NL East

On Sunday, the Philadelphia Phillies signed Luis Castillo to a minor league deal and it makes perfect sense to do so.

After months of speculation, the New York Mets finally released their erratic lefty Oliver Perez.

The release appeared inevitable at some point this off-season, but the Mets decided to give Perez an opportunity to prove himself during spring training.

Perez auditioned as both a starter and a left-handed specialist but failed to impress. The Mets will be on the hook for the $12 million he’s owed.

For some reason, the New York Mets gave Oliver Perez every chance possible to make the team’s Opening Day roster this year. Some people may even say that there are 12 million reasons why the team did it.

In the past few days, Sandy Alderson has made two decisions that New York Mets fans wanted the previous regime to make virtually all of last year. Bottom line: Cut Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez.

Much like the Miami Heat when they signed the triplets, many in the sports world had them winning it all, including 70 games.  Now, they will be lucky to get to 60 games on the season and winning it all doesn't seem so likely anymore.  

When the Phillies signed their stellar rotation, most in the sports world had them winning the World Series.  People thought that they had it all sewn up—ready to hand them the trophy.  Not so fast my friends, not so fast.

Well, it looks like it may be a reality: Luis Castillo is reported close to signing a deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. Quite frankly, I am not sure how I feel about this. One would assume that there are some pros and some cons so let's take a look at some of them

With the injury to Chase Utley, a hole is left in the Phillies infield. How the Phillies will fill this hole is still unknown. In fact, the significance of Utley's injury is not yet known either.

Wilson Valdez, who filled in for the injured Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins last season, can be a quick fix for the Phillies. Valdez did a great job filling in for these two key players and did a great job as a bench player as well, hitting .258 over the entire 2010 season.

Florida Marlins (2010 record: 80-82)

The Marlins finished 2010 with an 80-82 record, in third place in the National League East, and it appears they’re destined to finish the upcoming season in much the same position. They won’t be able to compete with the Philadelphia Phillies and it is unlikely they’ll be able to overtake the Atlanta Braves, but they are quite a bit better than both the New York Mets and the Washington Nationals… so, third place it is.

This letter is intended for all players, coaches, trainers and fans of the National League, but most importantly for the Phillies Phaithful:

Dear National League,

Oliver Perez is 29 years old. In 2004, with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Perez struck out 239 hitters in 196 innings. He had an ERA-plus of 145 and a WHIP of 1.153.

Much-maligned Omar Minaya, the former general manager of sports' most beloved team, the New York Mets, sent Xavier Nady to the Pirates at the trading deadline in 2006 in exchange for Perez and ancient relief pitcher Roberto Hernandez.

Perez pitched poorly in August and September, but the second round of the playoffs were a different story.