NL East

One thing is for sure about these Florida Marlins: They are streaky.

They were the hottest team in baseball in April. Then in May they flat-lined and fell several games behind the NL East leading Phillies. Then in June they were one of the hottest teams in baseball again.

Now the Marlins find themselves one game out first in the NL East with a bright future.

Why a bright future you ask?

Because the much-hyped Marlins pitching staff is finally living up to its expectation.

Yesterday night, I turned on the TV to watch The Late Late Show, only to find that it was starting 20 minutes late.

Just for this week, I think they should've renamed it The Late Late Late Show.

Anyway, I decided to pass the time by watching Baseball Tonight, which I don't normally watch because I can't stand the analysts. But it was something to do.

After about ten minutes, the Braves-Nationals highlights came on. I wasn't really paying attention; I was checking minor league scores on my computer.

It’s funny how things have changed. A little over two months ago Mets skipper Jerry Manuel had all but officially denounced Ryan Church as an everyday player. There were rumblings that Church would eventually be traded. For the next month or so Church fell out of the limelight, rarely earning a start in right field.

The NL East has proven to be the free-for-all many thought it would be. The Atlanta Braves are in fourth place, but are only three games out of first place on July 1.

The New York Mets are injured and their roster is depleted, yet they broke out of a five-game losing streak against Brewers ace Yovani Gallardo on Wednesday.

The Florida Marlins have shot up the standings to within a half-game of first place after a 17-11 June.

The Philadelphia Phillies hit the skids in June with an 11-15 mark, but are still at the top in the division.

The home run is the second-longest hit on to Eutaw Street in game action.

It's fitting that as Roar from 34 kicks off "Eutaw Street Week" another batter became a bronze bomber by putting a ball onto the walkway between the stadium and the warehouse. Unfortunately, it wasn't for the home team.

It was a game that could have easily gone either way, but it was a game that should have gone the Blue Jays' way. Brian Tallet had the game in the palm of his hands, but he let it slip away as the Jays lost the rubber match of their series against the Philadelphia Phillies.

I've never been one for moral victories. You either win or you lose.

A rematch of teams that met in a championship setting the previous season does not constitute a "revenge game" nor series.

The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2008 World Series—they have the rings. No series win in June the following season will avenge that.

Two weeks ago today, the Mets endured one of the toughest regular season losses in franchise history when Luis Castillo dropped a pop-up with two outs, allowing the tying and winning runs to score in the ninth inning for the Yankees.

Everyone was wondering how the team, but more specifically, Castillo would respond.

Since that fateful night in the Bronx, the Mets are playing .500 baseball (6-6), but took 3-of-4 against the Cardinals to put themselves just half a game behind the first place Phillies.

Could a team needing to get out of the basement be any more obvious than the Washington Nationals? At 21-49 (as of June 25), the Nats look to be leading the races to the top pick in the 2010 entry draft. 

Maybe that isn't such a bad thing, considering the fortunes of Stephen Strasburg being taken first overall by the struggling franchise this summer. Agent Scott Boras is aiming for a six-year, $50 million contract for his prized possession. With the way Jim Bowden ruined this franchise with players like Paul Lo Duca and Dmitri Young, Strasburg is a steal.