I'm sure it's been a tough couple of days for all of the Zeus of Sports readers without any Cramer updates, but after a long weekend, I'm back to give my opinion on the National League playoff race:
National League-
NL East- The defending champs, the Phillies, are up 6.5 games over a mediocre division, so I think its safe to say they are going to come out on top unless they have a catastrophic meltdown or injury. However, two of the other teams in the division (and the Mets if you are a diehard Mets fan and want a reason to watch the rest of the season) still have a good chance at the wildcard- the Braves and the Marlins. I have inadvertently watched a good amount of Braves games in the past 2 weeks, and I have to say I am very impressed with their play and wouldn't be surprised if they pull out the wildcard, and become contenders in the East in the next few years.
Prediction: Philadelphia Phillies
NL Central- This is really the hardest division for me to call in the whole league (I still stand by my Tigers pick, ML). The Cubs seem to have gotten their act together, going 8-2 in their last 10. However, the Cardinals added Matt Holliday. They had a top 5 pitching staff in the NL, but their problem was their offense (other than Pujols). It's going to come down to whether or not Holliday can boost the team enough to get them over the hump offensively. The Cubs have the same problem. A top 5 pitching staff, and a very bad offense. However, it looks like they have gotten their act together and will pull out the division. Astros and Brewers fans... sorry, I don't see it for you this year. I'm a huge fan of the Brewers for reasons I can't explain, but they don't have the team they had at the end of last year with the loss of Sabathia. If they add Washbu
rn like the rumors may be indicating, then I may reconsider this decision, but probably not. Actually, no.Prediction- Chicago Cubs
NL West- ha.
Prediction- Los Angeles Dodgers
NL Wildcard- All of these teams have flaws, which is the reason why they aren't in the running for their division lead (except the Cardinals). The Giants have a great staff, but no offense. The Rockies are solid, but not great. In my mind, I've narrowed it down to three teams: the Rockies, Braves, and Cardinals. The Giants are a good story, but they've started to slow down, going 3-7 in their last 10. The Braves are coming hard in the opposite direction, going 7-3 in their last 10. I think a race like this is impossible to call, but I obviously have to make a direction. I'm gonna go with my instinct and pick:
Prediction- St. Louis Cardinals
Cubs have a bad offense? 1. Look at their lineup 2. Look at their offensive stats since the all-star break 3. Realize the injuries they've been dealing with all year.
ReplyDeleteDo your research, thank you.
10 games is hardly a big enough sample size to justify calling their offense good... and obviously injuries will affect their offensive "stats" but the reality is that they will play with the players they have available to them, and the players they have had have not put up good offensive numbers so far this season.
ReplyDeleteHaha - calling the cubs on a hot streak and having it "together"? They opened the second half against the Nationals and the down and out Reds. When they played the Phillies it didnt look quite as "together", Zeus. Something to consider...I'm an AL fan anyways - I don't bother digging into too much analaysis on this sub-par league that can't even compete in an all star game...
ReplyDeletei will agree with the second half of your post, anonymous.. the national league is not terribly competitive compared to the AL from top to bottom. However, a team out of the NL did win the World Series in pretty convincing fashion last year if I do recall. It's hard to say that the Cubs don't have it somewhat together if they are in first place in their division. Am I choosing them as the World Series favorites? Absolutely not. I do think they are likely to make the playoffs out of their division or as the wildcard spot though. You're entitled to your own opinion as are all sports fans... so who do you think will win the central and the wild card?
ReplyDeletetwo anonymous posters, Zeus just owned you.
ReplyDelete