Ranking the National League East

[Philaflava]

I agree with most of the rankings. I really like FL's pitching. Really like it.

Ranking the National League East
By Paul Hagen
Philadelphia Daily News

Starting pitching
1. Marlins: Ricky Nolasco, Josh Johnson, Chris Volstad, Anibal Sanchez, Andrew Miller (L)

2. Phillies: Cole Hamels (L), Brett Myers, Jamie Moyer (L), Joe Blanton, J.A. Happ (L) or Chan Ho Park

3. Braves: Derek Lowe, Javier Vazquez, Jair Jurrjens, Kenshin Kawakami, Tom Glavine (L)

4. Mets: Johan Santana (L), Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, Oliver Perez (L), Livan Hernandez

5. Nationals: John Lannan (L), Scott Olsen (L), Daniel Cabrera, Jordan Zimmermann, Shairon Martis

Nolasco, Johnson and Volstad were a combined 28-13, 3.40 for Florida last season. Although only Nolasco made 30 starts in the big leagues, that's impressive. And while Sanchez and Miller still must prove they can compete at the big-league level, both have significant upsides. The Phillies are strong 1 through 4, and Hamels is a legit staff ace if healthy. But Myers is coming off a Jekyll-and-Hyde season and Moyer is 46 years old, so both have to be considered at least minor question marks. Atlanta completely retooled its rotation after betting, and losing, on the continued health of veterans like John Smoltz, Tom Glavine and Mike Hampton. Lowe, Vazquez and Jurrjens can be counted on to fill 200 innings and Kawakami is an interesting, under-the-radar acquisition. The Mets got a scare when Santana came up with a sore elbow early in spring training. He's apparently fine and remains one of the best pitchers in baseball and Pelfrey is starting to establish himself, but Maine could still go either way and Perez needs to be more consistent. The Nationals believe they have a rich lode of young pitching coming through the system but, for this year at least, are more about potential than proven track record.

Relief pitching

1. Mets: Closer Francisco Rodriguez. J.J. Putz, Sean Green, Pedro Feliciano (L), Bobby Parnell, Brian Stokes, Darren O'Day

2. Phillies: Closer Brad Lidge. Ryan Madson, Chad Durbin, Scott Eyre (L), Clay Condrey, Chan Ho Park or J.A. Happ (L)

3. Braves: Closer Mike Gonzalez (L). Rafael Soriano, Peter Moylan, Blaine Boyer, Boone Logan (L) or Eric O'Flaherty (L), Buddy Carlyle or Jorge Campillo

4. Nationals: Closer Joel Hanrahan. Joe Beimel (L), Saul Rivera, Julian Tavarez, Jason Bergmann, Garrett Mock, Mike Hinckley (L)

5. Marlins: Closer Leo Nunez. Logan Kensing, Renyel Pinto (L), Taylor Tankersley (L), Kiko Calero

If both Rodriguez and Putz are healthy and pitching to their capability, the Mets acquired an end-of-game hammer that will put pressure on opponents to have a lead by the seventh. K-Rod must show he can succeed in the New York pressure cooker and Putz has to adjust to setting up after closing for the Mariners. The Phillies don't expect Lidge to be perfect again, but he appears to be all the way back from whatever ailed him in Houston. Madson has to demonstrate consistency; Durbin faded in the second half last year; and there's no established lefthander to go along with Scott Eyre until J.C. Romero returns form his 50-game suspension. It wouldn't be a surprise if the Braves ended up with the best bullpen when all is said and done, but Gonzalez, Soriano and Moylan are all coming off injuries. If ג€“ and it's always a big if ג€“ all three remain healthy, they could end up being Atlanta's strength. The Nationals got a lot better when they signed free agent Beimel (5-1, 2.02 for the Dodgers in 2008), but Hanrahan remains an unproven quantity as the closer. Injuries sabotaged the Marlins, at least for the early going when projected closer Matt Lindstrom had to drop out of the WBC with a rotator cuff problem and penciled-in setup man Scott Proctor went down with elbow soreness. That makes Leo Nunez, with no experience closing, as the go-to guy in save situations.

Infield

1. Phillies: 1B Ryan Howard, 2B Chase Utley, SS, Jimmy Rollins, 3B Pedro Feliz, C Carlos Ruiz

2. Mets: 1B Carlos Delgado, 2B Luis Castillo, SS Jose Reyes, 3B David Wright, C Brian Schneider

3. Marlins: 1B Gaby Sanchez, 2B Dan Uggla, SS Hanley Ramirez, 3B Jorge Cantu, C John Baker or C Mike Rabelo

4. Braves: 1B Casey Kotchman, 2B Kelly Johnson, SS Yunel Escobar, 3B Chipper Jones, C Brian McCann

5. Nationals: 1B Nick Johnson, 2B Anderson Hernandez, SS Cristian Guzman, 3B Ryan Zimmerman, C Jesus Flores

Considering that the Phillies probably have the best first baseman, second baseman and shortstop in franchise history at or near the peaks of their careers, this is a pretty easy call. They might also expect to get more production from both Feliz, who played with back problems in 2008, and Ruiz. Wright is one of baseball's brightest stars and Reyes can be an electric player, although he occasionally disappears. Delgado, 36, was written off when he got off to a slow start last season but came on strong in the second half and Castillo is on the bubble. For the Marlins, Ramirez is an MVP waiting to happen. Uggla outslugs his defensive shortcomings. Cantu (.277-29-95) was great in '08, but can he do it again? For the Braves, Kotchman is unlikely to make up for the production lost when free-agent-to-be Mark Teixeira was traded and Jones, still one of the best when healthy, turns 37 next month and can no longer be counted on to play 150 games. Johnson and Escobar are underrated. Zimmerman is the Nationals' centerpiece, but Johnson has been injured repeatedly the last few years. Guzman has batted .328 and .316 the last two seasons and Flores has tons of potential.

Outfield

1. Phillies: LF Raul Ibanez, CF Shane Victorino, RF Jayson Werth

2. Nationals: LF Adam Dunn, CF Lastings Milledge, RF Elijah Dukes

3. Braves: LF Garret Anderson, CF Josh Anderson, RF Jeff Francouer

4. Mets: LF Ryan Church, CF Carlos Beltran, RF Daniel Murphy

5. Marlins: LF Jeremy Hermida, CF Cameron Maybin, RF Cody Ross

Before signing with the Phillies, Ibanez had driven in more than 100 runs three consecutive seasons for the Mariners and averaged 25 homers per season in spacious Safeco Field. At a minimum, he should be more consistent than Pat Burrell. Victorino scored 102 runs, stole 36 bases and won a Gold Glove and Werth earned the right to prove he could play every day. Dunn gives the Nationals a much-needed lefthanded power threat; how good the outfield turns out to be will depend on how Milledge and Dukes develop. Braves outfielders combined for just 27 home runs all last season. Anderson hit 15 (and drove in 84 runs) for the Angels last year. Adding him late makes the outfield stronger, but they desperately need Francouer (.239-11-71) to bounce back from a down year. Beltran gives the Mets solid production and strong defense, but Murphy is unproven and it's a little surprising that New York didn't upgrade in left. The Marlins are counting heavily on Maybin, a talented rookie who will also be asked to lead off.

Bench

1. Phillies: IF-OF Greg Dobbs, IF-OF Eric Bruntlett, IF Miguel Cairo, OF Geoff Jenkins, OF Matt Stairs, C Chris Coste or C Ronny Paulino

2. Nationals: IF Ronnie Belliard, OF Willie Harris, OF Austin Kearns, OF Josh Willingham, C Josh Bard or Wil Nieves

3. Mets: IF Alex Cora, OF Fernando Tatis, OF Jeremy Reed, OF Nick Evans, C Ramon Castro

4. Braves: IF Martin Prado, OF Omar Infante, OF Matt Diaz, C David Ross

5. Marlins: IF Wes Helms, IF Emilio Bonifacio, OF Alfredo Amezaga, OF Brett Carroll

Dobbs led the majors in pinch hits and was second in RBI and Bruntlett has the versatility to play both infield and outfield. It remains to be seen if there's a spot for Cairo and if the team can carry two more lefthanded bats off the bench in Jenkins and Stairs. Harris was one of Washington's best players last year, Kearns has had some success as a starter in his career, and Belliard and Willingham have also started. Cora gives the Mets the experience of a player who had more than 150 at-bats coming off the bench for the Red Sox last season and an option at second if Luis Castillo stumbles, and Tatis figures to share playing time with Ryan Church in left. Diaz was Atlanta's starting leftfielder at the beginning of last season before being sidelined by injuries; Prado batted .320 in 228 at-bats and Infante hit .293 in 317 at-bats. For the Marlins, Bonifacio could be an alternative if Cameron Maybin struggles out of the leadoff spot while Helms can play first or third.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

SPs

1. Phillies/Braves (tie)
3. Marlins
4. Mets
5. Nationals.

Bullpen

1. Mets
2. Phillies
3. Braves
4. Nationals
5. Marlins

Infield

1. Phillies
2. Mets
3. Marlins
4. Braves
5. Nationals (this is hard to look at)

Outfield

1. Nationals
2. Phillies
3. Mets
4. Marlins
5. Braves

Bench

1. Nationals
2. Phillies
3. Mets
4. Marlins
5. Braves

If you want me to clarify, just let me know on what and i'll go deeper. don't have much time anymore so i can't do a full on thing.

btw, i'm polling this bitch. Let's call this the first divisional preview thread. First one of the season. Me or one of the other mods (gloss included cause he is unofficially a mod here) will post 1 divisional preview up every day.

[Magneto]

SPs

1. Phillies/Braves (tie)
3. Marlins
4. Mets
5. Nationals.

Bullpen

1. Mets
2. Phillies
3. Braves
4. Nationals
5. Marlins

Infield

1. Phillies
2. Mets
3. Marlins
4. Braves
5. Nationals (this is hard to look at)

Outfield

1. Nationals
2. Phillies
3. Mets
4. Marlins
5. Braves

Bench

1. Nationals
2. Phillies
3. Mets
4. Marlins
5. Braves

If you want me to clarify, just let me know on what and i'll go deeper. don't have much time anymore so i can't do a full on thing.

btw, i'm polling this bitch. Let's call this the first divisional preview thread. First one of the season. Me or one of the other mods (gloss included cause he is unofficially a mod here) will post 1 divisional preview up every day.

I agree with everything except the Phillies having a tie for the best pitching staff and the National having the best outfield. I think the Braves or Marlins have much better staffs. And I think the Nationals have the worst outfield in the NL East.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

Well i'm tantalized by Washington's athleticism in the OF. Dunn is always very good at the plate despite striking out a lot and a poor BA.

I'm not convinced the Marlins staff is as great as everyone's making it out to be. call it a hung. I like Josh Johnson. I like Volstad a bit. I don't think Nolasco will be as good as last year. Miller allows too many baserunners so far. Anibal has fallen off since that no hitter.

The back end of the Phillies rotation is not good but i like the front three a lot. I always feel like Moyer is criminally underappreciated. Every philly fan was hating on him undeservedly during the playoff run imo and he justified their criticisms until the World Series. I've always been tantalized by Bretty Myers' stuff. Cole Hamels is Cole Hamels. Top 5 pitcher in the NL.

[eternalreflection]

Dunn is always very good at the plate despite striking out a lot and a poor BA.

problem is he's god awful defensively now, and absolutely needs to be a DH

[Tommy Bunz]

The East is going to be an even crazier division than normal this year as every team has improved.

Phillies
Mets
Marlins
Braves
Nationals.

Phillies starting pitching is significantly better. Myers has finally committed to being a starter and is in the best shape of his life, he has always had phenomenal stuff. Moyer is reliable. Hamels is god. Blanton will be serviceable. We have some depth at the 5th spot if necessary. People forget that we gave 19 starts to Adam Eaton and 30 starts to Kyle Kendrick and still won the division last year, which quite frankly shouldn't even be possible. Our offense underperformed a bit last year too. Bullpen overperformed so that balances out. Great defense in all but two positions (LF and 1B). We should win 90 games again, which should be enough to win the division.

Mets should be fucking pissed at Minaya. I still can't believe he didn't sign a real second baseman or a real corner outfielder given how cheap they were. Putz/F-Rod were huge additions. No way in hell Delgado can repeat even close to the numbers he put up. Reyes/Wright will both put up MVP numbers. I really like Dan Murphys bat. Weak defensively other than center and the left side of the infield. Santana will win the Cy Young but I don't trust Maine, Pelfrey or Perez.

I think Marlins have a good balance of young pitching and offense. Lots of upside everywhere. Could surprise a lot of people, especially if Maybin hits right away. I think Nolasco will come near his 08 numbers. Josh Johnson might finish in the top 5 in Cy young voting.

Atlanta did a pretty good job overhauling their starting pitching but they don't have near enough offense. LOL @ that outfield.

Nationals will be better but still look like a last place team. Pitching sucks, although Jordan Zimmerman might surprise. I expect good things from Milledge and Dukes as long as they don't end up in jail. Dunn will hit 40 homers again. Very suspect defensively.

[Philaflava]

Phillies starting pitching is not significantly better, but it is better than everyone minus Florida.

I understand why Popa ranked Washington's OF higher but who is to say what kind of player/problems Milledge and Dukes will be. I do think Milledge is going to have a great season though.

Still the team to beat is Philly (no homer).

[Gregg Popabitch1]

Dunn is always very good at the plate despite striking out a lot and a poor BA.

problem is he's god awful defensively now, and absolutely needs to be a DH

apparently, the same can be said for Ibanez. and Dunn is better offensively by most metrics.

[Magneto]

Phillies starting pitching is not significantly better, but it is better than everyone minus Florida.

I understand why Popa ranked Washington's OF higher but who is to say what kind of player/problems Milledge and Dukes will be. I do think Milledge is going to have a great season though.

Still the team to beat is Philly (no homer).

Phillies staff vs. Braves

Hamels > Lowe (Barely)
Jair Jurrjens > Brett Myers (Barely)
Javier Vasquez >>>> Jaime Moyer
Tom Glavine > Joe Blanton
Kenshin Kawakami vs. ????? - Undecided

[Philaflava]

Glavine? Seriously.

And Jurrijens is not better than the 2nd half Myers we saw last year. Myers when on is a solid #2. Very solid.

[Magneto]

Well i'm tantalized by Washington's athleticism in the OF. Dunn is always very good at the plate despite striking out a lot and a poor BA.

I'm not convinced the Marlins staff is as great as everyone's making it out to be. call it a hung. I like Josh Johnson. I like Volstad a bit. I don't think Nolasco will be as good as last year. Miller allows too many baserunners so far. Anibal has fallen off since that no hitter.

The back end of the Phillies rotation is not good but i like the front three a lot. I always feel like Moyer is criminally underappreciated. Every philly fan was hating on him undeservedly during the playoff run imo and he justified their criticisms until the World Series. I've always been tantalized by Bretty Myers' stuff. Cole Hamels is Cole Hamels. Top 5 pitcher in the NL.

Ricky Nolasco is an excellent pitcher with ace stuff, Josh Johnson the same, Andrew Miller has very good stuff, Anibal Sanchez is has excellent stuff. I think they have one of the best young rotations in recent memory

And the Phillies staff begins and ends with Cole Hamels. Sure, he might be the third best pitcher in the NL maybe, but that's a lot for one man.

[Philaflava]

^ I agree FL has SP on lock but when no runs are scored who the fuck cares.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

you like all those dude's stuff but you don't like Myers who has excellent stuff himself?

[Magneto]

Glavine? Seriously.

And Jurrijens is not better than the 2nd half Myers we saw last year. Myers when on is a solid #2. Very solid.

Tom Glavine/Joe Blanton are both medicore pitchers now, with medicore stuff, but Glavine is a HOF who does more with his stuff and provides better performance on the field.


Bret Myers has more upside, but I trust Jair Jurrjens and what I will get from him.

Brett Myers is way too inconsistent. He's like the NL version of Jeremy Bonderman, with a higher propensity to implode at any given moment.

[Magneto]

you like all those dude's stuff but you don't like Myers who has excellent stuff himself?

I love Brett Myers stuff, but he is way too inconsistent and he has been in the league for years now. The other players are kids, I will give them a chance to disappoint and so far the only one who has is Andrew Miller.

Brett Myers has been in the league since 2002, he's had two very solid seasons, and the rest have been up and down, big fan of his stuff, but when does it become the point where we recognize it just might now work out how the Phillies wanted it to for him?

[Gregg Popabitch1]

i trust no one from curacao

[bringinoutbangerz]

well Dukes and Milledge had no player problems last year at all, save for lots of time spent on the disabled list.

Voted Nats

[Gregg Popabitch1]

i like nolasco, JJ, and Volstad. Thing is.....all three are fairly young still. Everyone has also seen Nolasco's best stuff now as well. He might regress in terms of numbers. We'll see. This is something i feel i could be wrong in. It's a hunch. I like the promise in all these pitchers.

[Joe Pesci]

Philly

But I like the Mets chances this year.

[Tommy Bunz]

Voted Nats

Scott LOL-sen.

No wonder your sports mod career is Adam Dunn.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

Voted Nats

Scott LOL-sen.

No wonder your sports mod career is Adam Dunn.

oh snap. the sports metaphors continue!!!!

[Philaflava]

I can see how this went. Bob voted Nats Proph or Psychosis voted FL. Ripweblo and Dwight Straw voted NY. The rest of the sane peeps voted correctly.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

pendiana could've voted Mets too. if he hasn't voted yet, he will.

[Roy Johnson]

Phillies staff vs. Braves

Hamels > Lowe (Barely)
Jair Jurrjens > Brett Myers (Barely)
Javier Vasquez >>>> Jaime Moyer
Tom Glavine > Joe Blanton
Kenshin Kawakami vs. ????? - Undecided

I agree that Atlanta should be alone at the top, but I also include Tommy Hanson and Tim Hudson in the equation, even if the latter won't be back until August.

Hanson's Arizona Fall League numbers:

28 IP
5-0
0.63 ERA
49 Ks
7 BBs
7-to-1 K/BB
15K/9IP

I know it's a small sample, but god damn.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

no fair. we can't count hanson.

[Magneto]

Phillies staff vs. Braves

Hamels > Lowe (Barely)
Jair Jurrjens > Brett Myers (Barely)
Javier Vasquez >>>> Jaime Moyer
Tom Glavine > Joe Blanton
Kenshin Kawakami vs. ????? - Undecided

I agree that Atlanta should be alone at the top, but I also include Tommy Hanson and Tim Hudson in the equation, even if the latter won't be back until August.

Hanson's Arizona Fall League numbers:

28 IP
5-0
0.63 ERA
49 Ks
7 BBs
7-to-1 K/BB
15K/9IP

I know it's a small sample, but god damn.

I just didn't count them because they probably wont be in the rotation this season,l but yeah, adding them makes it a laugher.

[Gregg Popabitch1]

Hanson is coming up this season.

[Mansfield Status]

the mets are BUMS.. yeah I said it Dwight.. dave wright is a stiff