MLB: NL East
Averaged Standings (with win range for each team in parenthesis):
- 94-68 Washington Nationals (89 to 104 wins)
- 80-82 New York Mets (75 to 82 wins)
- 76-86 Philadelphia Phillies (73 to 79 wins)
- 74-88 Atlanta Braves (71 to 76 wins)
- 64-98 Miami Marlins (60 to 68 wins)
At 15 games, the Nationals and Padres have the broadest range of projected wins, but one is at the top of their division, and the other is at the bottom of theirs. The 15-game span for the Nationals is a result of PECOTA pegging them with just 89 wins, while Bleacher Report has them as the best team in baseball, with 104 victories. This is a team that won 97 games last year, so it will take some doing to get to 104 wins in 2018. Of course, they will have the luxury of beating up on the rest of their division, where every other team is projected to finish below .500.
The Mets won 70 MLB games last year, and that was two games better than their run-differential would expect. Four of the five sources have them winning between 80 and 82 games. Clay Davenport is more pessimistic, seeing the Mets as a 75-win team. Then again, perhaps a 75-win season would mean that Tim Tebow could get a September call-up.
The Phillies and Braves are on similar stages of the competition cycle and projected to win a similar number of games. The Braves have the number one farm system in baseball, and the Phillies are sixth, according to Baseball America. With the Nationals potentially losing Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy to free agency after this season, the NL East could look very different in the next few seasons.
Down at the bottom of the standings is the dumpster fire known as the Miami Marlins. They are projected to win the fewest games in baseball. The low source has them with 60 wins (USA Today), while Fangraphs is the most optimistic, expecting them to win 68 games.