THERE FOR THE TAKING
ALL FIVE NL Central teams are projected by Fangraphs to win between 77 and 83 games, the smallest range of any division. The bunching ref lects the reality of a division in which every team can believe it has a shot. Optimism should abound in Cincinnati. Last year its offense paced the majors with 190 stolen bases and helped the Reds rebound from 2022’s 100-loss campaign to an 82–80 record. The future looks bright when you consider that Elly De La Cruz, Matt Mclain, Christian Encarnacion-strand, Andrew Abbott and Hunter Greene all have yet to turn 25.
The Cubs will have a fresh start under new manager Craig Counsell, poached from division foe Milwaukee. He will have more offensive weapons to work with in Chicago, which ranked behind only the Braves and Dodgers in runs scored in the NL last year while finishing one game back in the wild-card race. The Brewers are the defending division champion but also a team in transition after losing not only Counsell but also top executive David Stearns, who went to the Mets, and ace Corbin Burnes, who was traded to the Orioles ahead of his pending free agency after this season.
In St. Louis, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak spent this offseason trying to mend a rotation whose ERA (5.07) ranked 26th in the majors and sunk St. Louis to its first-ever last-place finish in the NL Central. The Cards signed veterans Sonny Gray, Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn, meaning their rotation will be composed entirely of starters entering their age-33 to age-37 seasons.
Then there’s the Pirates, who have to feel that the Reds jumped them on the road to a rebuild. The team with the NL’S lowest payroll has again added cost-friendly veterans who should outplay their salaries. But manager Derek Shelton and GM Ben Cherington, now in their fifth year together, must show progress after winning 76 games last season.