This National League East Race Is One For The Ages
It has to be frustrating to be a fan of the Mets or the Braves this season. I'm not going to cry any tears over it. I'm a Tigers fan, so I won't weep for two teams that have known they're making the playoffs since May, but there has to be something frustrating about being so good and yet still having to double and triple check the standings every night. That's been the case in the NL East still season. After 136 games, the Mets and the Braves find themselves right back where they started with identical records. It always felt like this race would go down to the wire, and that's how it's shaping up.
People love to point to the fact that the Mets had a 10.5 lead in this division at one, and while they haven't done themselves any favors losing three games in a row to the Nationals and Pirates, this isn't some classic Mets choke job. If the Mets finish second in this division, it will be painted as a "Same Old Mets" situation. And while I understand that to truly shake that stigma, the Mets probably have to get over the hump and knock off the Braves, but this Mets team is not a Wilpon Mets team. I've been saying that all year. They've spent money, have All-Star caliber players across the board, and are on pace to win 100+ games. In most divisions, they'd be running away with this thing. The culture in Queens is different, and with Steve Cohen at the helm, I feel like they're just getting started. On the flip side, you have an Atlanta Braves team that won the World Series a year ago. They've won four straight National League East championships; objectively speaking, they are better than they were a season ago. They lost their franchise player and somehow got better. What a luxury that must be.
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For the life of me, I don't know who will win this division. I've loved watching the Mets this season and feel like they might be a better team at their best. I still trust New York's starting pitching staff quite a bit, and while they've been scuffling lately, I know they're fully capable of going on another hot streak. The offense needs to get going, though. They're too talented to be this lethargic.
Conversely, The Braves have everything you want from a 2022 baseball team. They're experienced and deep with a relentless lineup and an excellent pitching staff. They're a team capable of being the first repeat champions that baseball has seen since the 99-2000 New York Yankees. As I said, I think they are legitimately better than they were when they won the World Series a year ago. They also don't lose, which is why I think they're probably the trendy pick to come away with this division, but we'll see.
The bizarre irony of this entire divisional chase is that it doesn't matter as much as people think. With the expanded postseason, you don't want to play that best two out of three, but regardless of who wins this division, it won't mean a damn thing if they don't come up big in October. The San Francisco Giants last season had one of the most magical years I've seen in a long time. I think I'll probably go to my grave not understanding how that team won 107 games, but they did, and guess what? It didn't matter because they ultimately lost to their divisional rival, the Dodgers, in the NLDS.
The same rules will apply to whoever wins the National League East. These are two teams capable of winning it all. One will have two Hall Of Famers on the mound in the postseason, and the other is a defending World Champion with an improved roster. It's going to be a hell of a finish.