The second half of the MLB season is underway, and while the Padres made quite the splash at the deadline yesterday, their chase for the NL West title isn't going to be the only tantalizing storyline over the next few months. Here are a few storylines/predictions for the rest of this MLB season to keep an eye out for:
1.) White Sox make the playoffs behind Dylan Cease's Cy Young season
Despite an All-Star snub, Dylan Cease has been one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball this season. His 161 strikeouts and 2.01 ERA both rank 3rd in all the MLB, and his team-high 11 wins are tied for 4th most in the league. He's still got some work to do to catch up to Justin Verlander, whose resurgence has been a welcome sign for Astros fans, but with nearly 40 more k's in 8 fewer innings of work, Cease will undoubtedly be in the Cy Young conversation at year's end. Cease isn't the only promising young arm in the White Sox's rotation either, and even though he's been in and out of the bullpen with injuries the past few years and currently has a record of just 4-7, Michael Kopech has been putting an insane arsenal on display all season. Looking past the win/loss column, Kopech touts a modest 3.12 ERA and has punched out 81 hitters in 95 innings of work thanks to an electric fastball and a devastating slider that he throws in the mid to high 80s. Despite solid pitching, it's been a frustrating year for the White Sox. Despite having the fourth-best team batting average in the league (.257), they've been struggling to come up with those clutch hits, ranking in the bottom half of the league in RBIs. But after going 16-11 in July, they find themselves just 2 games back in the division, and with Luis Robert having just been re-activated off of the IL, the team looks poised to make a run for the AL Central crown.
2.) Bryce returns and the NL East sends 3 teams to the playoffs
Despite Atlanta winning the division 4 of the last 5 years, the NL East has been a bloodbath recently. With the additions of Max Scherzer, Starling Marte, and Chris Bassit, along with the resurgence of Edwin Diaz, the Mets have emerged as serious contenders to make it out of the NL East this year. However, it is the Mets we're talking about, and even though deGrom made his return yesterday which solidifies one of the best rotations in baseball, the Mets always seem to find a way to shoot themselves in the foot. Take yesterday's game for example, despite an immediate return to form from deGromm who struck out 6 allowing just one run in 5 innings of work, New York still managed to lose 5-1 to the Juan Soto-less Nationals. Speaking of the Nats, after their improbable World Series title in 2019, Washington now finds themselves alongside Miami on the outside looking in which isn't all that surprising considering their inability to retain their star players as of late (see Harper, Turner, Rendon, Scherzer, and most recently Juan Soto). That leaves Atlanta and Philly. Atlanta got off to a slow start to the year, but despite what now seems to have been some obvious collusion by Freddie Freeman's agent to get him to LA this past offseason, the Braves have come storming back as of late trailing the Mets by just 2.5 games. Their addition of Kenley Jansen this past offseason has been paying dividends, and their young core continues to produce at the plate. This brings us to the Phillies. Despite now finding themselves 10 games back in the NL East race after an embarrassing loss to the Braves last night, the Phills still find themselves tied with St. Louis for the NL's third wildcard spot.
Although the team has struggled to stay healthy, the offseason addition of Kyle Schwarber and the rise of prospects Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott have propelled the Phillies to one of the better offenses in the league believe it or not. 10th in overall team batting average (.248), and 8th in RBIs (457), Philly has managed to stay afloat through the absence of their best player in Bryce Harper. Harper who had been dealing with a UCL sprain since the beginning of the year was sidelined last month with a fractured thumb that required three pins to be inserted. Luckily for Phillies fans, as of the beginning of the week, those screws are no more and Bryce has begun ramping up his rehab with hopes of being re-inserted to the lineup potentially as early as later this month. Despite the injury, Harper was selected as the first All-Star DH in NL history batting .318 with 15 HRs and 48 RBIs in just 64 games played. If and when he's able to make it back into the lineup, he'd be inserted alongside current NL home run leader Kyle Schwarber who ranks second in all the MLB with 33 dingers. Take into account that the Phillies just went out and got another legitimate starter in Noah Syndergaard along with suitable replacements for their two worst players in Jeuryias Familia and Odubel Herrara who were both designated for assignment after acquiring Brandon Marsh and bringing back David Robertson, and suddenly this Philly ballclub is looking much more well-rounded. Call it bias if you will, but already holding a tiebreaker over both the Cardinals and the Padres, if Philadelphia can get their MVP back in the lineup there's a strong case to be made that the NL East will have three representatives in the postseason this year.
3.) Juan Soto and the Padres chase down the Dodgers in the NL West
Look, we said it wasn't the only storyline you should be keeping an eye on, but that doesn't mean the Padres' quest for the NL West isn't something you should be paying attention to. And I know you're sitting there laughing as you read this with the Padres currently 12 games back on the Dodgers, but here are a couple of things to think about. For starters, yesterday's trade deadline changed everything for San Diego. Having acquired MLB save leader Josh Hader earlier in the week, San Diego was already set themselves up for a postseason run (currently +3.5 on the Cardinals and Phillies in the Wild Card rankings), but they weren't done there. In case you've been living under a rock and missed it, San Diego went out and got Washington Slugger Juan Soto at the deadline creating what might be one of the best offensive trios this league has seen in some time. Though he is still technically injured, Fernando Tatis Jr. has been back taking live ab's and looks to be ready to make his return sooner rather than later. When he does return to the lineup, the Padres will be rolling out a lineup that consists of Tatis, Home Run Derby champ Juan Soto, and All-Star Manny Machado who currently leads the team in essentially every offensive category slashing .288, with 18 HRs, 58 RBIs, and a .364 OBP. The second thing you should consider is that Sand Diego and LA will meet 12 more times before the regular season ends, not to mention 7 games against the now hapless Washington Nationals. If the Padres can handle business in those matchups, this divisional race is going to be air-tight heading into the last few series of the season.
4.) Carlos Rodon captures his first Cy Young
Just one year removed from going 107-55, the Giants took a big step backward this season currently sitting at 51-53, 19.5 games out in the NL West, and 3.5 out from a wildcard spot. While the team as a whole has yet to play their best ball, Carlos Rodon has been bringing his A-game all year long. Rodon, who was rumored as a possible trade candidate at yesterday's deadline boasts a National League-best 11.6 K/9, striking out 158 in 123.0 IP. His 158 strikeouts are 4th best in the MLB and his 3.00 ERA is nothing to scoff at either. While Sandy Alcantara and his 1.99 ERA seem to be the front-runner for the NL Cy Young, with Edwin Diaz dominating in Queens, and Josh Hader leading the MLB in saves, it's still anyone's race, and Rodon remains very much in the mix. SF still being in the hunt for a wildcard spot can't be overlooked either as it's very possible we see this team elevate their play in hopes of making a late playoff push which would only further benefit Rodon's case because let's face it, everyone loves a winner and the Marlins sadly are not that.
Written by: Jonathan Abbott
August 3rd, 2022