NL Professional Division
Teams that left the division: LAD+., SD-
Teams that joined the division: PHI-, ATL+
Miami Marlins:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: MIA lost two players voluntarily this year – C Mejia to FA & RP Curry traded to SF. They also lost 2 valuable BP arms for the year with torn rotator cuffs – RP Flores & RP Zoio.
Players Acquired: MIA signed 3 big FAs this year, 3B Andujar coming off a nice bounce back season to fill 3B. They also signed veteran SP Senzatela who should slot in as a nice #3 SP. And last they signed C Gary Sanchez to replace Mejia. They also brought in SS Turner on a cheap one year deal to see if he can reclaim some former magic at the cornerstone position.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: CF Archangel put up 6.0 WAR and a .307 BA in his rookie season. Unfortunately last season he struggled to a .241 BA and 1.0 WAR. MIA is looking for a bounce back season from him.
Pitcher to Watch: SP Montero is coming off an excellent rookie campaign where he argues he should have won ROTY over teammate LF Foster (“29 year old rookies are an insult to the award he was quoted saying”). Nevertheless the lefty will be looking to build on last season and be the ace Miami needs.
Expectation: This is a good Miami team with some star talent (SP Montero, SP Rogers, LF Foster, RF Perrolas, 1B Berni). Despite the disadvantage of hitting in Marlins Park, they were an average offense last year and should be able to build on that with the addition of 3B Andujar & a full season of Swearingen. My concern is actually on the pitching side. Their starting pitchers should be fine, but with trades and injuries their bullpen is looking very thin. I think they will improve coming off an 82-80 season and will push for a playoff spot. My guess is a 80-90 win season and snagging a WC spot.
Colorado Rockies:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: COL lost 3 decent relievers to FA in Cabrera, Mills, & Bowden. They also let 2B Hampson hit FA, but that production should not be hard to replace.
Players Acquired: COL signed SP Bukauskas to be a back-end starter.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: 1B Alegre – these are the WAR/season he has put up in his career: 0.9/5.2/2.2/3.8. So how good is he really? He is an MVP candidate? A solid regular? All-star? He had a career low BABIP in 2027 so I’m inclined to say he should be a 4+ WAR guy going forward.
Pitcher to Watch: SP Dabon – he allowed the 2nd most homeruns in the league last year. His tools indicate he should be a much better pitcher than he is, even in Coors Field. COL would love to see a breakout season where he puts up the 4+ WAR season he is capable of and ace they are missing.
Expectation: Not surprisingly, COL had the most runs scored last year and the 2nd most runs allowed – mostly a product of Coors Field. I feel like in a neutral ballpark this team would be balanced and more league average in both categories. They went 91-71 last season, and I don’t see that they really got any better or worse. I’ll say they win 83-93 games and take a WC spot.
Philadelphia Phillies:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: This is a team that went over a major makeover this offseason. They lost their best position player – 3B Andujar, 3 of their best SP – Bukauskas, Puk, & Urias, and a solid OF in Conforto. They lost 20% of their WAR production from last season.
Players Acquired: And despite all the production Philly lost, they were 2nd in WAR gained this offseason. This is going to be a long paragraph…
They added 2 top-mid rotation SP in SP Torres (trade with CLE) and Jurado (FA), and 2 back-of-the-rotation guys in Mitch Keller & Logan Allen. They signed 2 veteran catchers in Stephenson & Naylor. And last they signed 2B Rendon who had solid production until last season.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: This was a tough one, lot of veteran players with down seasons last year. I’m going to say SS Johnson. He had 3 separate injuries last year and was limited to less than 100 games and had a subpar .649 OPS, near 70 points lower than his career average.
Pitcher to Watch: Adonis Medina. In the past he has been used as a long reliever/spot starter, not making more than 12 starts since his rookie season. But injuries to SP Allen, Keller, & Torres are forcing Medina to start the year in the rotation. He has the tools to make it work, can he stick in the rotation?
Expectation: PHI went 76-86 last season with a good offense and terrible pitching & defense. They were a veteran team that had a down year, losing their most games since 2022. They added a lot of quality SP this offseason that should dramatically help the pitching, although the bullpen remains a concern with little depth. On the offense they are banking on a lot of mid-to late 30s veterans to prove that 2028 was an aberration (Seager, Senzel, Rendon, Madrigal, Harper). If everything breaks right I could see a team that wins 90 games and makes the playoffs led by a solid rotation (if they get and stay healthy). But I think it is more likely the veterans continue their decline and this team wins 70-80 games again.
St. Louis Cardinals:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: STL lost some key pieces to their season last year. They lost LF Jimenez (4th in SLG% in the league), SS Andrade (defensive specialist), C Naylor (worth 2.3 WAR), and 1B Bohm.
Players Acquired: They did sign one of the best pitchers based on per inning production – Del Rosario. They also acquired 2 backups OFers in Ealy (trade with CLE) & RF Brinson.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: LF Cates & RF Salinas – they both dropped 2.5-3 WAR from 2027-2028 where they went from 99 wins to 88 wins. They are both key pieces to this team and replacing Jimenez’s production.
Pitcher to Watch: SP Del Rosario – not for his production, but his ability to stay on the field. He had 9 different injuries in 2028 ranging from 1 day – 6 weeks, but had 2 separate 5 month injuries in 2027. If he can stay healthy he is one of the best in the game. They better hope their trainer is “acceptable” (shout out to BB & BCS fans).
Expectation: When healthy (big caveat), STL boasts the best rotation in baseball, led by Cy Young winner Edouard Attene. Their top 4 SP last year each made 31+ starts, that is what makes me love the Del Rosario addition. When he slides into an already dominant rotation and they are not counting on 25+ starts, he is one of the best. They did however lose some key contributors to their offense last year. Both catcher and SS look to be competitions between several players. It will be key for the winners of those battles to step up and for Cates & Salinas to bounce back. And all of that notwithstanding, they have a star prospect in 1B Wallace who will have his first full year in the big leagues. I really like this team and realistically see a 85-95 win season and competing for the division. But I would also not be surprised if everything clicks and they win 100+ games and they win the division.
Atlanta Braves:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: The huge loss here was 2B Wander Franco to FA. They also lost SP Senzatela (FA) and backup catcher Will Smith (trade).
Players Acquired: They also added some real talent this offseason. They signed RF Brodey (36 HRs last season) and traded for SP Yankosky (3.68 career FIP) in a blockbuster with MIN. They added a few relievers as well – RP Rogers & Poche. But their biggest addition by WAR last season looks to be a defensive backup in SS Del Castro.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: The second highest BA in the NL last year was .329. MVP Corral had a BA of .360. Besides watching Corral & Nixon because they are incredible talent, both missed significant time in 2027 due to injury, and both have a fragile tag. ATL will go as far as their 2 superstars will take them.
Pitcher to Watch: This rotation has several young arms that have not hit their potential yet. SP Montalvo put up a 4.74 ERA in his rookie season that he was already looking to improve upon. Then he got a nice TCR taking his ratings from 65/55/60 to 70/80/65. This guy could compete for a future Cy Young.
Expectation: ATL is coming off a 101 win season where they had the 2nd most runs scored in the league. And while I think they will miss 2B Franco (I am not in love with top prospect 2B Rael), the gains they made in their pitching should more than make up for it. While I think STL has the best rotation in baseball right now, if you ask me who I think it will be in 3 years I would say ATL. If Carpio, Luna, Montalvo, & Salazar can play up to their potential, and Corral & Nixon can stay healthy, this team will be deep in the playoffs once again. I will say a 90-100 win season to hedge on those few uncertainties, but 100+ wins is very attainable for this club.
Summary: I think they are 3 tiers in this division: top has ATL & STL fighting for the division (slight edge to ATL), middle has MIA & COL in the WC hunt, and PHI at the bottom in a rebuild. This is an underrated division and cannot wait to see how it plays out.
For the GMs of the NL Professional Division:
What was your biggest perceived weakness in the offseason, and what did you do to fix it?
What is your record prediction for your team this season?
Who is the most underrated player on your club?
What needs to happen for you to consider 2029 a successful season?
Who wins the NL Professional division this year?