Baseball Report Card: April (NL East)

NL East

1.       Atlanta Braves (17-9)

The Braves were off to a ridiculous start going 12-1 but has only gone 5-8 since that start. They acquired both Upton brothers in the offseason. Justin Upton has looked like an early MVP candidate with 12 homers. B.J. Upton has looked terrible batting .134. However, he is a streaky hitter and will eventually go on a hot streak. Freddie Freeman and Jason Heyward are also very talented young hitters. However, Freeman got hurt and was on the DL while Heyward was struggling and is currently on the DL. In addition, veteran catcher Brian McCann will also be returning soon. They are striking out at a historic clip now. If they can cut down on their strikeouts, they have the talent to be one of the best offenses in baseball. Their starting pitching has also been stellar. Tim Hudson continues to be the veteran rock, Mike Minor is proving that his great second half last year, Kris Medlen has not been as good as it would have been impossible to duplicate his season last year but has still been good, and Paul Maholm has turned his career back around. The one weak link right now in the rotation is Julio Teheran. After lighting it up in the spring, he currently is off to a shaky start with a 5.08 ERA. However, one of the best young pitchers in baseball, Brandon Beachy, is set to return during the season and take the rotation spot. Their bullpen has been great again this year and led by closer and monster Craig Kimbrel who is dominating again with a 0.84 WHIP, 1.69 ERA, and 15 Ks in 10.2 innings. With a +31 run differential and the potential that their team can actually play much better, the Braves will be one of the top teams all season.

Grade: B+

2.       Washington Nationals (13-14)

The Nationals are one of the favorites to get to the World Series and win but off to a slow start. That slow start has not translated to Bryce Harper who is quickly establishing himself as one of the best players in the game. He is batting .323, .417 OBP, and 9 homers. More impressively, he has walked 16 times while only striking out 17 times. Even with Harper, they have scored the 4^th least runs in the NL. As such, the talented lineup of the Nationals will need to pick it up and give Harper some help. Their rotation has been solid at the top but shaky in the rest. Stephen Stasburg is only 1-4 but has still pitched pretty well with a 3.13 ERA and 36 Ks in 37.1. He also has a 3 K/BB ratio. However, with his standards, it is probably considered struggling. Jordan Zimmerman has been great going 5-1 with a 0.75 WHIP, 1.64 ERA, and a great 4 K/BB raito. Gio Gonzalez and Dan Haren have struggled with ERAs over 5. However, Dan Haren has been good of late and his K/BB ratio of almost 5 is a pretty good indicator that has recent starts will carry on to the rest of the season. Free agent acquisition Rafael Soriano has been solid with a 3.00 ERA, 11 Ks in 12 innings, and 8 saves to lead a solid bullpen.

3.       Philadelphia Phillies (12-15)

The Phillies look like an aging team that is past its window of opportunity to win another World Series. Chase Utley has looked like he is giving us a blast from the past with a .282 average, 5 homers, and 4 stolen bases. Ryan Howard has looked better than last year with a .277 average and 4 homers. However, it no longer a good lineup never mind the powerhouse lineup that was one of the best lineups in their back to back World Series appearances. The starting pitching has also been a problem. Cliff Lee has still been solid with a 1.15 WHIP, 3.46 ERA, and 34 Ks and a K/BB ratio close to 5 in 41.1 innings. However, Cole Hamels has struggled with a  4.78 ERA. He does have 34 Ks in 37.2 innings so it is an indicator that he still has great stuff but is just struggling to start the season. Roy Halladay is the problem. He has a 6.75 ERA. He does have 31 Ks in 32 innings so he still does have stuff to get people out. However, his K/BB ratio is down to a mediocre 2.4 which is a pretty good indicator that his best days are behind him. Johnathan Papelbon is having another great year with a 0.60 WHIP and 1.80 ERA. He could be trade bait if they can not turn some of their key players around.

Grade: C-

4.       New York Mets (10-15)

The Mets are not built to win this year. They have a ton of money coming off the books after this season so they will have money to finally put together a good team. Their season this year will be a success if Matt Harvey becomes a star and they are able to get starter Zach Wheeler and catcher Travis D’Anaud into the Major Leagues and contributing. Matt Harvey is off to a great start going 4-0 with a 0.82 WHIP, 1.56 ERA, and 46 Ks in 40.1 innings with a 3.8 K/BB ratio. He definitely looks like the real deal. David Wright is still leading their offense batting .308 with a .423 OBP with 3 homers and 30 RBIs. He also has an impressive 19 walks versus 17 strikeouts. John Buck has been a surprise early hitting 9 homers for 27 RBIs. However, they need to get David Wright some help next year. He is still a great hitter that has gone under the radar as he now play for a bad team.

5.       Miami Marlins (8-19)

Like the Houston Astros, the Miami Marlins are not trying to win. After big offseason acquisitions last year, they had a firesale during this past offseason and are may now be the worst team in baseball. Outfielder Giancarlo Stanton is the only reason to watch this team and he is off to a terrible start batting .227. He will have a tough time getting motivated on such a bad team and getting the rug pulled out from under him with the offseason firesale.

Grade: F

AL West

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