Arguably, the most explosive division in the NL is the East - full of stars. Whether they be high rated pitching prospects, former MVPs, or praised veterans, the East is loaded with talent.
The Phillies are one of the most respected franchises in baseball. The Phightin' Phils are what you would call "stacked." Roy Halladay, Joe Blanton, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Vance Worley return to anchor the Philadelphia pitching staff, and Jonathan Pabelbon will replace the streaky closer, Brad Lidge. One acquisition that really catches my eye is Dontrelle Willis. The D-Train returns to the NL East and will look to have a comeback year, after a disappointing past few years. The only problem with Willis is that there isn't a starting rotation position for him, but the Phillies could utilize his explosive bat in an already frightening lineup. The Phillies aren't the best fit for Willis, because there isn't a consistent alcove for him on the lineup card. The pitching staff in the City of Brotherly Love, will once again beautifully complement their explosive offense. The explosive Philadelphia offense will once again strike fear into any pitcher. Murderer's Row 2.0 will once again include "The Big 3,"-Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Jimmy Rollins- Shane "The Flyin' Hawaiian" Victorino, unorthodox, yet totally effective right fielder, Hunter Pence, Placido Polanco. Jim Thome will return to Philadelphia as he closes out his career. It looks like there will be some competition for the left field spot, between John Mayberry and Dominic Brown. Regardless of who plays left field, the Phillies will return to October.
The Braves are a perfect example of a team successfully building for the future. After a sudden end to NL East titles in 2006, the Braves worked to rebuild themselves, and now they have one of the best offenses in the National League. With Chipper Jones returning to put on a clinic for all 3rd basemen, and Brian McCann crouching behind the dish, the Braves have two team leaders to mentor their young talent, like Freddie Freeman, Jason Heyward, and Tyler Pastornicky. Dan Uggla also returns, along with one of the most underrated and under appreciated players, Martin Prado. The defense looks good on paper, but my one concern is the age barrier between the infield. My biggest concern is with the rookie, Pastornicky. Shortstop is one of the toughest mental and physical positions on the diamond, and to have a rookie there, is scary. You could argue that the age and experience between Uggla and Jones could help him, but to me that is a disadvantage. For a team to be successful, the shortstop must have chemistry with the second baseman, and communication with the 3rd baseman. The age gap could hurt this team later on. As the offense looks good, and shows promise the pitching staff lacks that one solid guy, an ace. Tim Hudson is washed out, and cannot compete against real aces in their prime. Jair Jurrijens and Tommy Hanson have shown the necessary skills to be competitive pichers, but other than that the starting rotation doesn't look to swell. Th highlight of the Braves staff, is setup man Johnny Venters and closer Craig Kimbrel. These two were stellar last year, in preserving Atlanta wins.
Down in D.C. the Nationals are looking to build on last year. 2011 showed much promise in the Capital City and as Stephen Strasburg returns, they are preparing to make a long haul for October. After missing all of last year, Stephen Strasburg, and the arm touched by God, will be probably be the ace of a promising staff. With Strasburg firing 100 mile-an-hour fastballs, Gio Gonzalez, Edwin Jackson, Jordan Zimmerman, and Chien-Ming-Wang will most likely fill out the remaining 4 spots. The Nationals bullpen will contain Brad Lidge, Tom Gorzelany, and Craig Stammen. Along with those 3 is another good setup-closer duo, in Tyler Clippard and Drew Storren. The pitching staff looks good, for a team used as a punchline just 2 years ago. Like the pitching staff, the offense looks good for what this organization has previously put on the field. Ryan Zimmerman and his new 100 million dollar contract will once again be playing third, but don't be surprised if his new contract gets to his head and doesn't produce as before. Ian Desmond and Danny Espinosa will serve as middle infield buddies again, and both will hopefully build on their mutual offensive production of last year. Every sports show has just driven me up a wall over the course of the past few weeks, as they seem to just hype and overdo Bryce Harper. People are saying Harper is the strongest power hitter ever, or how he and Strasburg will lead the Nats in to a championship. To be honest with you, Bryce Harper is over hyped. And we all know what happens to players who are over hyped, they don't meet expectations or perform. I actually don't think he is a great baseball player, either. His tape measure shots are mostly because of his fine tuned physique, which allows him to muscle balls 400 ft. The Nationals will be better, than ever, this year, but that's not saying much.
Out in the Big Apple, the Metropolitians are in a current state of rebuilding. This transition process has been bitter and seems as if it will be forever elongated. With Johan returning, the Mets finally have a legitimate pitcher. As one 50% Johan is better than a full scale Mike Pelfrey. The Mets's weakness, last year, was their bullpen. Now, it actually may be their strength. But the only thing is that Frank Francisco, John Rauch, etc are all a few years away from AARP benefits, or have frequent patients points at our hospitals. The patchwork offense shows more promise than the hopeless bunch put out on the field in the past few years. Lucas Duda and Ike Davis have a chance to split 80 homeruns, according to Terry Collins, I could see this happening but the chances of both of these players playing 150+ games is slim, that is according to Mets lore. Utilizing the new, moved in left field fences will be Jason Bay and David Wright. Ever since Bay's arrival and David moving into Citi Field, their power numbers have decreased, and both of these perennial all stars have taken a "holiday" from production. As Jose Reyes, departs, the buzz is the Mets are going to miss him. I contradict that. The Mets had one postseason with Reyes, and they struggled every other year. The Mets were awful with Reyes, and odds are, they'll be awful without him, as Andres Torres will never be able to be compared to the impact of Reyes. I think the Mets look pretty good, and they won't embarrass themselves, yet again.
Ah the Dream Team, baseball's Philadelphia Eagles- the Miami Marlins. By upgrading the entire team, the Marlins are a team that had an enormous face lift this winter. Ever since their 2003 World Series victory, the Marlins have always been a strong team, but not strong enough, as they have had to sell away their star players countless times. When the Marlins won both their Championships, they weren't the type of team that they're trying to be. By changing the nature of their team, the Marlins hurt themselves. Also by having all these big name stars, they all will be gone, twice as fast as standouts like Miguel Cabrera, Dan Uggla, and Dontrelle Willis. The pitching staff looks like the cliche Marlins rotation, other than the fact of the presence of Heath Bell, Mark Buehrle, and Carlos Zambrano. Most of the other the pitchers aren't spectacular, and won't come close to the performance of the newbies-well at least Bell and Buehrle. The offense will be strong because of a triple threat trio of power, speed, and pop, containing Jose Reyes, Hanley Ramirez, and Mike Stanton. These 3 guys will carry the team and put up good numbers, especially when Reyes is actually on the field. What makes the offense stronger than the pitching is that beyond a Big 3, is some depth, in a Medium 3 of Emilio Bonifacio, Gaby Sanchez, and Omar Infante. The reason they won't be successful in 2012, is their lack of pitching, as somewhere down the road, the offense won't be able to carry the team, entirely. Also, with Ozzie Guillen, there will be some big attitudes and egos in the clubhouse, that down the stretch, could turn toxic.
2012 NL East Predictions (This was tough, as the East is very competitive, and as the teams who could be in first or second in any other division)
1st: Phillies
2nd: Braves
3rd: Nationals
4th: Marlins
5th: Mets
No comments:
Post a Comment