The National League East should be one of the easiest divisions to predict in all of baseball.
Everyone knows the Washington Nationals are dead on arrival for at least another year so put them in the cellar and etch it in stone. The Philadelphia Phillies are almost as sure a thing at the top based on lineup, rotation, and history.
Contrarily, the New York Mets look distinctly more start-and-stop than the other three clubs so put them in fourth. Scatter the Florida Marlins/Atlanta Braves in between the Metropolitans and Phils, and voila.
Easy as counting to five.
Except Bobby Cox is retiring and Jason Heyward is starting in right field so pundits have fallen in love with the Bravos.
Uh...
No disrespect to either, but I'm not sure affection for Cox will turn his charges into super-humans. And, other than Evan Longoria, I can't remember a rookie upsetting a divisional apple cart.
Yet both eventualities would be required to take out Philly.
What's more, how about a little respect for the franchise still rocking basically the same roster that won the 2008 World Series and was only denied a repeat in 2009 by the best team money can buy?
Philadelphia's most seismic change has been to add Roy Halladay, which obviously makes the Phightins better. Consequently, I'm a little confused as to how any other nine will suddenly wrest the pennant from the City of Brotherly Love.
As you will see...
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