they put it together for a season? Can Joe G. get Philly over the hump? Probably not, I’d argue, if Realmuto’s impending departure becomes the most prominent storyline (extend him for the sake of chemistry). Is Cutch washed up or ready to return to 2+ WAR baseball? Who knows but it makes a big difference to the final standings!
100% agreed any 4 could win. I was a little hard on Phillies bc of pitching but their offense is elite.
But if had to wager they would be last one I would wager but I wouldn’t be surprised If Phillies won too.
sounds right to me
Mets have the worst team in division aside from marlins
That’s your beat attempt at trolling
Mets have the reigning CY Young winner and strong rotation and the ROY winner and a solid overall offense. If their bullpen was even moderately good last year they would have been in the playoffs. Your comment is stupid
Mets lack defense, too.
And speed
With a new manager
“If their bullpen was even moderately good”
It’s quite possible that the bullpen is a dumpster fire yet again.
The Mets have on of the best rotations in baseball, and some exciting hitters. So right there I can see them being contenders, but like most of the NL East, they have some big question marks. Their defense is atrocious. Their bullpen is questionable. I expect a bounceback year from their pen, but would anyone be shocked if Diaz is awful again?
The Mets also had the fewest games missed by a starting pitcher in MLB.
You think youre getting that lucky again?
Great point. They were incredibly healthy last year.
The nationals bullpen blew more games and they won World Series so no and Alonso won’t be nearly as good degrom will regress and their second best pitcher wheeler is gone so no
“depends on injuries and luck”
Thanks sherlock.
Braves could finish 3rd and people don’t want to admit it.
No, I’m very much in agreement. I believe that last season was a fluke and that showed when they embarrassed themselves versus the Cardinals. I even voted the Nationals as the favorite too. For Atlanta to be “successful”, nobody needs to hype them up. They love gagging on ego points.
The Braves very well could finish 3rd but you assume that two straight divisions titles are flukes and a 5 game series where they were probably an inch away from winning when Molina popped up a ball just beyond Freeman’s glove isn’t? Ok. The Braves had every chance to win that series before game 5 and should have. The ball just didn’t go their way.
Funny. If you replay the playoffs, the Gnats lose the WC game 9 times out of 10. Heck they don’t even make the postseason without that miracle second half reg season run. In other words, The 2019 Washington Nationals were the definition of a fluke last season.
Anyways, the Braves will win the division again. (handily) It’s just a matter of progressing through the playoffs, before they start losing postseason fans again for their failures. I saw something the other day when David O’Brien posted an article with a headline of something like “the Braves are tired of coming up short” I laughed my rear off and thought to myself, wow it took them that long to get tired of losing? I do think they’ll go into next season with a chip on their shoulder, but hey anything could happen!
If you play the playoffs over again, a team shouldn’t give up 10 runs in The first inning of a winner take all Game 5 and expect that not to have lingering effects. Nats have better pitching and Soto doesn’t get called out weekly by teammates for his demeanor the way Acuna has. If Acuna matures and they make a trade for Arenado or Bryant, they are the favorite but to be the man you gotta beat the man.
Disagree. Brewers weren’t the better team by any means. 50/50 game at worst. As for the “fluke” second half. The same can be said for a “fluke” 19-31 start. Injuries had a lot to do with that. As for this year, pitching and injuries will be key as always for whichever team comes out on top of the division.
Acuna will do the same thing again in 2020 he’s a hot dog thinks he better than he is . I don’t like to watch him play, I like to watch most good players play no matter what team there on but not him.
Nats have better pitching, but unless something changes, Soto is going to get walked 372 times this summer. There is literally no reason to pitch to him. Acuna has Albies, Freeman, Ozuna hitting behind him. Soroka could very well be an ace. Folty pitched really well the 2nd half. Fried could take the next step, his metrics are even better than Soroka’s. Oh, and P.S. if Freeman is anywhere near 100% OR Martin doesn’t pull an oblique throwing warmup tosses in game 1, the Braves win the NLDS. Freeman is pain free for the 1st time in 9 years. The NL East might wanna lookout.
What exactly makes Acuna a hotdog? Because a 21yo kid didn’t sprint out of the box a couple times when he thought he hit a bomb? Are you being serious? I’m not excusing the behavior, you gotta run out of the box, but it’s far from a mortal sin, and he’s barely old enough to drink at this point. The whole argument is completely absurd.
“Thinks he better than he is”…he was very close to 40/40, something that’s only happened 3 other times in MLB history. He is better than you think he is for sure.
Teams typically don’t lose 9 out of 10 one-run games. Teams do lose like 99 out of 100 games when they give up 10 runs in the first.
I’m rooting for the braves to have another magical regular season.
Well said. I thought the exact same thing (and almost typed it before scrolling down) when I read that ludicrous comment. Acuna not running out a few deep flies reminds me of a young Andruw Jones not hustling after a ball in CF, for which B. Cox removed him, mid-inning, from CF. Jones learned from his mistakes and grew into one of the best defensive (and all-around) CFers in baseball. Presumably, the 21 y/o Acuna will likewise learn from his.
You misunderstand the Nats season. The miracle “second half run” wasn’t a miracle or the second half. The fluke was the first 50 games. Dont know how you consider 129 games of .677 ball a fluke.
last season was a fluke like 2018 was, like 2020 will be, like 2021 will be…etc. give it up, theyre crazy good.
1. the Nats lose the WC game 9 times out of 10 because Grisham doesn’t fumble a simple grounder
2. They don’t get past the Dodgers without a miracle HR from Kendrick
3. The don’t progress past the NLCS because they got to play a team that doesn’t belong there.
Basically every single thing that could go right for them went right. I fully expect them to go back to losing in the first round again. If they even make the playoffs..But since you’re so confident in the Nationals Darkside or anyone else for that matter, Do you care to make a bet on them repeating what they did? Because I’ll gladly put money on that. Just let me know. Everyone here on MLBTR can be a witness to it.
Congrats, you’ve been entered into the “Dummest comments of 2020” competition (and yes, the missing ‘b’ is part of the joke).
1) The game isn’t over if Grisham makes a clean play, it would have been tied 3-3 with 2 outs and runners on third (Rendon) and first (Soto). Do the Nats lose 9/10 of tie games in the 9th inning? Stupid.
2) Kendrick’s HR against LA came with loaded bases and NO OUTS in the 10th inning. Yes, fantastic hit, but a simple fly ball still puts the Nats ahead and likely wins the game. No miracle required in any way whatsoever. Stupid.
3) Winning 90+ games and being the top team in baseball after the break isn’t fluky or lucky or a miracle, or whatever you’re suggesting. Watch some baseball, read what smarter people are writing and then you get your posting rights back. Stupid.
Looks like I struck a nerve..
Sh1tstain, I know you’re upset because I don’t respect an awful organization that went on the most luck/fluky driven run since the 93′ Phillies, but try to take a deep breath and relax for a minute.
Consider what I said in my previous post. I’m itching to win more cash.
Yes, you struck the “why do idiots like Stand Back crowd the board with uninformed drivel” nerve. Also, before you throw around big man wagers, learn about betting so you don’t embarrass yourself further. No team has a 50-50 chance at winning the WS. The Astros have the best odds, according to vegas, at 4-1. The Nats are listed around 14-1. So if you want to be a blowhard, at least say “If any Nats fans want the 14-1 bet with me, I’ll take it”. And I should probably explain to you that 14-1 means you have to pay me $1400 if the Nats repeat and I pay you $100 if they don’t.
That said, it’s unethical to bet with the mentally handicapped, so I won’t do it. Also, thinking anybody here gives a rat$ a$$ about what you do or don’t respect is funny.
You won’t bet because you know I’m right. Keep crying.
Same goes for you. You’re a nobody who likes to post on here to drive your ego because you have little to no self esteem. If i remember correctly you also complained about having the downvote option taken away. Which only proves what a sh1tstain you are. LMAO. I was actually talking about betting on them not advancing past the first round…if they even made it. Not the WS. The chances are greater, albeit not that good anyways. Vegas odds isn’t exactly what I take seriously when it comes to baseball specifically. The Braves being projected 4th at 12/1 odds to win the WS is a prime example of that.
And last time I checked the Yankees have the best odds not the Astros. Might want to sure up your reading again. Nearly every sports betting site has the Yankees 1st, Dodgers 2nd, and Astros 3rd, followed by the Braves. Sh1tstain.
Stand back you’re making a fool of yourself. Just shut up
This is 5 star content right here
Were. It’s were.
The season or performance was a fluke. You’ve been hitting up too much grass. WERE you being a snob with that grammar jab? Yes, jerkwad, You were.
I expect the Mets to finish 3rd or 4th.
Bc your not looking at things with information. Just looking at the narrative. Mets could very well finish 4th but also could very well finish 1st. They have the talent to do that. Same with Braves and Nats.. anyone who says the Mets have no chance is just being a hater
No, you’re being a homer. Hence your ID and response.
Be realistic there is not much separation between Braves, Nationals and Mets. Any of them could end up 1st just as easily as 3rd. A lot more needs to go right before the Phillies to jump into that mix. The fish, well they are just the fish, all they can do is try to continue developing and not set a record for most losses.
The Phillies lost 90% of their bullpen last year, and 70% of their starting pitching. I think the Phils are right there with the Mets if they stay healthy. Phils also had winning records against the Braves and Mets, but struggled against the Marlins. So I don’t think the Phils are as far behind as yii suggest, but I still have Braves as clear favorites.
The Phils no.3 starter Arrieta is, to be kind, a huge question mark. 5 and 5 are the failed Velazquez and Eflin. Expecting even 15 wins out of 70 starts this trip should make is delusional Now tack on a bullpen that borders on inept, two starting infielders playing out of position and a young 1st baseman’s promise erased by bad coaching and poor analytics, you have at best an 83 win team, no October baseball and, hopefully a GM and club president pink slipped after game 162.
Oops… that should be “4 and 5,” and “this trio.” I type as well as the Phils play.
I thought the 5 and 5 fit, actually.
Eflin isn’t a “failed” starter by any means. He’s shown flashes of being good and was serviceable as a 4 last year. The Phillies had a lot go wrong and had a coaching staff that didn’t know how to manage a baseball team. Losing an entire bullpen and your lead off hitter can kill a team. If they don’t lose the whole pen, Cutch can stay healthy, and they can get one guy in the rotation to take a small step forward they will be right there with the rest of them.
I don’t think it’s fair to call the bullpen inept because the majority of the pen was i jured last year. Getting guys back like Seranthony will be a huge boost. And that question madl at number 3 was the Phils number 2 last year. So they have more depth. Still problems of course, but I think they’ll be much improved.
I’m not being a homer. I said they could finish 4th too! You’re just a hater
I have to agree with whynot in regard to the Braves, Mets and Nats being pretty interchangeable. I think 1-8 all three teams are going to perform (statistically, batting) very similarly. Pitching (starting) is also very similar, with maybe an edge going to the Mets’ rotation depth at 4 and 5.
Bullpen edge goes to Doolittle. Mets could have a great pen if they all perform to just average career numbers, but that’s a big “if”. Division title and post season longevity might come down simply to which team is healthiest at season’s end.
Von, why do you think the entire bullpen was hurt? I think we can both agree that Kapler was just horrid in the way he deployed them, but you can also blame the 2, 3, 4 and 5 starters for pretty much never getting through the 6th inning. Nola is a horse and Wheeler will get you to the 7th, then what? Yes, Eflin is a 50/50 starter who can be good. How does he equate to all the other team’s #3’s? The 4 and 5’s are just bad. Now, if the Phils employ the Ray’s starting pitching philosophy, this could all change.
Eflin is a #4, not a #3. And I think he’s about league average for a #4. As for a #5, the Phils are certainly in trouble there. No doubt. A lot of the bullpen got injured at the start of the season. You bring up fantastic points, but there was also some bad luck last year. That being said, I’m still realistic. The Braves are a step above the rest. Nats are defending champs. Mets and Phils are just looking to make that next step.
The Phillies finished in fourth place with much maligned Kapler. Many predict the same finish in 2020 with the “messiah” – Girardi. Does anyone see anything wrong?
Signed,
Skeptical Phillies Phan
The Phillies finished fourth last year with Kapler. Many predict the same finish with Girardi. How’s finishing fourth under an allegedly better manager, acceptable?
The more than likely response is that the Mets finish 2nd or 3rd. The more likely response is that the Braves and Nats finish 1st or 2nd. And then we have the Philly; the strange anomaly. The talent to finish 1st but the likelyhood to not.
MetsFans ladies and gentlemen. Staying classy with the 4d truths.
They could, but they aren’t. The Mets aren’t going to finish ahead of Atlanta. MAYYYYYYBE Washington does, but even still, Atlanta will be a close second to that.
People are acting like the Braves are going to suddenly lose 15 more games than last year when they aren’t losing much production at all.
A LOT of things have to go right for the Mets to improve on last year.
Braves COULD end up 5th. No one truly knows how a team is going to perform. Last year’s Rockies team that replaced only two players with what looked like decent replacements on paper was coming off of back-to-back postseason appearances and finished among the worst teams in the league. Plus the big toss up is always injuries. It’s not likely that the Braves end up in last, but it is possible.
honestly even as a fan of this division i have a hard time seeing this. Phils, Nats, and Mets are all pretty good, but not on Atlanta’s level. Mets have a lot of soft spots and the Nats and Phils are one SP injury away from being in serious trouble.
Any team could finish 3rd. Damn spring training hasn’t even started yet.
All things being equal, it’s a 2 team race between the Braves and the Nats. Of course, injuries could make either team fall back to 3rd or worse.
But if you count the questions each team is currently facing, the Mets and Phillies are a tier below while the Fish are at the bottom again.
Whoever can beat the Marlins the most will win the NL East.
Don’t forget the tartar sauce!
You said that last year moron
moron wow lol…what’s got your panties in a wad sheesh hahaha
You’re not wrong. That’s exactly what happened last year. Phillies had a losing record against the Marlins and finished 4th.
I’ve got
Braves
Phils
Nats
Mets
Phil’s are junk
Phillies have the most talent
No, they don’t, and it’s not particularly close. They clearly have the 4th most talent in the division. Their big get this offseason is Wheeler, who is supremely overrated.
The Phillies were in 1st first for a big chunk of the season last year. Injuries and lack of depth devasted them. I think they’re in much better shape than last year. For all the Wheeler is overrated talk, he looks like Cy Young compared to guys like Nick Pivetta wgo Wheeler is replacing.
“The Phillies were in 1st first for a big chunk of the season last year.”
I don’t consider the first 25 games when they were neck-and-neck with the Mets at like 12-10 to be a ‘big chunk of the season’. Even still, it’s because the Braves and Nats were underperforming, not because the Phillies were any good.
I think their better this year with a new coaching staff led by Girardi , So I think they get 10 more wins and win the east.
I don’t think Wheeler is going to add 10 more wins by himself. He takes the mound 30 times and surely helps, but the Phils need to figure out how to be .500 with their #3, 4 and 5. When comparing Stroman, Matz and Porcello/Wacha to Eflin, Velasquez and whoever else the Phils run out there, it’s no contest. Stroman, Porcello, Matz and Wacha could all toss 200 innings with sub 4.00 era. Phils are lucky if they get anything close to 150 innings/5.50 era out of anyone after Nola and Wheeler. Plus, all those games are going to need 5 or 6 pitchers just to get through 9.
Yeh, I’m a Phillies fan —— first place only counts at game 162.
Really could be any of the 4
Gonna come down to injuries (Phillies) , roster regression (Braves/Nats), and for NY they prolly need Cespedes
6 months is a long season! And each has holes or potential holes
w/ Arenado…..Braves, Phillies, Nats, Mets, Marlins
w/o Arenado…. whoever beats up on the Marlins and each other more.
The only team who realistically improved from last season are the Phillies. The other main 3 regressed.
Hahaha, sure. FYI the phils had the worst record against the marlins. The mets and braves had the best.
Which played a big part in the inflated Braves record and a lower than expected Phils record.
The Marlins always play the Braves tough. You’d know that if you actually watched the games and not just the postseason. It’s no cake walk like it seems. 10 games were decided by less than 2 runs. 8 games were decided within 1 run. And the Braves won most of them.
I don’t care what Pythagorean w/l says. They only account for Run Diff between the actual wins and losses. And again if you watched most of the regular season the first few months the Braves had one of the worst bullpens in baseball. I can pull up game logs of the scores going into the late innings and how many of these trash AAA relievers kept giving up runs. Even in their wins. I rem a specific game where the Braves were crushing the Brewers 13-1 until the bullpen came in and gave 8. I also think the Braves were near the top in inherited runners scoring. Tbh, the Braves should’ve won MORE games than they did last season.
It seems you don’t understand how Pythag works.
It most definitely does *NOT* account for Run Differential between actual wins and losses.
It accounts for total runs scored vs. total runs allowed and while not perfect, it is very consistent on working out within ~3-4 wins from the actual record.
More interestingly, your point about bullpen quality is one of the factors often connected to a team over- or under-achieving pythag. It’s association thereof, however, is not nearly as strong as actual runs allowed vs. scored and — as every fantasy baseball player knows — relievers are individually and collectively very, very fickle. It’s a common occurrence for a group to go from horrible to great or vice versa year-to-year.
Good point. I’m not a huge fan of the Braves rotation right now, compared with Nats and Mets, but they made great adds in the pen and probably won’t give up games late like they did last year as you said.
The Phillies were something like 1-12 against the Dodgers during the regular season in 1983. During the playoffs, the Phillies defeated the Dodgers. Yeh, agreed, that was about a 100 years ago.
No Bumgarner in the division so no one will win
i really feel that last sentence, fandom asside. i think the Braves are still a better team, but losing Donaldson really mitigates that. I also like Castro and Thames, but they dont mitigate the Rendon loss.
collection of players don’t necessarily win. it takes some time to become a team.
Nationals.
Umm… why the disrespect to the Marlins? Clear favorites.
Phillies nabbed the Mets 4th best starter last year. And gave him more money than their entire rotation earns. That is the core of a winning formula.
Wheeler was the Mets 3rd starter, and he was their best starter during their strong second half. I am not saying he is better than deGrom because that’s asisine, but during that stretch where the Mets were on fire, Wheeler was a big reason why. I do think he’s better than Syndergaard.
The Mets were “on fire” during that stretch because they, quite literally, played nothing but teams under .500. Go back and look at their schedule during that stretch. It was a dumpster fire. So saying Wheeler was the Mets’ best pitcher at beating up on cellar dwellers isn’t exactly contradicting the “overrated” tag.
That’s a fair point, but it’s not easy to stay that consistent even against bad teams. Looking at 2019, I see nothing that tells me Syndergaard is better than Wheeler. All that being said, the Mets pitching is so stacked that they didn’t really need Wheeler. The Phillies need any pitcher who can throw.
Every team plays the same number of games within the division. By the way, the schedule maker for mlb needs to be kicked to the curb. The schedule really needs to be balanced out so you teams aren’t playing each other so often in a short period of time. No team should be playing outside if their league in the final month like last year! I’d like to see the final 4 weeks be a home and away series against teams only within your own division and all interleague games done before midseason. 7 games against each team in your division to end the season is 28 games. Half at home, half away and split between beginning of the month and the end. No team should be playing the last place team 7 times in the final 10 games or worse, be done facing another National league team before June.
Sadly, the demand that ‘no team should play outside their league [/division] the last month of the year!’ is completely impossible — as in there it’s no way to do it at all.
MLB has 5-team divisions, 15-team leagues, and rests no more than 1 day a week aside from the ASB. In order to put on a limit of playing only within league, you *must* have at least 2 teams (1 each league) be resting 2-5 days at any given time. To require all games be intra-divisional for any stretch will require that 1/5 of MLB be resting at any one time.
In order to make it remotely possible, there would have to first be a complete restructuring of leagues and divisions — most likely via expansion to 32 total teams so that there can be 2 leagues of 16 teams each with 4 divisions of 4.
Who will win the NL east
Phillies
Braves
Mets
Or nationals?
Yes.
I think the Mets and Phillies both upgraded at manager. That makes them both a little better.
Mets and Phillies could not help but improve at mgr, with as lousy as they were in 2019.
Many predict another 4th place finish under Girardi. How’s that an improvement?
It’s hard to gauge honestly, nats got a tad worse, Phillies got better…. Mets kinda in limbo, marlins got a lot better, and the Braves arguably got worse also.
Our lineup is significantly worse, just can’t argue that. But our bullpen is what cost us a significantly amount of loses last year and that got better. So maybe we can perform roughly the same, and if so we win the division
Apparently I can’t spell…. oh well
get Grammarly
If the Diaz and the Mets bullpen don’t blow about 20 games, they are challenging for the East title. Nobody could have predicted Diaz’ meltdown or Callaway continually running him out there. Familia was horrible, Gsellman was hurt, Wilson was hurt, etc. They ended up using their 6th inning guy as closer (Lugo), who did a nice job once again.
Honestly, if the Mets bullpen just performs consistently and can close out games at league average, they probably pick up 8 to 10 more wins.
Anyone who’s played fantasy baseball for more than 1 season could’ve and would’ve predicted a high chance for a RP meltdown season.
Fantasy Closers Rules:
1. You can’t trust them
2. Unless they wear #42
Mets won’t even win 82 games
Oh, I thought you were talking about the 2019 Phillies there for a second.
I’ll bet you they win 90
Any of those 4 could win 90+ games. I think anyone of them (besides the braves) could easily win less than 81. The braves to me are the favorites because they have a lot of young talent and they have a great core of hitters right at the top of the lineup that any team should be jealous of. Who has a better 1-3 in baseball?
With that being said, losing Donaldson is a big blow if Riley can’t take a step forward. Replacing Donaldsons bat with Ozuna is not really that close unless Riley becomes a star. Then it makes complete sense.
The rest of the division could easily surpass the Braves, but could also easily fall below .500. Nats lost Rendon who was huge for them last year, Mets lost Wheeler who solidified the middle of that rotation, and I’m expecting some sort of regression from Alonso. And no one knows what the Phillies really have. They have a lot of talent but it doesn’t seem to play together ever. So if everything can Gel under Girardi this year, they could have something special. And if they play well by the deadline I could see them making a big move to make them the favorites.
Marlins are gonna be better too. The offense is still lackluster but they have a nice rotation that could take another step forward. They can’t win the division, but they can make it tough on some of them.
Marlins are a worst to first candidate.
now let the hate begin.
Hate.
Speak on that
As a last place team, they are one of six candidates. They’ll be one next year too.
I voted braves because even though they lost Donaldson, his replacement could be good and ozuna is a upgrade. but all 4 have a shot. Mets and Nats got off to bad starts last season or they would of been right there. Phillies are a slight notch below. But all 4 should be in the race and who knows who they will acquire via trade to upgrade.
I do know a few things for sure. If Braves fail their fans will still brag how great their farm system is and will be happy they didn’t trade any of them to acquire a player that could of helped. If marte does a lot better than nimmo Mets fans will all have new user names telling us how they should of made the marte trade just like they did for the cano trade they all loved at the time. I don’t remember what Nats and Philly fans do so please if you know remind me.
Ozuna sucks at defense, his DRS is a negative number and it will get worse.
@larry48 – just an outright lie. Ozuna is league average. Stop talking.
Actually his statcast numbers are like -8 outs above average. He’s a pretty awful defender. It’s a combination of an awful arm and not making lots of ‘routine’ plays.
Hes definitely not any worse than having Riley out there, signing ozuna was and will be huge at the end of the year. Book it.
Marlins
Phils
Nats
Braves
Mets
Braves or Nats. Nats or Braves. Whoever’s starters stay healthy and bullpen improves the most. Mets and Phils need to show alot out the gate to make me believe. I’ll check back in June 1st to get a better read on them. (Nats fan)
That’s where the Braves depth comes into play. If a starter gets hurt, they have 4 or 5 legitimate options to take their place. Newcomb, Anderson, Wright, Wilson, Touki, Muller. 1 of them will be the 5th starter, the rest will be waiting their turn in the bullpen or AAA.
the real question is who will be 2nd
Nationals with ease.
Best thing that happened to my mets
Rendon and Donaldson left the division
We just got better. They kill us
They killed the Phillies and Marlins as well. They’re just good.
As a Nats fan I voted Atlanta. I think we certainly have a chance for the division or WC but I’m very worried about not having enough power in the lineup. If the Mets could ever stay healthy they would be right there, maybe it’s this year? Not afraid of the Phils at all, Marlins still years away from jumping into the mix. I could see one of these 4 repping the NL in the WS.
Braves fan here… it’s gonna be a fun season, good luck to you Nats fans. As long as Bryce doesn’t make the postseason we both win ultimately lol. I have nightmares of Juan Soto staring me in my soul while he grabs his crotch every night. he’s a bad man.
Phils still need another starter but will score a lot of runs. All four should be bunched come late July. The deadline addition could top the scales.
Tip
Agreed. As long as these teams stay healthy they will all be close come July, and I think the Phillies have the most guts when it comes to making a move. They’ll do what they need to. Braves seem reluctant to move their guys and the Mets already got burned on a huge deal recently.
Everything went wrong for the Phillies last year. It’s hard to imagine they will suffer as many key injuries in 2020. The bullpen was and starting pitching were decimated. They should improve just by staying healthy, let alone the two additions. I expect then to win closer 89-90 games, competing for a WC. I put that Nats in the same area. The Braves are the division favorites again. It’s tough to read the Mets. I think Syndergaard’s name carries more weight than his actual talent. deGrom is the best in the game. Stroman is good, but they will feel the loss of Wheeler, especially in the 2nd half. I can also see a sophomore slump from Alonso. So I have the Mets getting 4th, but honestly, I would not be shocked if the top 4 completely reversed. This is a real good division.
I’m a Phillies fan. Yes their bullpen was decimated but only Arietta got hurt, #3-5 just stunk for most of the year. Wheeler will have to be healthy and pitch well. I believe Nola will be better. They will need to have #2 prospect Howard come up and pitch well as well as get something from Arietta. That’s a lot of ifs, but I do think their offense will be much better and it will be interesting to see what effect Girardi has on the team.
I went with the Braves but injuries, trades, surprise seasons by developing players and call-ups could mean any of the top 4 could get, hot or cold. It should be a competitive division.
N.L. East Pythagorean W-L Standings:
Nationals 95-67, 873 Runs, 724 Runs Allowed
Braves 91-71, 855 Runs, 743 Runs Allowed
Mets 86-76, 791 Runs, 737 Runs Allowed
Phillies 79-83, 774 Runs, 794 Runs Allowed
Rendon and Donaldson are both gone.
N.L. Least is back.
LEAST
N.L. Least.
Wait, I’m confused – are you making a pun on “east” and “least” to suggest that you don’t think highly of the NL East? It wasn’t clear.
That’s as old as “your mom” or “let’s go”. U most definitely need a new gig man, lammmme.
I’m willing to bet a lot of money the Nats don’t win 95 and the Phillies win more than 79. If they made no changes at all from last year’s team they’d win more with the addition of Girardi alone.
Any one of the four teams can win the division.
Mets have the starting pitching.
Braves are the defending division winner the last two years.
Nationals have been a perennial contender and won the 2019 World Series.
Philly was in first place up until mid-June last year.
Should be fun.
As a Phils fan, I think the Braves take down first place again. That core is just too good to ignore and the roster is more well-rounded and dynamic than the others in the division. Actually, in the battle for second place, I’m more scared of the Mets than the Nats. The red-hot Nats team that continued to defy the odds in the postseason will not sustain itself over the course of a longer period of time in 2020. I think, and I’m probably in the minority here, that the incredible run the Mets went on last year is actually more indicative of the strength of that team than the Nats’ wild ride was.
Braves 95 wins
Phillies 89 wins
Mets 87 wins
Nats 85 wins
Marlins 63 wins
Mets suck
Phillies fan here. If the Phillies don’t win 90 games, I’ll consider 2020 a bust. Does 90 victories qualify for first place or a WC berth? We’ll see.
how far will Alfonso fall in 2020, I foresee the pitcher having the advantage in 2020.
As it stands now, the 2020 NL east is truly one of the tightest races I’ve seen years. All 4 teams could easily take it if everything bounces their way.
Now, with the “trading” part of the offseason well underway, anything could happen. Bryant, Arenado and Betts plus I guess all of Pittsburgh and who knows who else is on the table, so one of the 4 could take the offseason lead if they made big moves. But then again, how teams look in Feb/Mar is absolutely worthless to predict the W-L record at the end of season, the Mariners being the offseason favorites or “dark horse” picked by so-called experts seemingly over the last decade or so proves this.
tl;dr all 4 of these teams are really close and injuries/poor form are most likely going to determine who wins the div.
Mets defense sucked in 2019, their DER was 683 only teams worse in NL Rockies and Pirates. The Mets allowed 139 the closes team was Braves with 69..
Nice
Wow no marlin choice
Is that really a wow?
There is one thing no ‘expert’ seems to measure: the will to win, or the ability to succeed.
So much today is measured in data analysis and numbers that no one seems to even want to look at individuals. I look to look at ‘overachievers’ and try to acknowledge players that just win, or elevate their team mates to success. How do you measure determination or the drive to succeed?
Teams that continue to reward statistics and overlook wins and losses (team) are missing a vital part of the chemistry that goes in to building a champion.
Add to that the momentum or perfect storm scenario like the 1969 and 1986 Mets. The pieces of those teams were nothing exceptional, but the degree of heart, attitude and determination when combined created something special.
Yes, champions need players that are performing at the top of there game, but to beat the best (post season) you need that something extra from inside.
So, who has that in the east? Not the Marlins. I don’t think the Phils have that either. On paper, the Braves never seem to wow you, but always seem to be the team to beat. The Nats won it all with momentum and great pitching at 1,2 and 3. The Mets have that youthful factor that doesn’t know they aren’t supposed to win, but are banking on rebound seasons and avoiding the dreaded sophomore slump. Phils are loaded with superstars yet lack any true dominating mentalities beyond Nola and Harper. The teams that make it to the post season are going to have to beat the other guys when they don’t have their best, which comes from internal ambition.
So here you go:
Nats 94
Braves 92
Mets 90
Phils 84
Marlins 65
… it’s going to be an exciting division that comes down to the last week, maybe even a one game tie breaker.
As a Mets fan, if they can get Cano and Cespedes OFF the field I think they stand a better chance of winning.
Phillies will be better with the new coaching staff led by Girardi , I think 92-93 wins for the phillies and they win the division.
I’m a Philllies fan and on paper I’ve got Braves, Nats, Mets, Phillies. But any one of those teams can win. The Phillies were in first last year when McCutcheon went down and they went into a dive. He was the heart and soul of the team. Now they’ve added Didi, another winner and important presence. Then add in Girardi and unless you really followed the team you wouldn’t know Kapler was a disaster from day one. The pitching has added Wheeler. The pen was devastated with injuries and who knows if Arietta will bounce back from his injury. Yeah, I know I’ve said a lot that can be said about any team in the division except the Marlins who have zero chance of climbing over these four teams.
How is Girardi a better mgr than Kapler if you’re predicting yet another fourth place finish?
Girardi is the biggest addition in the East. He makes the Phillies contenders.
Espically if Dillion can fix what Mahalle did to Hoskins , If Hoskins can have a rebound season , Harper continues to do what he does and JT, plus the addition of DiDi , this team will be dangerous. Also with Cutch coming back, after he got hurt Segura went down, Before the injury Segura was a hitting machine.
I’m clicking Thumbs up to everyone who says Braves.
WHERE THE MARLINS AT?
watching the Super Bowl !
Nats, Phillies, Mets, Braves…….all are good to win that division……at three of those teams will have 90 plus wins……..both Wild Cars are coming out of the NL East……
Braves had that one long winning streak. in 2019…Mets came out sluggish in 2019 and had too many blown Saves…….Phillies were trying to hard……Nats won it all….but lost a key player…..
I say the Braves come back down to earth somewhat……Mets will get better……Phillies need others besides Harper to carry the team…….Nats have to overcome the loss of Rondon……
so I am picking to win the Division ?…
For sure it is not the Marlins !.
Mets are good for 4th place
All four teams will beat up on the Marlins.
Marlins crushed the Phillies last year.
A connected poll should ask what team you’re a fan of. Surely the Braves homers outnumber the Nats by a very large margin. Quite honestly, I thought the Nats should have won it last year and the year before. Once Robles breaks out this season, Rendon is just a good memory.
And I thought Braves fans can be unrealistic about THEIR prospects. Expecting ANY prospect to be better than Rendon is jus not realistic.
NL East will be an interesting race.
Two new managers,teams that are closely matched in talent after some free agency losses and the usual injury questions.
I went with the Nats purely because of their starting staff,it’s the one group that really sticks out as exceptional and when everything else is this close go, with the pitching.
Tribe fan here.so no horse in the race.
I just don’t think the Phils make enough contact late in games or have the starting pitching 3,4,5 to compete.
The Mets endured horrific production from Cano in the 3 hole and at one point had one true outfielder (Conforto) on the team. Yes, thy had horrible defensive metrics but who wouldn’t with three out 4 guys out there daily who NEVER played there before!?!?
What if the Phils only had Hoskins and three infielders with basically zero mlb experience to run out there? Mets had no depth to even pull from and had to lean on a second baseman, a third basemen and a 1b to learn at the mlb level, during batting practice and in games. Davis looked like a decent 3b defensively and McNeil, who is a 2b, got better and better in right field as the season went on. Conforto is not a true CF, but gets great jumps and reads the ball off the bat really well. I have never been a Cespedes fan and believe he is a major liability, regardless of metrics. Nimmo is an outfielder, but not CF. Honestly, if he worked at it, I think McNeil could handle center which makes the other three that much better. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Mets sign Billy Hamilton as the 5th outfielder. He can still fly on the bases (pinch run) and is the perfect CF double switch late inning guy.
Braves 94-68
Nats, Phillies, Braves, Mets, Marlins in that order.
although I’m a phillies fan I still think the Braves will win the east followed by nats muts, I mean mess no wait the mets, then phillies and the fish.
if injuries pile up for one of the four teams then of course the 1 through 4 will change like always.
You’re a Phillies fan and yet you still have the intellect to come up with those incredibly clever nicknames for the Mets? I tip my hat to you, sir.
Nats or Phillies. Braves 3rd. Then Mets and Marlins.
Mets all the way
1 – Braves
2 – Nats (may go down if they have less urgency due to winning last season)
3 and 4 – Mets and Phillies (not really sure of order)
5 – Marlins (but not 100% sure like in the past couple of years. They can get into 4th this year with an implosion by the Mets or Phillies , which is very possible).