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NL East monthly check-up: Braves, Mets, Phillies, Marlins, Nationals

By K Michael Sweetman

May 28, 2023; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider (99) pitches Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
May 28, 2023; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider (99) pitches Philadelphia Phillies during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 18, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Eury Perez (39) delivers a pitch against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
May 18, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Eury Perez (39) delivers a pitch against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports /

The Miami Marlins were 14-13 in May, and crept past the New York Mets for second place in the division. Just 4.0 games behind Atlanta, the Fish just refuse to go away. Jorge Soler had probably his best month ever, batting .284 with 12 homers and 25 RBI in 25 games. Nine of those dingers came against left-handed pitching, and Soler is just crushing lefties this year, hitting .370 with a 1.453 OPS in 46 at-bats.

Even with all of those heroics, the Marlins were still in the bottom 10 in team home runs for the month, and bottom eight in runs scored. Injuries to Jazz Chisholm and Jesus Sanchez kept them out of the lineup for most of the month, and definitely contributed to those numbers, but this team has struggled to score all season. They are 27th in the league in runs scored on the year, and it is pretty impressive that they were able to win 28 games so far. While Chisholm is probably out for a couple more weeks, Sanchez should be back with the team any day now and hopefully is able to pick up where he left off. In the seven games leading up to his hamstring injury, Sanchez was hitting .455 with a 1.455 OPS, and swinging a stick like that could help kick start this offense.

The real strength of the Marlins, however, are these starting pitchers. I know it’s been a rocky road so far with a lot of ups and a lot of downs and Sandy Alcantara isn’t exactly throwing like we’re used to, but, at just 27 years old, he’s the senior member of this rotation. Jesus Luzardo, Braxton Garrett, and Edwad Carbrera are all just 25, with Garrett and Cabrera still a couple years away from arbitration. Luzardo will get paid this fall for sure, and hopefully the perpetually stingy Marlins can figure out a way to keep him, because with 20-year-old Eury Perez now in the fold as well, this could be one the most dominant rotations in baseball. These kids are still developing and learning how to pitch, and they all have such great stuff, it’s going to be a lot of fun to watch.

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