NL Division Capsules

by: Jake

NL West

1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Francisco Giants
3. Colorado Rockies
4. San Diego Padres
5. Arizona D-Backs

The surprise here is obviously the San Francisco Giants as they sit a distant 7 games back from the NL Leading Dodgers, but as of today (June 25) they hold the Wild card spot. The team has definitely flew under the radar as they have been getting stellar pitching from both Matt Cain and last years Cy Young, Tim Lincecum. Cain leads the team with a 9-1 Record and is surprisingly in Cy young contention himself, as he sports a 2.28 ERA with 76 Ks on the season. The pitching has not been the only surprise for the Giants as Aaron Rowand has kept up to his usual standards of a .300 avg with 8 HR while 3^rd baseman Pablo Sandoval is leading the team with a .335 avg and chipped in another 8 HR and 35 RBIs. While the Dodgers will run away with this division barring a gigantic collapse, the giants should be there in the end in strong contention for a Wild card berth.

NL Central

1. St. Louis Cardinals
2. Milwaukee Brewers
3. Cincinnati Reds
4. Chicago Cubs
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates

It doesn’t get any better than Albert Pujols, and that is evidenced by the fact that the Cardinals are hovering in first place with minimal help in the lineup with the exception of Chris Duncan and Yadier Molina who have been chipping in their fair share of hitting and defensive play on top of that. Their pitching has been a pleasant surprise as Carpenter has successfully come back from his surgery and looks to have returned to his previous form. The Brewers who stand in 2^nd place, 1 game back of the Cardinals have been the opposite as they have been relying on the strong hitting of Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, Mike Cameron, and Craig Counsell to keep them alive in the division. As you look further down in the division you see the Reds and Cubs who have both struggled with consistency in both hitting and pitching.

NL East

1. Philadelphia Phillies
2. New York Mets
3. Florida Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Washington Nationals

Atop the worst division in the NL sit the defending World Series champion Phillies who have struggled at times to say the least. SS Jimmy Rollins is causing havoc in the media in Philadelphia with his “sub-par” .211 avg, as Manuel continues to hit him in the leadoff spot. The pitching of the Phillies has also been less than stable as Cole Hamels has not preformed to his potential, Brett Myers was lost for the year, and Brad Lidge has been the exact opposite of who he was last year. The Mets have their share of problems too as they have gotten bit severely by the injury bug, which has caused them to fail to gain ground on the Phillies during their mid-season hardships. While the Marlins and Braves are not out of reach, they just don’t have the talent that the other teams have to have a shot at winning the division