FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Continuing the series of division-by-division looks at the teams in MLB. Today, the NL Central. With six teams, we're going to do this in TWO posts, so it won't be so god-awful long. So, first, teams 1-3 in the standings:

 1. Milwaukee Brewers (24-10, 0 GB) - OK, so they've had a very favorable early-season schedule. They've played 8 more games at home than on the road, and just finished beating up on the Nationals. None of that changes the fact that the BREWERS have the best record in the game. All they've done so far is turn baseball on its ear by storming out of the gate, and are currently riding a 6-game win streak.

Offense - 169 runs scored, one of the highest totals in the NL. They are young, but they can flat-out rake. Besides the youngsters  such as Prince Fielder (to old-timers like me, he'll always be 'Cecil's son'), Tony Gwynn (yes, he's THAT Tony's son), J.J. Hardy, Rickie Weeks, and Corey Hart, the team has a nice mix of established hitters in Geoff Jenkins, Johnny Estrada, and Bill Hall. As likely to pound doubles as homers, but they get the job done and are fun to watch.

Pitching - No longer just Ben Sheets, who has been pedestrian thus far (2-2, 4.04, with only a worrisome 21 K's in 42 innings). Jeff Suppan and Dave Bush have nearly mirror-image peripheral stats - except for ERA's more than 3 runs apart, which shows that Suppan has been quite lucky so far, and Bush very UN-lucky. (It's OK if you don't believe that, but it's true). And hats off to Chris Capuano (5-0, 2.31) and Claudio Vargas (3-0, 2.65), both of whom have been pitching like solid #2's. The back end of the 'pen is lights-out (Francisco Cordero is 15-for-15 in saves, having allowed 11 baserunners in 16.2 innings), and Derrick Turnbow has suddenly developed a habit of throwing strikes. The middle relief has struggled some, but the other parts of the team have been clicking so well, it hasn't mattered much.

Outlook - Despite a few naysayers, the Brewers are not going away. They have better than a 50% chance of retaining their division lead, and can approach 90 wins by merely playing .500 baseball the rest of the way. Odds are, they'll be even a little better than that, and playoff baseball will return to Milwaukee.

 2. Chicago Cubs (16-16, 7 GB) - Ah, Spring. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and the Cubs are ... NOT losing? Hmmm. Well, OK, they're losing some close ones. Still, a .500 start has the buzz around this team amped to an unusual level for May. A perplexing team, because statistically, their record should be even better.

Offense - merely average, having scored 150 runs. Derrek Lee is back and roping line drives in his sleep (.389/.467/.565, 17 doubles). Aramis Ramirez continues to provide power (7 HR already). Alfonso Soriano swings at everything and usually hits it, and is playing well overall, though fantasy owners will be disappointed with only 3 HR and 3 steals thus far. The rest of the lineup is average, although SS has been an absolute black hole offensively (Izturis is at .206/.279/.289, while backup Cedeno is even worse!) - no wonder young utilty man Ryan Theriot has gotten 8 starts there this year.

Pitching - WAY above average at 118 runs allowed, one of the top figures in baseball. Prior? No. Wood? Sorry. Try Rich Hill, Jason Marquis, and Ted Lilly, who have all been pitching out of their collective minds. Even with Carlos Zambrano really struggling (74 baserunners in 46.1 innings, with 10 HR allowed already), and a few useless starts from Wade Miller, the Cubs' pitching has carried them. Actually, it's been so good that many rational forecasters (including myself) are saying it can't last. But pitching coach Larry Rothschild deserves some real praise the longer this goes on.

Outlook - What to make of a team that's pitching better than it should, but is still not over .500? The folks at Baseball Prospectus currently have them winning 87 games, with a 40% chance of the playoffs. I'm not so sure - I'll give them a 20% chance of sneaking into the wild card spot.

 3. Houston Astros (16-18, 8 GB) - they've devolved into the quintessential average major league ballclub. They win as many as they lose, they score as many as they allow, they lost Pettitte and now Clemens to the high-dollar Yanks, and there is very little buzz about them right now, considering they were NL champions just two years ago. (Funny to me how Phil Garner is a much more average manager when he has much more average players). The only positive news is that, although they've been away from home for long stretches early, they've held their own (10-10 on the road).

Offense - 147 runs scored. Ho-hum. Biggio's excruciatingly slow march to 3,000 hits continues. Import Carlos Lee is doing his main job, driving in 32 runs in 34 games. Lance Berkmann continues to be an under-appreciated, patient hitter (.296/.447/.435), but maybe he's being too patient - he has only 6 extra-base hits. Other isolated bright spots, such as Luke Scott and Mark Loretta, can't make up for the Adam Everetts (.202/.269/.284) and Morgan Ensbergs (.228/.336/.347). Rookie Hunter Pence was called up to inject some life into the lineup. His batting stance alone is worth the price of admission to Minute Maid Park.

Pitching - Without Pettitte and Clemens, the rotation is Roy Oswalt and the fire brigade. If names such as Woody Williams, Wandy Rodriguez, Chris Sampson, and Matt Albers don't inspire confidence, you're not alone. Of those, W-Rod has actually pitched fairly well - but has an 0-3 record to show for it - and Chris Sampson, a nice comeback story at age 28, has shown he's an actual major league pitcher. But when Chris Sampson is second on your staff with three wins ... OK, say it with me ... Houston, you have a problem. The good news here is the 'pen - they've done the best they could at keeping the 'stros in games. And tune in tomorrow for the continuing saga of Mad Brad Lidge, who, since a late April debacle at Milwaukee that ran his ERA to 10.13, seems to have found his groove again. He's only allowed 1 run total in his last 9 games, and the ERA is down to 4.02.

Outlook - They have some talent, but they don't have enough starting pitching to seriously contend. They should hover within a few games of .500 all year long.

Coming soon: the 2nd half of the NL Central.