Mid-Season Grades NL Central
Milwaukee Brewers – Half Season Grade B+
Current Record 55 – 42
Last 10 Games 3 – 7
Last Season 92 – 70 (Finished 1st in NL Central, Lost 0 -2 to Arizona Diamondbacks NLWCS)
The Brewers have started 2024 in the same fashion they finished 2023 on top on the NL Central it can be argued that both the central divisions are the weakest in baseball, but all the Brewers can be do is to be top of what they can control. As per last season it is going to be hard to be one of the first two division winners in the National League as I would expect the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies to win the NL West and East respectively. The Brewers do have quality players though so who knows what can happen if they do make the playoffs. William Contreras continues to be one of the better hitting catchers in all of MLB and currently stands on 11 home runs and batting to a .286 average. Christian Yelich is having his best season in the last 5 years. The Pitching rotation and bullpen are also strong. Without being overly spectacular the Brew Crew continue to be a strong side.
St. Louis Cardinals – Half Season Grade C+
Current Record 50 – 46
Last 10 Games 5 – 5
Last Season 71 – 91 (Finished last in NL Central)
The Cardinals are having a better season than 2023 when they were surprisingly bottom of the NL central. This season they will be looking at a playoff berth, but it will be tough as there is going to be a plethora of teams looking at the 3 wild card spots with up to 8 or 9 teams battling it out for the 3 spots. Alec Burleson has really stepped up in his second full season and currently leads the Cardinals in home runs (17), RBI’s (53) and batting average .288. Sonny Gray continues again to be a good starter and ace in the rotation and with an ERA of 3.34 is having yet another good season. An improvement from 2023 but I still feel the Cardinals may fall short of the playoffs.
Pittsburgh Pirates – Half Season Grade C+
Current Record 48 – 48
Last 10 Games 7 – 3
Last Season 76 – 86 (4th in NL Central)
The first half of the season for the Pirates since May 11th has been all about Paul Skenes baseballs number one prospect and who looks like will be the MLB’s next breakout pitching superstar. With only 11 games started Skenes became the first number one prospect to be selected to an all-star start in his rookie year. Yet to lose a game Skenes is 6 – 0 with an ERA of 1.90 and in 2 and a half months become one of baseballs best starters. Outside of Skenes Bryan Reynolds is as consistent as ever and in Oneil Cruz one of the most exciting players to watch in the game. Before the arrival of Skenes the Pirates were 17 -22 since his debut they are 31 – 26 they are definitely improving and if one team are to make the playoffs outside of the Brewers in the NL Central I think it will be the pirates. Lately they are a really fun team to watch.
Video taken from MLB's YouTube Channel
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Cincinnati Reds – Half Season Grade C-
Current Record 47 – 50
Last 10 Games 5 – 5
Last Season 82 – 80 (3rd in NL Central, did not make the playoffs)
The Reds are a fun team to watch and in Elly De La Cruz have who I think is the most fun player to watch in all of MLB. I can’t help thinking however that they should be doing a little better. If you sit and watch condensed highlights of an average Reds game you find they are entertaining games, however at the same time after halfway through the season they are still sitting with a losing record. Jonathan India of mainstay players sits on the highest average with .275. I sometimes think maybe I am coaxed into an illusion when I see the Reds because of all the exciting stolen base plays of De La Cruz leading MLB with 47 (the next highest is Brice Turang of Milwaukee with 30). I want the Reds to be better cause watching sport should be fun. The top of the pitching rotation is good I am a big fan of Hunter Greene with his speed and command. He deserved his first all-star selection. I think the Reds are the team that if they stick together will be a force just maybe not this year.
Video taken from MLB's YouTube channel
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Chicago Cubs – Half Season Grade D
Current Record 47 – 51
Last 10 Games 7 - 3
Last Season 83 – 79 (2nd in NL Central, did not make the play-offs)
The Cubs are not having the season that they were expecting and without being disastrous it mainly evolves around some of the offensive players not playing to their normal level. Dansby Swanson for example is a good player having a not so good season. He is batting .213 with only 9 home runs. Christopher Morel has 18 home runs but is batting just over .200. Cody Bellinger is a great player but has always been a little inconsistent after a great 2023 he has dipped again and has only 9 home runs by the all-star break. Where I have been impressed with the Cubs is the pitching. Quite a few teams looked at Shota Imanaga when the cubs picked him up on a 4-year $53 million dollar contract. With the price of pitching in 2024 this is a massive bargain. He has a record of 8 – 2 so far pitching to an ERA of 2.97, this is quite the MLB rookie year for the 2x Nippon Professional Baseball all-star. The Cubs have the talent but need to pick up the offense if they are to do anything in 2024.
Stats taken from MLB.com