MLB National League Preview

TotalSportsBlog 12 years ago 4 Min Read

Baseball season is officially here. This offseason was one unlike any we have seen in recent history. The Upton brothers joined forces in Atlanta, the Dodgers have spent a boatload of money to improve their roster, and the reigning World Series champs are ready to defend their title. Right now, every team in the MLB is tied for first place with a 0-0 record. Here’s how I see each National League division playing out.

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NL East

Even though the Braves stole the offseason headlines in the division, the Nationals are still the best team. The Braves had to give up some good pieces to bring in Justin Upton, and BJ Upton has shown flashes of greatness but is so inconsistent. The Nationals brought in Denard Span in the offseason, and Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg are only going to get better. The Phillies are expecting to be more competitive this year, but I can’t put to much trust into Chase Utley staying healthy and they’re an old team without much offensive pop. The Mets should be better this year (even after trading R.A. Dickey), but they couldn’t be much worse so that’s not saying much. The Marlins practically shipped their entire team to Toronto so expectations are as low as ever down in South Beach.

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Washington Nationals (95-67)
Atlanta Braves (90-72)
Philadelphia Phillies (82-80)
New York Mets (77-85)
Miami Marlins (72-90)

NL Central

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The Reds are very good. St. Louis is pretty good. Besides that, the rest of the division is wide open. Pittsburg and Milwaukee were both decent last year. Both were good at home, and atrocious on the road. Milwaukee and Pittsburg are both on the decline. Ryan Braun is good, but the rest of the team is inconsistent. Pittsburg on the other hand, will not be sneaking up on anyone this year. Andrew McCutchen is a stud, but just like the Brewers, the rest of the team is inconsistent. I saw AJ Burnett stink up the place for the Yankees for a few years, so I have a hard time believing he’ll replicate his impressive 2012 season. The Cubs have been bad for a while now, and that’s exactly why I’m picking them as my surprise team this year. It seems that every year a team that finished in last place the previous year turns it around and exceeds expectations. I’m putting my money on the Cubs this year.

Cincinnati Reds (97-65)
St. Louis Cardinals (91-71)
Chicago Cubs (85-77)
Pittsburg Pirates (80-82)
Milwaukee Brewers (75-87)

NL West

The San Francisco Giants are the reining World Series champs. The Los Angeles Dodgers are spending money like crazy to get back into the World Series hunt. The rest of the division seems content with losing though. The Diamondbacks traded away their best player this offseason, the Rockies have Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki, but after that, the Total Sports Blog staff has more talent then the rest of the team. The Padres weren’t good last year, and shouldn’t be good again this year.