Mid-Season Grades NL East
Philadelphia Phillies – Half Season Grade A+
Current Record 62 – 34
Last 10 Games 5 – 5
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Last Season 90 – 72 (Finished 2nd NL West Lost to Arizona Diamondbacks 3 - 4 in NLCS)
Last season the Phillies fell one step short of the World Series and the plan is simple this year, they want to win the whole thing. They have been the best team in baseball during the first half which was evident by the fact they had 8 all-stars selected to the mid-season classic including 3 of the 4 starting infield spots for the national league with Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and first-time all-star Alex Bohm. Nothing is won in July, but it seems so far that the Phillies don’t have any weaknesses. Bryce Harper is currently up there in the NL MVP race with Shohei Ohtani and currently is batting over .300 with 19 home runs as well as being a top class first baseman. Zach Wheeler leads a terrific rotation with his 2.70 ERA in 19 starts and some of the bullpen arms have been outstanding with Jeff Hoffman in 41 appearances having an incredible ERA of 1.12. The Phillies are going to take some beating come October.
Video taken from MLB's YouTube channel
Atlanta Braves – Half Season Grade B+
Current Record 53 -42
Last 10 Games 6 – 4
Last Season 104 -58 (Finished 1st NL West Lost 1 – 3 to Philadelphia Phillies in NLDS)
It was always going to be hard for the Braves to replicate the regular season form of 2023 where they won over 100 games. However, as the franchise will point to you can win all 162 regular season games but its what you do in the playoffs that really matters, and they got knocked out on the first hurdle. The NL East was always going to be a two horse race this year however this became an impossible race when the Braves best player and talisman Ronald Acuna Jr suffered an injury running the bases against the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 26th. The cruciate ligament injury has left the Braves reeling the loss of last years NL MVP and has severely hampered the chances of the Braves this year. Designated Hitter Marcell Ozuna has picked up the batten however and is having a tremendous season with 26 home runs and batting .303 and justifiably earned his first all-star call up since 2017. The off-season trade of Chris Sale has proved a masterstroke and as has been the case over the last few years with Sale keeping him fit is key. This season he has a 13 – 3 record in 18 starts with a 2.70 ERA. As the Braves know all too well its what they do post season that will be the key factor as to how this team will be judged in 2024.
New York Mets – Half Season Grade C+
Current Record 49 – 46
Last 10 Games 7 – 3
Last Season 75 – 87 (Finished 4th in AL East failed to make Play-offs)
The Mets started the season disastrously and pretty much continued that way until the London Series games. Since the dramatic last gasp win against the Phillies the Mets have quietly been impressive and now have a genuine shot at a wild card place and playing in October. Since the London Series the Mets are 21 – 10 and finally have a winning record. If they carry on they definitely have a chance to do something this season. As mentioned previously in the Astros mid-season section a big question is are they going to trade Pete Alonso in his final year? Although he has 19 home runs he has not been massively effective in the latest stretch since London. Francisco Lindor has stepped up recently and Harrison Bader is having a quietly impressive season both offensively and in the field. In Francisco Alvarez they have one of the best up and coming catchers in all of MLB. This could end up being a better season than most Mets fans had envisaged.
Video Taken from New York Mets YouTube Channel
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Washington Nationals – Half Season Grade D
Current Record 44 – 53
Last 10 Games 3 – 7
Last Season 71 – 91 (Finished Bottom of the NL East)
The Nationals are having a similar season to 2023 as in not very good, the 2019 World Series champions are still in rebuild mode. The good thing is some of the young players with potential that they traded with the Padres in the Juan Soto deal in 2022 are starting to show promise. James Wood has seen action in the big leagues this year but the key player from the Nationals point of view in the trade CJ Abrams looks a tremendous potential long term shortstop option for Washington. Abrams became an all-star for the first time in 2024 and is batting to a .268 avg with 15 home runs while being a solid defensive player. Surely the player the Nationals need to build around. Pitching has been a weakness. No starting pitcher for the Nationals has a winning record and its hard to win games when your starting pitchers are not winning games. It’s another rebuild year for the former champions.
Miami Marlins – Half Season Grade F
Current Record 33 – 63
Last 10 Games 3 – 7
Last Season 84 – 78 (Finished 3rd in NL East lost 0 – 2 against the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLWCS)
The 2023 Miami Marlins finished in the wild card play off race, this team has been nowhere near and quite Frankly the Marlins have been one of the worst teams in baseball. Star player Jazz Chisholm Jr is having a so-so season, rumours are linking him to a mid-season trade before the deadline. The Yankees have been linked where it seems they would be happy to move him from the outfield to the infield. His 12 home runs and 42 RBI’s are not exactly the stats that are going to make the 2022 all-star as tradeable as he once was. Could a move be best for all parties as there is no doubting his talent. Pitching and a consistent rotation have also been an issue only 3 starters have started over 10 games so far and of these 3 only Ryan Weathers has an ERA under 4 (3.55). Tanner Scott however from the bullpen has been excellent and totally justified his all-star selection this year his ERA of 1.34 in 39 games has been exceptional. It is however a season to forget for Marlins fans.
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Stats Taken from MLB.com