Steven Urena
By Steven Urena
Contenders and Pretenders, National League Edition
Los Angeles Dodgers
A healthy Dodger rotation is going to be hard to beat. Walker Buehler, Max Scherzer, Clayton Kershaw and Julio Urias. In a 5 or 7 game series, that’s a tough draw for any team. In a one game elimination, hold on to your hats and sunglasses. Anything can happen. Especially in baseball.
The Giants have shown zero signs of slowing down. Fortunately for Dodger fans, the Boys in Blue have been heating up. The starters and the pen have been dealing. They’re allowing very few runs per game and the horses seem to be back on track. If Kershaw comes back fresh and healthy, we know he’s capable of winning October games. Kenley still makes me nervous but he’s been getting it done.
Hitting has been better but the pitching staff is definitely the reason the Dodgers have been winning. Our offense has been known to be stone cold this past year. Cody Bellinger could not hit a jackpot with three sevens. Man, he looked bad the past couple of games. He could find himself on the bench when the playoffs get here. Mookie Betts was heating up until his hip began giving him problems again. If we lose Mookie or if he’s cold in the playoffs we will be in some trouble.
The veterans are looking good. Max Muncy, Justin Turner, Corey Seager, Chris Taylor and especially AJ Pollock. Pollock looks like the guy we signed a few years ago. He’s flat out good this year. Can’t forget Will “Cluth Home Runs” Smith. If we want to repeat, we need everyone doing their part.
Isn’t Trea Turner fun to watch? He makes good and consistent contact, he flat out flys and he’s got swag. I am so glad he is a Dodger.
The Giants have no intentions of making it easy for LA. The NL West will be a dogfight the rest of the way!
San Francisco Giants
I can’t say it enough. What a surprise the Giants have been. Man for man, they’re not much better than any other team in baseball. They simply get the job done. I did not think they could keep it up all season. I thought the veterans would rust out and the youngsters would get exposed. The Giants keep on truckin’ and are not looking back. Some would like to call the Giants a “Cinderella” or “miracle” team but that’s just not the case. The Giants are a good ball club.
Did you know….Gabe Kapler was one of the front runners for the Dodgers manager job? Yup. The job ultimately went to Dave Roberts. I bet Kapler’s got a major chip on his shoulder. I know I would. The rivalry is back folks! I am excited.
San Diego Padres
At the beginning of the year, some experts picked the Padres to win the World Series. Now they’re fighting for their lives. The Reds are red hot and in sole possession of the final wild card spot. This is a great example of there being no sure thing in baseball. Teams adjust, adapt and scout like crazy. The front office sold the farm for the possibility of winning now. It just doesn’t work like that in baseball. Take a note from the Dodgers and build!
Dodger fans love seeing their little brother suffer. I would not jump for joy quite yet. We still might have to see them in the playoffs. A team with a nothing-to-lose mentality is dangerous. The Padres are an emotional team. When they are fired up, they are tough to beat.
There’s over 30 games to go. Plenty of time for the Padres to get back on track or screw it up.
Cincinnati Reds
Where did these guys come from? They crawled out of the gutter into the second wild card spot. The Reds have some young guys that can mash in Jesse Winker, Nick Castellanos, Jonathan India and Eugenio Suarez. They can hurt you with the long ball and have pretty good averages too. Joey Votto must have dipped himself in the fountain of youth because he’s hotter than a fox in a forest fire. I’ve always been a Votto fan. I’m glad he’s killing it. Just don’t do it against my Dodgers.
The rotation is led by Luis Castillo and Wade Miley. Both do not jump out of the page but both have been pitching well since the All-Star break. Any hot team is dangerous in the playoffs, especially a Reds hot team.
Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers have been riding the Brandon Woodruff and Corbin Burnes express all season and will most likely do so into the playoffs. Brent Suter and Freddy Peralta have come out of nowhere and keep winning games. Don’t sleep on the Brewers. They are out for blood.
I feel like the Brewers have been under the radar all year. They’ve been largely uncontested in the NL Central. In fact, they’ve been cruising. The Reds are nipping at their heels but are not going to catch them.
Avisail Garcia is the only real bopper but the supporting cast, collectively, is pretty darn consistent. I’ll take consistency over potential any day of the week. The Brewers lineup is just that.
Atlanta Braves
I was wrong about the Braves. A few weeks ago I had them dead in the water. Right now, they are atop the crumbling NL East. Dodger fans know they have a good squad. The Braves lost Ronald Acuna but others such as Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley have stepped up. We already knew Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson were the real deal.
The Braves staff is ready for October. Charlie Morton does not age or tire. Max Fried is an electric lefty. Drew Symly and Ian Anderson are capable of tossing gems. The winners of the NL Central and NL East totally lucked out! They don’t have to face 2 of the 3 powers in the NL West.
Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets
When some experts said the NL East would be the best division in baseball, I could not comprehend it. I never thought they had a standout team. I thought the Mets would emerge as the clear favorite but with Jacob deGrom going down, that just didn’t happen. The Phillies were exciting for a bit but seemed to cool down as of late. It looks like the Tomahawk chop is back (wait, can they still do that?)!
Contact Steve Urena at:
Email: theurenaexpress@gmail.com
Twitter/IG: @theurenaexpress
