October is right around the corner. This is one of the most exciting times of the year for baseball fans. But before the playoffs, many teams’ fates will be decided in the last few months of the season. In the National League, there are quite a few playoff spots yet to be decided. The NL West is the only division that is undoubtedly set in stone at this point, as the Dodgers almost have a 20 game lead in the division. The other two divisions, as well as the Wild Card spots, are certainly up for grabs. Let’s take a look at which teams will get hot in the remaining months of the season and secure one of these coveted playoff spots.
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers have had a very up and down season. They got off to a very hot start, but since then, have been an extremely inconsistent team. Currently, they sit one game behind both the Cardinals and Cubs in the NL Central. But the Brewers have one thing that neither of those other two teams have: Christian Yelich.
The end of August and September will be huge for the Brew Crew. They have nine games against the Cardinals in the final two months, who they are currently 5-5 against on the season. Unfortunately, only three of these games will be in Milwaukee. They will need to steal a few of these games on the road in order to overtake the Cardinals in the division.
They also play the Cubs a total of seven times at the end of August and beginning of September; they are 5-7 against Chicago on the season. Four of the seven against the Cubs will be in Milwaukee, though, and the Brewers play better at home than on the road.
Aside from the big divisional series, the Brewers have an easier schedule for the remainder of the season than the Cardinals and Cubs. Although they have more road games than home games, they will play a couple of NL bottom-feeders like the Marlins, Pirates, and Rockies.
The Brewers just seem like a team with too much talent to miss the playoffs. They have one of the best players in the MLB in a loaded lineup that also consists of Ryan Braun, Mike Moustakas, and Lorenzo Cain. Other than Christian Yelich, they have not had their best seasons at the plate, but they all have the ability to get hot really quickly. The Brewers’ offense ranks third in the NL in homeruns and are in the middle of the pack in batting average and OPS. The offense is by far the strength of this team and it will be on them to get hot in order for the Brewers to make the playoffs.
Although the Brewers have had a very rocky season, expect Christian Yelich to continue his MVP-caliber season through the final two months and carry the team on his back into the playoffs.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves have one of the brightest young cores in all of baseball and they have proven that they are ready to compete in the 2019 season. They currently hold the second best record in the National League — behind the Dodgers, of course.
The Braves pitching is far from superb, but the staff has done a very nice job so far this season. Rookie sensation, Mike Soroka, has been spectacular this season, pitching to a 2.32 ERA. Aside from Soroka, Dallas Keuchel, Max Fried, and Julio Teheran have been serviceable throughout the year. If the Braves’ bullpen can tighten up, Atlanta will be an even scarier team come October.
The part that makes the Braves one of the scariest teams in the MLB is their lineup. They have one of the best lineups in all of baseball, headlined by their young superstar Ronald Acuna, Jr. Their young guys have played fantastic all year long. But it seems that every championship-caliber team needs some seasoned veterans to make a long playoff run, and the Braves have this as well. Brian McCann, Josh Donaldson, Freddie Freeman, and Nick Markakis have been huge for the Braves this season. As a team, the Braves are batting .264 (3rd best in the NL) with an OPS of .801 (2nd best in the NL). With no glaring holes in their everyday starting lineup and a solid bench, the Braves look to remain remain hot in the final months of the season and into their playoff run.
Los Angeles Dodgers
It may be cheating to put the Dodgers on this list, but it’s hard not to. They are the class of the National League and are possibly the best team in the MLB. The NL West race has been pretty much decided since the beginning of June, and they are currently almost 20 games ahead of the second place team.
Although the Dodgers don’t have the best lineup in baseball, anyone on their roster can get the job done on any given night. This has been showcased by their 10 walk-off wins this season. They are extremely efficient in the box with the best on-base percentage in the National League. They also have the most homeruns in the National League, they strikeout the third least of any NL team, and they have a run differential of +208. To sum up the Dodgers’ offense, they do everything well. Oh, and they also have likely NL MVP, Cody Bellinger, who is having a historic season.
Hyping up the offense that much might be unfair to the work their pitching staff has done this season. They lead the NL in ERA at 3.33 and are second in strikeouts with 1,125. The incredible part about the pitching staff being so good is that Clayton Kershaw isn’t even their best pitcher this season. Hyun-Jin Ryu has been a very good pitcher throughout his career with a career ERA of 2.84. But in 2019, he is having a Cy Young caliber season, pitching to a 1.45 ERA. Not only is he not allowing many runs to cross the plate, but his command has been remarkable, giving only 17 free passes so far (1.1 BB/9). Behind Ryu, Kershaw and Walker Buehler are also having fantastic seasons. Their bullpen is the worst part of the team, but even they are fourth in NL ERA.
Overall, the Dodgers have been the best team in baseball this season, and have shown no signs of slowing down. Expect them to breeze through the remainder of their schedule and enter the postseason as one of the hottest teams in the league.
The real question is, will they finally win a World Series after losing the last two?
