As the New York Mets lament the myriad ways they contributed to the Kansas City Royals five-game World Series triumph, what cannot be forgotten is how little chance this club was given to reach the Fall Classic (or even win its division) at season’s start.
In today’s MLB, the status quo isn’t always met. Thanks to a mixture of overachievers and underachievers, the playoff picture in October often looks far different than what was originally projected during Spring Training.
Before the 2016 campaign begins, there will undoubtedly be many roster moves that alter the baseball power structure. But based on the current personnel, one team stands best to follow the path of the Mets by markedly exceeding expectations. And to find that team, you only have to look as far New York’s own division.
Those that run the Miami Marlins, led by snake oil salesman owner Jeffrey Loria, don’t necessarily endear themselves to the baseball public – seemingly more interested in their bottom line than their place in the NL East standings. But those that take the field generate plenty of excitement – even if attendance figures at home games don’t reflect it.
A case could be made that Miami has the best power pitcher and power hitter going. Jose Fernandez returned to the Marlins rotation in July to rave reviews following Tommy John Surgery – picking up where he left off in 2014. Over his 11 starts this year, the 23-year-old went 6-1 with a 2.92 earned run average and a 1.16 WHIP.
By the time Fernandez returned, Stanton had departed. The wrist injury he suffered in late June was enough to sideline him for the remainder of the season. In just 74 games and 279 at-bats, however, he was on pace for his best year yet – 27 home runs (most of them over 400 feet) and 67 runs batted in.
A clean bill of health for both in 2016, along with continued upward trend of fellow outfielder Christian Yelich, and there’s no way the Marlins don’t improve from the 71 wins they tallied in ’15.
If Mattingly manages the Marlins, he’d have Stanton, Gordon, and a guy who hit .342 in the second half of 2015: https://t.co/a3OV172FuF
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) October 24, 2015
With all the injuries, it probably slipped most people’s minds that Dee Gordon won the NL batting crown (at .333) and led the league in stolen bases (58). His on-base percentage, while not ideal, was a career-best .359. Should he raise it more, that’ll make him all the more beneficial to those in the middle of the order.
Gordon is set to return, but the insane Dan Jennings experiment is now done. Don Mattingly takes over as manager – hired last week. Despite falling out of favor with the Dodgers at the tail end of his tenure in Los Angeles, Mattingly did guide them to three straight postseason appearances and a winning percentage of .551 – the second best in the storied history of the franchise.
A continuation of that trend, even in Miami, isn’t as far-fetched as some may believe when you consider the talent in place.
With a combination of shrewd off-season improvements along with the avoidance of major injuries, and the Marlins are capable of making a significant leap forward in 2016.