Phillies: Eyeing divisional rivals

The Atlanta Braves:

With Sun Trust Park, their new stadium for 2017, the Atlanta Braves were simultaneously trying to be competitive for attendance purposes and restructure their roster for the future. This offseason, they will need two rotation arms because the three veteran starters from ’17 won’t be returning. But are their green hurlers ready for a bigger workload?

Another question will be their aging corner outfielders, but Atlanta will have difficulty due to the $53.5 million still owed to Matt Kemp and Nick Markakis. And an upgrade at the hot corner will be another concern for their new general manager Alex Anthopoulos.

Among their problems, the Braves will be dealing with the penalties for their violations regarding the international market, which led to resignations in their front office. And Anthopoulos had his own troubles roughly five years ago with the Toronto Blue Jays because he asked other organizations for the medicals on available players by faking an interest in them. However, word got around and clubs stopped calling him about trade possibilities. Reputation matters!

"IN OTHER WORDS: “It is the nature of being the general manager of a baseball team that you have to remain on familiar terms with people you are continually trying to screw.” – Michael Lewis"

Under normal circumstances, a new GM doesn’t make drastic changes during his first season, but Atlanta’s second-half record was 30-45 despite winning the first three games. Regarding the Phillies, the Braves were 4-2 in the last two series against them but 6-13 overall.

Next: Phillies offseason secrecy

To sum up, Miami will experience the pain of a total rebuild, and Atlanta with a new decision-maker will have plenty of issues. But if the Phillies acquire a starter or two, they could challenge the Mets for second place in the NL East and a possible shot at the playoffs. Translation: Wild Card Game!