2008 Season Review: NL East

Philadelphia Phillies: Winning a World Series in a beautiful new ballpark, what’s not to like. Maybe the ratings or the weather, or Charlie Manuel’s mug. But he won it all with a powerful lineup, a great bullpen and Cole Hamels’ strong arm; and was feted with a ticker tape parade for his trouble.

What Worked: Everything clicked for the Phillies. The power-packed lineup that starts with the NL’s best all around player, Jimmy Rollins, and continues with Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Pat—The Bunny—Burrell were too much for the rest of the East and the rest of baseball. Burrell and Utley had 30+ homers and Howard led the NL with 48 homers and 146 RBI. Jason Werth had a career year as well, but as strong as the offense was, the improvement in the defense and pitching was what put the team over the top, moved them from contenders to World Champions.

The team ERA of 3.89 was fourth in the NL as compared to the 2007 ERA of 5.07 that put them near the bottom. The addition of Pedro Feliz at third helped the defense, but it was the addition of Brad Lidge–who got the last out in game five–and the turnaround by Jaimie Moyer that set up the championship run. The rest of the bullpen—JC Romero, Chad Durbin, Ryan Madson, and Clay Condrey—were excellent as well. Cole Hamels’ 217 innings and 3.09 ERA were personal bests and at 25 he looks like the Phillies’ No. 1 as long as he stays healthy. The four October wins establish him as a shining star with a bright future.

The most amazing stat for the Phillies is Jamie Moyers’ age—45, a few years shy of AARP eligibility. His 2008 season–a 16-7 won/loss and a 3.71 ERA–exceeds anything since he left Seattle and should have been enough for Comeback Player of the Year had it not gone to Brad Lidge. Lidge–41 saves and a 1.95 ERA–recaptured his 2005 form and made a very good bullpen into a great one.

What Did Not: The addition of Joe Blanton converted a thin and struggling rotation into a formidable threesome coming down the stretch and into the playoffs. Moyer will not have another 2008 and while Brett Myers took a step forward in 2008, as a number three starter he leaves something to be desired. The bullpen may get more work than it can stand if there is no help for the starters.

Shopping List: Look for the Phillies to add a starter and firm up their commitments to Hamels, Blanton, Lidge and other stars of the post-season.

New York Mets: From the middle of June to the middle of September the Mets were the best of the East, but like last year they ran out of gas down the stretch. It wasn’t as ugly as in 2007, but the result was the same. It lent a sour note to the Mets ringing out the final moments for old Shea Stadium with Tom Seaver and many of the Amazin’ Mets from 1969.

What Worked: David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado are probably better than the heart of the Phillies order and they all had excellent seasons. Brian Schneider was a great acquisition behind the plate in much the way Pedro Feliz was for the Phils. Johan Santana’s 2.53 led the NL and he is still only 29 years of age and in the prime of an amazing career. He is what you can expect the two richest franchises to buy on the open market each year.

What Did Not: The offense got off to a slow start, especially Carlos Delgado and the team looked liked it was weighted down by the heavy salaries they were carrying. Staying healthy was the biggest problem for the Mets. Losing Ryan Church and Luis Castillo hurt the offense, but Damion Easley and Fernando Tatis filled in adequately. There was no replacing John Maine and Billy Wagner. Having Aaron Heilman on the mound for 76 innings and fill-in starters like Jorge Sosa and Nelson Figeroa hurt the most. It is hard to say whether Pedro Martinez did more damage on or off the DL. The bullpen was awful especially after the loss of Billy Wagner.

The Shopping List: Second only to the Yankees in wealth, the Mets shopping list makes Santa swoon. They will compete with the Yankees for Sabathia and are a likely landing spot for Francisco Rodriguez. They are picking up the option of Carlos Delgado, an aging but still capable slugger.

Florida Marlins: Florida has bounced around the past few years going only as far as their very young pitching staff takes them. Dan Uggla and Hanley Ramirez may be better than Rollins and Utley, and the emergence of Rickey Nolasco and their winning record against the Phillies may make them a force for the future.

What Worked. The team scored 4.78 runs per game and was fifth in the league. Mike Jacobs broke out with his 2008 season, hitting .299 with 32 home runs. He is only 27 and heads into his prime with a huge upside. Jorge Cantu–$500,000 salary–replaced Miguel Cabrera–$11.3 million–and dollar for dollar it was all Cantu, who hit 29 homers and whose .808 OPS is in the same ballpark with Cabrera’s .886. Nolasco led the rotation with a fine 15-8 record and 3.52 ERA. Scott Olsen made progress and topped 200 innnings for the first time.

The best news is the return of Josh Johnson who pitched very well in September after returning from injury and the emergence of highly regarded Chris Volstad whose .2.88 ERA in August and September gives the Marlins Olsen, Nolasco, Johnson and Volstad as a very formidable 2009 rotation.

What Did Not: The team gave up 4.76 runs per game and was in the bottom tier of team pitching. In the outfield Hermida, Willingham and Ross were diappointing. Cameron Maybin made little progress toward joining them as he struggled for AA Carolina. Hermida is still young but he regressed in ‘08, hitting only .249 and falling off in every other category except lowering his strikeouts. Young and promising starters like Annibal Sanchez and Andrew Miller continued to fall totally flat. The bullpen was ineffective too often and Kevin Gregg would be better as a setup to a dominant closer that the Marlins do not have.

Shopping List: The Marlins have already traded Mike Jacobs for needed bullpen help from KC. Next on the block are Scott Olsen and Kevin Gregg. The Marlins will look for trades to land an outfield bat and another arm that could turn a good young team into contenders for 2009.

Atlanta Braves: The Braves passed the Marlins late in the year heading for the deep south of the NL East. Like Bobby Cox, the Braves are old and getting older. The best days of Chipper Jones, Tom Glavine, Mike Hampton, and John Schmoltz are gone as sure as John Schuerholz.

What Worked: Chipper Jones had a great season for the Braves leading the majors with a .364 average, flirting with .400 through the first few months. He had a strong supporting cast with Mark Teixeira and young players like Brian McCann, Yunel Escobar and Kelly Johnson. Getting Casey Kotchman for free agent-to-be Teixeira was a smart move that adds more youth and promise. 22-year old Jair Jurrjens led the rotation in starts–31–and innings-188. His 3.68 ERA was the best for a rookie in the NL.

What Did Not: Almost everything crashed and burned by the end of the season. The pitching was hurt by Tim Hudson’s meager 23 starts although when healthy he was very good. Chuck James–9.10–and JoJo Reyes–5.81–were supposed to be part of a youth movement, but only Reyes managed to justify being on the mound long enough to matter. Glavine, Smoltz, and Hamilton pitched only enough to remember what they once were and they will be good for only memories in the future. Mark Teixeira’s year in Atlanta may cost him for free agency, but with him gone and Chipper Jones 37 years of age, mustering offense in ‘09 will be difficult.

The youth movement has promise, but the Braves pitching is old and woefully thin. The bullpen was hurt by the loss of Raphael Soriano to injury and no one stepped up to fill in. The team ERA of 4.80 rose steadily during the year as Schmoltz and Glavine gave way to Charlie Morton–15 starts and a 6.15 ERA–and Reyes. The asset side of the pitching ledger looks worse than a California S&L.

Shopping List: The Braves are trying to land Jake Peavy, a native southerner who fits with the Braves home grown focus. Peavy alone will not solve the pitching woes or make them into contenders. The cost in young prospects should make the front office blanche. If they trade their top tier talent in the lower minors to try to contend, they will pay dearly.

Washington Nationals: Worst of the worst but a team that is getting younger and looking more like the Marlins than the Braves. There were many boneheaded moves made by the Nationals front office, from the signing of Dimitri Young and Paul Lo Duca, to having more second basemen than three teams could use, but the failure to sign June draftee Aaron Crow was the worst for a team building from the bottom.

What Worked: The new stadium had great food and great sight lines, but there was little to watch on the field. John Lannan, the lefty from Sienna had a fine rookie season with a 3.91 ERA. Lastings Milledge and Elijah Dukes put some of their badboy reputations behind them with solid performances on the field. Ryan Zimmerman came back strong from injury. Christian Guzman played well until 30 minutes after he signed another long term contract in August. Jesus Flores provided clutch hitting from behind the plate. Ronnie Belliard had a career year in part-time duty.

What Did Not: The bullpen was awful and the rotation of number 4 starters ran out of gas in the second half. Zimmerman was hurt for two months, Austin Kearns injuries looked to many to be a godsend, and Felipe Lopez stunk it up again until being waived and taken by the Cardinals who converted him into a good-looking second baseman. Wily Mo Pena was another favorite of Jim Bowden who joined Lopez, Kearns and other Cincinnati alums in the doghouse of every fan who stood in the line at Ben’s Chili Bowl. Watching Pena and Milledge in the outfield in April and May and then Pena at the plate until he was benched was as painful an experience as any fan had to sit through in baseball in 2008.

Shopping List: Signing Zimmerman to a long term deal after his shortened season would be smart and adding a left-handed power hitter is the first priority. Finding one that will come to DC after the many failures of ‘08 will be difficult. Other rumors have them in the hunt for AJ Burnett.