Chris Sale (Creative Commons: docjeffhyde)
A quick look at the NL Wildcard standings reveals the Atlanta Braves have a two-game lead over the New York Mets in the race for the last wildcard slot. And I wouldn’t be surprised in the present holders of the wildcard slot, the Diamondbacks, Padres and Braves don’t finish up as the wildcard entries into the playoffs.
For a period of time, pretty much all the NL Central and the Mets seemed to be about to make a move but stalled out. Much like in a Three Stooges short where all three stooges try to enter an open door at the same time only to collide and create chaos.
While the stooges, aka the NL Central teams are dusting themselves off, better teams have positioned themselves in the standings. The Braves have been especially hard hit by injuries which has led to a depleted offense. Still, I look at them to make the playoffs through habit if nothing else.
Plus, Matt Olson‘s bat coming to life along with Adam Duvall hitting more than .178 would be helpful. If Chris Sale‘s arm doesn’t fall off, the Braves should make it on in
It looks like three teams from the NL West will be in the playoffs
The Dodgers will continue to bludgeon their way into the playoffs. They are only three games up on the Diamondbacks and Padres but look for them to pull away. The return of Mooke Betts should help facilitate that move.
The Padres are getting help from an unlikely source. Jurickson Profar is having a career year at the age of 31. He has an NL league leading OPS of .394 to help him get to a hardy OPS of .878. He has also hit 19 home runs and a WAR of 3.0.
Jackson Merrill has also been a factor in the Padres success. The rookie all-star center fielder has an OPS of .795 and is playing a strong center field. Profar and Merrill have been more of a factor on this team than Xander Bogaerts and Manny Machado.
Dylan Cease has had some highlights this season, including a no-hitter. Because of that, I expected even better numbers from Cease who is 11-9 with an ERA of 3.41. Excellent numbers but perhaps not what some expected.
As for the Dbacks, is there a guy more under the radar than second baseman Ketel Marte? Marte has an OPS of .930 and a WAR of 6.0. Center fielder Corbin Carroll has experienced a drop off from last season but seems to be coming around. His regaining his form from 2023 would be a huge boost to the Diamondbacks playoffs hopes.
