Tag: New York Mets

The Sports World Moves Pretty Fast..If You Don’t Stop And Look Around Every Once In A While..You May Miss It

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

tiger woods

A lot can happen in the sports world in 6 days. For those who don’t know me, I was on vacation for the past 6 days, so Dave hasn’t Talked Sports in a while. Let us have a look at what happened while I was gone:

Tiger Woods

Oh how the mighty have fallen. That may be the biggest understatement in the history of sports. Let’s travel back to 2009. Tiger Woods had a squeaky clean image. He was seemingly happily married with children. He had more money than he knew what to do with. And it seemed like a foregone conclusion he would surpass Jack Nicklaus’ Majors Record. Yeah..not so much. Instead, Woods was living a double life, littered with countless affairs. Woods has not won a Major since and has frequently been injured. And on Tuesday, May 29th, 2017, Woods hit what we hope is rock-bottom. He was found sleeping in his car at 3:00 a.m. in Jupiter, Florida. He was arrested and charged with a DUI. Despite blowing a 0.0 on the breathalyzer, Woods was extremely disoriented and confused during the traffic stop. Must have been quite the cocktail. The footage can be seen here. For he and his children’s sake, I hope he gets the help he clearly needs.

Bryce Harper

Who knew Bryce Harper liked to throw down?! After being hit by San Francisco Giants’ pitcher Hunter Strickland in the 8th inning of Tuesday’s game, Harper charged the mound. And after the worst helmet throw in the history of the world, Harper connected with a decent right hook to Strickland’s face. Now, I find this entire situation ridiculous but at the same time highly entertaining.

So you’re telling me that because Harper hit 2 home runs off Strickland nearly 3 years ago, Strickland needed to retaliate?!?! Retaliate for what?! Being really good at baseball?? Hey Hunter, newsflash, if you don’t want Bryce Harper to trot around the bases on you……PITCH BETTER!! This was the most inane form of retaliation I’ve ever seen on a baseball field, and while I’m not a Bryce Harper fan, I don’t blame him one bit for throwing a haymaker Strickland’s way. For footage of the brawl, click here.

Mr. Met

Oh Mr. Met…..

Watch the footage first, then we’ll talk. Click here please.

Can the New York Metropolitans do anything right? The answer would most definitely be NO!! They can’t win. They can’t stay healthy. They can’t stay out of the news. And apparently, they can’t choose a mascot right.

Dear Mr. Met,

I know you are frustrated. Any Mets fan should be. The Mets stink, and there is no sunshine around the corner. I get it. But big head – ya gotta keep your cool. In 2017, everyone and their grandmother has a cell phone, and 90% of the time it is already recording something. So did you really think that middle finger and twirl combination wasn’t going to go viral?! You dummy!!

Sincerely,

DaveTalksSports

I guess Mr. Met’s position will be in the Help Wanted section today, but I ponder….how will we know he was really replaced??

Stanley Cup Finals

The Pittsburgh Penguins, on their home ice, have been outplayed by the Nashville Predators. However, they are up 2 games to 0 in the Stanley Cup Finals. Funny how that works huh?? The Predators have outshot the Penguins 64 to 39 through the first 2 games of this series. The Penguins are looking to become the first team to repeat as Stanley Cup Champions since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997 and 1998. I expect Nashville to bounce back and grab Game 3 on their home ice. Ultimately I believe the Penguins will repeat as champions. You can tune into Game 3 on NBC Sports on Saturday at 8:00 p.m EST to catch all the action.

NBA Finals

Lebron James. You’ve probably heard of him. Well, he is playing in his 7th consecutive NBA Finals, and he is looking to win back-to-back championships for the 2nd time in his career. This year marks the 1st time in NBA history that 2 teams will meet in the NBA Finals in 3 consecutive seasons. I certainly hope Cavaliers/Warriors III is better than X-Men III. What a hunk of crap that was….

Ah yes, the Super Teams meet again. Is it good for the league? Is it bad for the league? Wellllll, it depends on who you are. If you own an NBA team it’s great (because they’re making truck loads of $$..duh). If you are an avid NBA fan it sucks, but you are hoping and praying this finals series makes up for the dumpster fire we’ve had to endure to get to this point. As great as Lebron is, I can’t see the Warriors losing this series. I think they will continue to be too much for opposing defenses to handle. Warriors in 6. Book it!! Check out Game 1 tonight at the absurd start time of 9:00 p.m. EST on ABC. Helllllooooooo Cafeeeiiinnneeee….

 

Who do you think will win the NBA Finals? In how many games? Tell me in the comment section below.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. You can also follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

 

 

Matt Harvey..Wait..Turn Around..You’re Going The WRONG WAY!!

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

matt-harvey-and-the-mets-are-a-disaster-right-now-1441492017

I wish people would tell the truth. I wish the New York Mets would tell the truth. I wish Matt Harvey would tell the truth. I wish….hey where the hell did you come from genie?! What do you mean I only get 3 wishes?? Who the f*** asked you?! I’m busy talking about Matt Harvey, aka the ‘Fat Disaster’. Get back in your bottle!

Matt Harvey’s career has been tumultuous to say the least. We used to call him ‘The Dark Knight’. Now, we call him the double-chinned drama queen. Harvey burst onto the scene in 2012. He pitched extremely well in his first 2 seasons. He even started the 2013 All-Star Game before succumbing to the all-mighty Tommy John Surgery at the end of that season. Harvey would miss the entire 2014 season while in recovery but bounced back to all-star form in 2015. Despite his renewed success, Harvey’s laundry list of antics began during the 2015 postseason.

In the midst of the Mets’ World Series run in 2015, Harvey thought it would be a good idea to ‘go out’ and ‘party it up’. That’s all well and good during the offseason, but not smack dab in the middle of the postseason. Especially when your night out causes you to miss a mandatory workout. Harvey’s 2016 couldn’t have gone worse. His e.r.a. ballooned to nearly 5.00, and he was shut-down midseason with thoracic outlet syndrome. His return this season was highly anticipated, as the baseball world wanted to see how he would bounce back this time. After winning his first 2 outings, it’s been as they’d say all downhill from there.

ENTER NEW RIDICULOUS DRAMA HERE ———> Matt Harvey has been suspended for 3 games without pay for violation of team rules. Harvey failed to show up to the ballpark for Saturday’s game, as first reported by Fox Sports. Oh now you put your foot down with your star pitcher?! Where were these brass balls last week when Thor was putting the hammer down?! And on Sunday, Harvey’s scheduled day to start against the Miami Marlins, he was sent home. This has led to a mountain of speculation. Upon announcement of the suspension, Mets’ General Manager Sandy Alderson would not specify the reason for the suspension. Instead, he read a prepared statement, and then hung Manager Terry Collins out to dry. Yeah, because Collins always holds up under pressure from reporters. The Mets essentially threw Sunday’s game away with last night’s trash, calling up Triple-A pitcher Adam Wilk (he gave up 6 runs in 3 and 2/3 innings, leading to a 7-0 loss).

The Mets story is they are fed up with Harvey’s behavior. They claim this suspension is a culmination of his poor attitude and actions over the past few seasons. They also claim Harvey made no attempt to contact the club prior to his absence. Harvey is claiming he had a migraine and tried to contact the Mets but to no avail. He couldn’t get in touch with them?! Was he using a freakin’ carrier pigeon?! As with any story there are 3 sides: your side, my side, and the TRUTH.

Harvey likes to party. That’s why he missed that mandatory workout in 2015, that’s why he pitched like poop when he got moved up in the rotation last week (nothing helps a quality start quite like a raging hangover), and that’s why he didn’t show up on Saturday. It was also reported that Harvey was seen playing golf on Saturday. Maybe he and Yoenis Cespedes do have something in common. The story is Matt Harvey doesn’t care about anything but Matt Harvey. He is more committed to landing in the headlines than landing in the win column. And now, Harvey has filed a grievance against the Mets. YAY!! What a great idea!! Because nothing says sign me to a long-term contract like filing a grievance against your own team. I wouldn’t expect Harvey to change his ways anytime soon, and in the mean time we will watch his e.r.a rise as his value falls.

What do you think about Matt Harvey’s behavior? What do you think really led to his suspension? Let me know in the comment section below.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. You can also follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

So Many Sports, So Little Time

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

gausman

Wednesday was a busy day in the sports world. Too much for one person to handle some might say. But I’m here, so I may as well give it a shot….

NBA

Wednesday night showcased two NBA playoff matchups. Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers steamrolled the Toronto Raptors (125-103), taking a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Lebron did what he does, scoring 39 points while adding 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. Just another day at the office huh?? Lebron’s 39 points were special because he passed Kareem-Abdul Jabbar for 2nd all-time on the playoff scoring list. Bad became worse for the Raptors as Kyle Lowry went down in the 3rd quarter with a left ankle injury. Lowry would return to the game, but with a noticeable limp, so I’d call Lowry questionable at best for Game 3.

The late game Wednesday night was Game 2 of the Houston Rockets vs. the San Antonio Spurs. The storyline here was simple: after a lopsided Game 1 win by the Rockets, how would the Spurs respond? And they responded exactly as I expected, with a 121-96 victory. Kawhi Leonard showed the world why he is an MVP candidate. Leonard dominated the offensive side of things with 34 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, and 1 block. Tony Parker also had a good game, however, he had to be carried off the court during the 4th quarter when his left knee buckled. The real story of Game 2 was Leonard’s defense, as he showed why he is the 2-time reigning Defensive Player of the Year. He locked up James Harden for the majority of the game, holding Harden to 13 points on 3 of 17 shooting. I guess Leonard doesn’t fear the beard.

NHL

The NHL also put forth two playoff games on Wednesday night. The Anaheim Ducks won an overtime thriller over the Edmonton Oilers (5-4). After an awful giveaway in his own zone by Adam Larsson of the Oilers, Ryan Getzlaf fed a wide-open Jakob Silfverberg right in front of the net.  Silfverberg drove home the one-time winner just 45 seconds into overtime, and this series is now tied at two games a piece.

Earlier in the evening, the Sydney Crosbyless Pittsburgh Penguins took on the Washington Capitals in Game 4. Crosby is still out after leaving Game 3 with a concussion. I guess the Capitals felt bad for the Penguins, so they decided to score for them. Oh yeah, you heard that right. In the 2nd period, Pittsburghs’ Jake Guentzel sent the puck in front of Washington’s net and defenseman Dmitry Orlov thought it would be a good idea to kick that puck into his own net. Nice work! The Penguins went on to win 3-2, and now hold a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

MLB

There was a full slate of MLB games on Wednesday night, but there was one game that dominated the headlines. The Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles have an on going feud that began on April 11th. It all started with a hard slide from Manny Machado into 2nd base that took out Dustin Pedroia’s legs. Since then, the Red Sox threw at Machado’s head, the Orioles plunked Mookie Betts, and Machado was thrown at again (this time going behind him). These actions resulted in a conference call between the Red Sox and Orioles organizations, the MLB Commisioner, and the MLB Players Association calling for the feud to be put to rest. Well you guessed it, the feud was not put to rest. Wednesday night, Kevin Gausman hit Xander Bogaerts, albeit with a curveball, as some form of sneaky retribution. Gausman was immediately ejected. I view Gausman and the Orioles as the immature person who must get the last word in no matter how wrong they know they are. But at the same time, can we not throw baseballs at people’s heads at 100 miles per hour? Okay cool, thanks. Good Talk.

In New York baseball news, the New York Mets continued their roller coaster season, beating the Atlanta Braves 16-5. As for the Yankees, they continued their winning ways, beating the Toronto Blue Jays 8-6. Aaron Judge smashed his MLB leading 13th home run of the season, and I’m quite certain he grew a foot taller last night as well.

BOXING

I’m assuming you haven’t watched a boxing match since Evander Holyfield was in the ring, but let’s talk about it anyway. This Saturday, May 6th, Canelo Alzarez (48-1-1, 34 KO’s) will take on Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (50-2-1, 32 KO’s) in an All-Mexican Showdown in Las Vegas. Coincidentally, this match will take place just one day after Cinco de Mayo. Canelo, the Junior Middleweight Title Holder, will move up a weight class to fight Chavez Jr. at a catch weight of 164.5 pounds. Canelo’s only loss to date remains a unanimous decision to Floyd Mayweather in 2013. Canelo is the odds on favorite to win this match and for good reason. I see Canelo winning fairly easily in a unanimous decision.

SOCCER

Juventus is very good.

 

What did you watch on Wednesday night? Let me know all about it in the comment section below.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. You can also follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

 

 

New York Mets Lose More Than Just a Game

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

thor hurt

Perspective is a funny thing. Depending on your vantage point, Sunday afternoon either provided a ridiculously impressive performance or sheer embarrassment. I’m betting Mets’ fans experienced the latter. Sunday’s New York Mets vs. Washington Nationals game was the 3rd and final game of their weekend series. The Mets, desperately in need of victories, won the first two games of the series. Sunday’s game, however, took a hard left turn.

Noah Syndergaard, aka ‘Thor’, took the mound to start the afternoon. Syndergaard hadn’t started a game since April 20th, as he was scratched from his start on Thursday due to right-bicep discomfort (his throwing arm). Syndergaard’s afternoon didn’t last long. After his first pitch to Bryce Harper in the 2nd inning, Syndergaard immediately reached underneath his right arm. He was pulled from the game through just 1 and 1/3 innings. Syndergaard has an MRI scheduled to diagnose a possible lat strain. Although it isn’t official, he will likely join fellow Mets’ starter Steven Matz on the disabled list.

If only Syndergaard and the Mets had seen this coming and performed this MRI last week. Wait a second! They tried that already and Syndergaard refused to take the MRI?! Oh, okay, this all makes sense now. No, it doesn’t? Here’s the bottom line: Terry Collins is not a good manager. And clearly, the training staff ain’t cuttin’ it either. If I were running things in Flushing, I’d send them all packing. No, this isn’t an overreaction to a less than desirable start to the season (10-14), it is a long-running opinion of Terry Collins’ mismanagement style. He reminds me more of a senile grandfather who’s upset someone changed his TV program than a Major League Manager. From the sheer embarrassment to the impressive performance we go….

The Nationals know how to hit a baseball. I’m certain Bryce Harper is a Demi-God. Ryan Zimmerman is off to an incredible start to the season (he has 11 home runs already), and Daniel Murphy (yes, former Met Daniel Murphy), is seemingly hitting .875 on the young season. But, one Anthony Rendon stole the show on Sunday. Rendon dove head first into the record books becoming the first player since 1913 to go 6 for 6 with 3 home runs and 10 r.b.i.’s in a single game. Please reread that sentence to allow it to sink in. Thank you. This helped the Nationals post an astonishing 23 runs on 23 hits, demolishing the Mets 23-5. The Nationals now stand at 17-8 on the season, and hold a 5-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies and Miami Marlins. I know it’s only May, but barring a disaster of epic proportions, Id’ say the Nationals have the NL East Division all but wrapped up.

The only question is can the Mets turn this ship around before Terry Collins injures the entire starting rotation??

Can the Mets still make the playoffs? Let me know in the comment section below.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. You can also follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!    

 

One Liner Friday’s

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 3 Comments

20130628-095243.jpg

Hello, and welcome to another edition of One Liner Friday’s. This is my 2nd post of the day so make sure you scroll down to read my review of Thursday night’s NBA Draft.

So if the Yankees can score some runs that would be cool.

You know those silly movies like Home Alone where they put down 5 marbles and the bad guys all slip and fall?

Yeah, that’s Wimbledon.

Aaron Hernandez took a lottery ticket and used it as Charmin Ultra Soft.

As I predicted last Friday, Hernandez was charged with murder, and I hope he spends the rest of his life in prison regretting his miserable existence.

In all seriousness though I feel really bad for his baby girl.

Not so seriously though, how can the best basketball player that ever lived be such a bad judge of talent?

Michael Jordan is a worse NBA Executive than he was a baseball player.

Doc Rivers is goin goin back back to Cali.

In other NBA news, the Brooklyn Nets actually believe it is 2005 with the finalization of a trade for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.

Most of these guys are way past their prime.

Some of them never had a prime.

This guys dead!

Major League, great movie.

I guess Tim Tebow really is going to be the Patriots tight end.

Doesn’t that make you sick to your stomach?

Hey Yasiel Puig, there’s a wall there someone should, uh move it.

Matt Harvey is really good at baseball.

The Mets should pray that Zach Wheeler is even half as good, maybe then they’ll come close to .500.

Not likely though, I mean they are the Mets.

Brian Cashman dropping F bombs!!

Personally I love it, A-Rod needs to shut his trap.

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

One Liner Friday’s

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 2 Comments

Hey Derrick Rose, how’s your knee feeling?

Are you comfy?

Those chairs on the bench do look pretty comfy.

I think it’s safe to say that the Miami Heat are done messing around.

No no, don’t stop shooting J.R. Smith, please don’t!

Tigah Tigah Woods y’all.

If the Yankees can win with a Minor League lineup, why can’t the Mets?

Yay, Floyd Mayweather won…….again.

That lady at the Miami Heat game looks so nice I think I want to invite her over for thanksgiving dinner.

You know instant replay doesn’t work if your looking at a TV from 1979, right?

Valiant effort New York Islanders (I hate you Sidney Crosby, I hate you).

Stephen Curry is really really good at basketball.

Does anyone on the planet have a smoother jumper than Curry?

There is one word and one word only to properly describe Matt Harvey and that word is FILTHY!!

Hey Los Angeles Angels, you guys stink!

Don’t you have to do something wrong to get ejected from a Major League Baseball Game?

Apparently John Hirchbeck didn’t know that when he threw Bryce Harper out of a game for not saying excuse me after he burped.

Hey Jason Kidd, the baskets that way
——–>

Phil Jackson, hi, we all know you are a great coach, but just stay home, be retired, and enjoy the rest of your life.

The NBA needs to fire whoever schedules their games.

Whoever decided that the Heat and Spurs series’ should play Wednesday/Friday while the Knicks and Thunder series’ should play Tuesday/Saturday needs to see a doctor immediately.

I’m surprised no one is making a big deal out of that.

By the way, could NBA players dress worse?

I don’t think so.

And finally if you missed Iman Shumpert’s dunk from Game 2 of the Knicks/Pacers series then click here:

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=uirM5sljfO8

This has been another installment of One Liner Friday’s.

Please comment in the section below with your feedback.

Thanks.

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

Opening Day Should Be A National Holiday

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

You’ve waited and waited and it finally arrived. No I’m not talking about your clothes that you ordered online, I’m talking about Major League Baseball’s Opening Day. Monday, April 1st marked the start to another marathon that is the baseball season. Some will say, but what about the first game on Sunday night doesn’t that count? Umm no, no it does not. This years Opening Day brought about a couple of firsts and also brought you more of what you’re used to. For the first time in the history of New York’s baseball franchises, the Yankees and the Mets opened their season at home at the same time. I feel bad for the people stuck in that post game traffic. Now you might need to read this next part twice, but the Yankees lost and the Mets won. The Mets looked good with Jonathon Niese on the hill, and a grand slam by Collin Cowgill didn’t hurt either. They won their game 11-2 over the San Diego Padres. The Yankees on the other hand did not look as good. We interrupt this regularly scheduled program to bring you an important message: Do Not, I repeat Do Not overreact to the first game of the year!! This game meant absolutely nothing as to how the baseball season is going to pan out. MLB’s regular season is 162 games that span from April through 2027. If you are one of those people that thinks you can predict the future based on the first game of the year, than you my friend are crazy. Anyway, the Yankees still looked pretty awful out there yesterday. CC was his usual April self (for those of who don’t know, CC Sabathia notoriously pitches poorly in the month of April). The bats still think it’s March because they only scored two runs, and by the 9th inning it was difficult to find fans in the seats (the Yankees lost to the Boston Red Sox 8-2). However, let me repeat it is only game 1 of 162. Now, if the Yankees are 10 games out of the wild card when their entire roster is back healthy in August, then we can all panic and run around pulling random fire alarms.

All around the rest of the league (where there were 12 total games played Monday), we saw more dominance by the pitchers we’ve gotten to know over the past couple of years. Justin Verlander and Felix Hernandez were their usual lights out selves. While at the same time we saw, who I believe are the two best pitchers in baseball; Stephen Strasburg and Clayton Kershaw dominate. Stephen Strasburg pitched 7 brilliant innings in just 80 pitches. He also at one point retired 19 straight batters. That is uh how do you say it; INSANE. At the same time, no one had a better Opening Day than Clayton Kershaw. He picked up right where he left off last season by throwing a complete game shutout against his rival San Francisco Giants. And as if that wasn’t enough, Kershaw hit his first career home run. It wasn’t a bad day to be Clayton Kershaw. The regular season action continues today where there are 7 teams in play. Enjoy the games everybody!!

If you enjoy my writing, follow me over to intheneutralzone.com where I am a contributing author there as well. Also you can follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like me on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!

National League East Predictions

~ Dave Ettinger ~ Leave a comment

Over the next month I will be writing previews for every team and division in Major League Baseball.  I will break down each team and predict the winner of each division.  Today I will start with the National League East.  Here is a look at how each team finished last season:

2012 National League East Final Standings:

W  L

Washington Nationals: 98-64

Atlanta Braves:              94-68

Philadelphia Philles:     81-81

New York Mets:             74-88

Miami Marlins:               69-93

The Miami Marlins had very high expectations last season.  Everyone crowned them NL East Champions before the season even started.  However, the Marlins greatly underacheived.  They took their projected record and flipped it upside down.  So what did the Marlins owner do?  Exactly what we all would have done (haha).  Can anyone say FIRE SALE?!?!  Everyone is criticising the Marlins owner for dumping his entire roster just one year after building a brand new stadium in Miami.  I say to those people, wake up and smell the coffee!!  This is the third time in Marlins franchise history that they’ve done this.  I don’t know why anyone is surprised.  Anyway, outside of Giancarlo Stanton this team is pretty much awful.  I do like Justin Ruggiano’s potential, but he needs to get out of town before it is too late.  I see the Marlins having a long frustrating season, finishing with a putrid record of 65-97.  Sorry Miami.  Hang tough though, in 5 years you’ll probably win another World Series.

What can I say about the New York Mets that hasn’t been said already?  I love New York, and I try to root for every New York team even if they’re not my favorite team.  But it is hard to root for the Mets.  How long can they be downright awful for?  It’s almost like being a Pittsburgh Pirates fan, you just know they are going to be bad every year.  I hope they turn it around in the near future, but the near future is not going to be 2013.  The Mets, like the Marlins, have a couple of nice players and the rest are essentially Triple-A ballplayers.  I like David Wright and uh yeah only David Wright.  Anyone else on the roster with potential to be great is injury prone.  It would be a miracle if Shawn Marcum, Daniel Murphy, and Johan Santana last the entire season.  I do actually like Jonathon Niese to be their best pitcher this season, but unfortunately they don’t have enough to compete in this division.  The Mets will be slightly worse than last season, finishing with a record of 71-91.

The Philadelphia Phillies are no longer a great team.  They proved that by finishing a pedestrian 81-81 last season.  The majority of the problems are a result of injuries and aging players.  Roy Halladay should bounce back from last season’s poor performance, but at 35 years old he doesn’t have any CY Young Awards coming his way.  The additions of Michael Young, Delmon Young, and Ben Revere are all solid moves, but I don’t think it’s going to land them in the playoffs this season.  They still have a very good pitching staff in Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, and Doc Halladay, but they like the Mets are also injury prone.  I see a slight improvement from last season to the tune of an 87-75 record.  This will leave them just outside the playoffs.

The Atlanta Braves were the first wild card in the National League last season.  In the new playoff format that was put in place in 2012, they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in a one game playoff.  With the addition of the Upton brothers, the Braves have certainly improved their outfield and added some power to their lineup.  The upton’s can both run also, so while Michael Bourn will be missed, they might actually steal more bases than they did in 2012.  Without question the Braves have the best closer in baseball; Craig Kimbrel.  As long as their starters can carry a lead through the 8th inning, the Braves will win A LOT of games.  The Atlanta Braves have a decent pitching rotation that is headed up by old-timer Tim Hudson.  Tim has remained very good even as he enters his late 30’s, and he will need to continue to pitch like a #1 starter if the Braves are going to make the playoffs this season.  The rest of their pitching rotation is filled with younger guys with plenty of potential.  These young guys bring about plenty of questions.  Is Kris Medlen as good as the pitcher we saw last season, or will he regress?  Is Paul Maholm the pitcher we’ve watched struggle for years in Pittsburgh, or is he the consistent pitcher we saw last year?  What can we expect to see from Mike Minor and Julio Teheran?  These questions make the Braves rotation a wildcard.  Their success will be predicated on the rotation and will be the reason the Braves either return to the playoffs or falter and miss out on the party in October.  I believe they will regress slightly from last year and finish with a record of 86-76.

Last season the Washington Nationals finished with the best record in the National League.  They had a very successful season which was highlighted by their phenomenal pitching staff.  Unfortunately, the Nationals weren’t able to win a playoff series and lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in 5 games in the Divison Series.  This season the Nationals are primed and ready to make a deeper run into the playoffs.  The silly innings limit has been officially lifted from Stephen Strasburg, and I believe he will be the best pitcher in baseball this season.  The advantage gained by being able to pitch Gio Gonzalez against #2 starters from other teams can’t be overstated.  Jordan Zimmerman is also looking to build on a solid 2012 season.  The addition of Dan Haren to the rotation should help bolster the back end of their rotation.  It should also be a nice change of scenery for Haren, as he looks to get back to winning ways after a poor 2012 season.  You’d be hard pressed to find a better pitching rotation in all of baseball than the Washington Nationals.  They also added Rafael Soriano to an already impressive bullpen.  Handing the ball to Soriano, Tyler Clippard, or Drew Storen (if he can stay healthy) is a nice luxury to have and should help shorten games.  They also brought in Denard Span who is a nice baserunner and fielder when healthy.  Oh yeah, they also have this rising star you may have heard of named Bryce Harper.  He is the youngest player in the Major Leagues and is only going to improve.  The Nationals are a very good team who from top to bottom have the potential to be the best team in all of baseball.  I see them finishing with a very similar record as last year, only this season they will get over the hump and win at least one playoff series.  The Washington Nationals 2013 Regular Season Record will be 99-63 and they will win the National League East.

2013 National League East Projected Final Standings:

W  L

Washington Nationals: 99-63

Philadelphia Phillies:     87-75

Atlanta Braves:               86-76

New York Mets:              71-91

Miami Marlins:               65-97

2013 National League East Projected Winner: Washington Nationals

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