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Posted by on Jul 11, 2013 in Pat Wong, Sports | 0 comments

Baseball Mid Year Report Card (NL East)

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(Records as of June 30)

NL East

1.       Atlanta Braves (48-34)

The Braves are leading the division and the only team in it with a positive run differential at +68. Their strength is pitching as they have surrendered the second least amount of runs in baseball. Veterans Tim Hudson and Paul Maholm have been good. Kris Medlen had an incredible year last year. He has not been as dominating but still pitching very well. Mike Minor picked up where he left off at during the second half of last year and established himself as one of the best young starters. Julio Teheran dominated spring training but struggled in April.  Nevertheless, he picked it up, been dominant the last two months, and lowered his ERA from 5.08 after April to 3.23. The Braves will have a logjam in the rotation once Brandon Beachy returns soon. Beachy was establishing himself as a dominant pitcher before getting hurt and requiring Tommy John surgery last year. Beachy, Medlen, Minor, and Teheran could be anchoring a great staff for years to come. The Braves bullpen has also been great. While closer Craig Kimbrel has not been as perfect as he was last year, he still has a 1.09 WHIP, 1.72 ERA, 23 saves, and 46 Ks in 31.1 innings. On the other hand, the Braves offense is feast or famine. They have a ton of power but strike out way too much and get into prolonged slumps as a team. Trade acquisition Justin Upton had a great start batting .298 with 12 homers in April. However, his average has dipped to .245 and has only hit 3 homeruns in the last two months. The Braves’ big free agent signing was his brother, BJ Upton, who has been a disaster batting .175. The Braves were also expecting big things from Jason Heyward after a promising 2012 season but he has only hit .228 with 6 homers. On the bright side, Freddie Freeman has emerged as their best hitter and having a great season. They have also received a lot of production out of their catchers as Evan Gattis has hit 14 homeruns as the primary catcher at the beginning of the season while Brian McCann has hit 10 homeruns after missing the beginning of the season and taking over again as the primary catcher. I do not expect the Braves to be significant buyers at the deadline. They have surplus pitching so do not have a glaring need there. While their offense is struggling, they will just have to hope that their talented hitters start hitting and are more consistent. Their positions are either filled with struggling veterans that make significant money or young players that they cannot give up on yet and just need to let them play. As such, there is no roster flexibility to make any significant acquisitions. If their talented hitters get it going in the second half and into the playoffs, the Braves will be a frontrunner to win the World Series.

Grade: A-

2.       Washington Nationals (41-40)

After the Nationals had a great season last year and with young studs Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper, the Nationals were a trendy pick for the World Series going into this season. While they had key injuries to Strasburg, Harper, and Jayson Werth, the Nationals have not been playing great even with those players when they were healthy. Their strength is their pitching. Strasburg, Jordan Zimmerman, and Gio Gonzalez are all pitching very well and are as good as any 3 starters at a top of a rotation. Zimmerman is having the best year at 12-3 with a 0.94 WHIP and 2.46 ERA. The big disappointment in the rotation is veteran Dan Haren. The Nationals signed him this past season hoping a move back to the National League would lead to Haren returning to an ace but he has a 6.15 ERA. They also have a solid 1-2 punch at the back of the bullpen with closer Rafael Soriano and Tyler Clippard. The Nationals’ problem has been offense as they have scored the 3rd fewest runs in the National League. Harper, Werth, Ryan Zimmerman, Adam Laroche, Ian Desmond is a good core for an offense. However, they need to stay healthy as a group as well as be more consistent. They traded for centerfielder Denard Span but he has been a disappointment so far. Moreover, talented and young second basemen Danny Espinosa was terrible this year and sent back to the minor leagues. Nevertheless, the Nationals have the players they need to turn it around but they need to start playing better. The Nationals will not be seller but I am not sure how active they will be as they have most of the solutions they need already on their team. They could add a second basemen or a veteran starter but they really just need the players they already have to play well.

Grade: C+

3.       Philadelphia Phillies (39-44)

The championship window for the Phillies has definitely closed as they have gotten older. When they won a World Series and made back to back appearances, they had one of the most feared offenses in the league. Now, they have one of the worst. Their great starting pitching has also regressed to average. Their one bright spot on offense is Domonic Brown. He was a big prospect and the Phillies have been waiting for him to develop for years. Brown has finally broken out hitting 22 homeruns with 60 RBIs. On the pitching side, Cliff Lee is still pitching like an ace at 9-2 with a 0.97 WHIP and 2.59 ERA. Unfortunately, Roy Halladay is showing his age as he was terrible before getting hurt and probably out for the season. Proven ace Cole Hamels has also been mediocre at 3-11 with a 4.38 ERA. In the bullpen, Jonathan Papelbon is still great and has a 0.86 WHIP, 1.93 ERA, and 17 saves. The Phillies should be sellers and start to break the team down to rebuild. The Phillies have a lot of attractive pieces for contending teams. Cliff Lee is at the top of the list as he is still an ace and has had great postseason performances. Jonathan Papelbon would also be a big acquisition for the teams looking for bullpen support. He is a top closer who has been predominantly great in the postseason. He could put a team like the Tigers over the top. On offense, Michael Young is a veteran hitter that can play multiple positions and I definitely see him traded. Moreover, Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins could help teams that need a second base or shortstop. Carlos Ruiz is a solid veteran catcher that can hit. Delmon Young is also a veteran hitter that has had postseason success. He is starting to hit and can definitely help the teams that need a right handed bat, such as the Yankees.

Grade: C+

4.       New York Mets (33-45)

The Mets made no offseason moves and they were not building to win this year. GM Sandy Alderson has spent his tenure blowing up the team and allowing the big contracts to expire as the Mets have financial limitations after the Wilpon ownership were hurt by the Madoff scandal. As such, their season this year is all about developing their young players. As such, the development of Matt Harvey has been a tremendous success. He has a 0.91 WHIP, 2.27 ERA, and 141 Ks and only 27 walks in 123 innings. He looks like a top pitcher in baseball for the next decade. However, Ike Davis has been a complete disaster after a big second half last year. The Mets were expecting Davis to be their power hitting first basemen for the next decade. If he cannot pull it together, it will be a big disappointment for this season. Starter Jonathan Niese also has taken a step backwards. However, he is probably a middle of rotation starter and should still be a solid one. Promising starter Zach Wheeler was recently called up. He has shown he has dominating stuff but clearly needs time to develop in the major leagues. Top catching prospect Travis D’Arnaud got hurt or he would have been called up by now. As he is the catcher of the future, he definitely needs to be up as soon as possible to develop a relationship with the pitchers. Another prospect Mets fan can look forward to is Rafael Montero. He was dominating in AA Binghamton and has been promoted to AAA. If he continues to pitch well, Mets fan can definitely expect to see him in New York before the end of the season. He may be better than Wheeler. I expect the Mets to be quiet at the trade deadline. They have done most of their selling the last two years. There will be a lot of pressure for them to field a competitive team next year. If they can somehow pry a young star hitter from a team such as Giancarlo Stanton from the Marlins, they will try to do it to give their fans a player to cheer for and build with next year. They may trade veteran pitcher Shawn Marcum and veteran hitter Marlon Byrd as they are not part of the future. Marcum is 1-9 but has been effective in recent years and could help a contender sure up the back of their rotation. The Mets have a ton of money coming off the books at the end of the season. The GM can add pieces in the offseason and must as their fans’ patience is up. Third basemen David Wright is having another great year but it will be good for his numbers if he finally get some help around him again.

Grade: C

5.       Florida Marlins (29-51)

The Marlins convinced the city of Miami to build them a new ballpark. They spent a lot of money last offseason to bring in big free agents Jose Reyes, Mark Buerhle, and Heath Bell. After a disaster first half in 2012, they had a complete firesale and only kept young superstar Giancarlo Stanton. Not surprisingly, they have been terrible with the worst record in baseball and the second worst run differential at -83. I do not blame their fans and the city of Miami for feeling that they have been scammed by the team. However, the Marlins are trying to sell it as a good idea to lose on purpose to get high draft picks to build their team. Their one bright spot has been starter Jose Fernandez. He has a 1.06 WHIP and 2.72 ERA with 94 Ks in 92.2 innings. Considering he did not even pitch in AA before being called up to the majors, he looks like the real deal. The Marlins will be selling whatever they still have. Stanton would command a king’s ransom if they decide to make him available. With no help this year, he has gotten hurt and hit only 8 homeruns. The next big trade item was starter Ricky Nolasco. While he has never realized his potential, he is having a solid year with a 1.22 WHIP and 3.85 ERA. He has already been traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He will fit in nicely in the back of their rotation. In terms of the other players, closer Steve Cishek has been solid and would be valuable as a setup man on a good team. Left hander Mike Dunn could be used as a lefty specialist. Kevin Slowey is a decent starter and can help a back of a rotation. However, those players are not great and there is literally nothing after them. The development of Jose Fernandez is the only reason they do not get an F.

Grade: D

 

AL East

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