NL East

The biggest knock against the New York Mets' Travis d'Arnaud—and it's a doozy—is that he's spent too much time on the disabled list for a guy in just his second full big league season. 

The good news? That's basically the only knock against him.

The Washington Nationals are shrewd.

In the midst of a letdown season, the team is set to allow season-ticket holders the opportunity to earn their subscription to next year’s games for free. All they have to do is hit a home run.

Sounds easy enough, right? 

Scott Allen of the Washington Post explained the promotion:

Yoenis Cespedes has been a driving force behind the New York Mets' march toward the playoffs, but the looming postseason isn't stopping the 29-year-old from thinking about his upcoming free agency. 

Continue for updates.    

NEW YORK — Read the back pages of this city's tabloids, and you'd never know New York has two baseball teams headed for the playoffs.

One team makes the headlines every day. The other has been featured one time fewer than a football team that plays 200 miles northeast of here.

NEW YORK — Believe it or not, Yoenis Cespedes can play the guitar, too.

In fact, the way they tell it in the New York Mets clubhouse, he saw a guitar when he was with the Boston Red Sox last year, decided he wanted to play it and learned right away.

The way they tell it in the Mets clubhouse, there's nothing Cespedes can't do.

Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper is the National League's Most Valuable Player, and there really shouldn't be any debate.

But, of course, there is. This is baseball we're talking about, and a baseball award no less—there will always be disagreement. That's part of the fun.

Overlooking Curtis Granderson has been a given. 

The New York Mets have so many storylines swirling around their clubhouse this season, and the New York and national media alike are covering them all top to bottom.

Bartolo Colon continues to defy what sports fans have come to understand about aging. The New York Mets starting pitcher gave up two runs to the Atlanta Braves on Thursday night. However, before his night was over, Colon made history.

It finally happened—Ruben Amaro Jr. is out as general manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. And, at long last, there's a chance for a new direction in the City of Brotherly Love.

We'll get to that new direction shortly. But first, it's necessary to perform a brief autopsy of the Amaro regime.

The reason this is happening should have never happened.

The trade that has helped lead the New York Mets to so much recent good fortune was one the team's front office was not even considering until circumstances pushed it toward alternatives.

The Mets thought they had their outfield trade acquisition just before the July 31 non-waiver deadline, but it was not Yoenis Cespedes.