MLB 2022 National League 1st Half Recap

The National League, Major League Baseball's senior circuit, also has its share of intriguing storylines and surprises. Much like the American League, these developments are a result of the new postseason format, which now allows three Wild Cards in each league. The National League picture does look quite interesting entering the break, and the storylines and standings are as follows:

East: The best story in the National League during this 2022 season, IMO, is the New York Mets. As a baseball fan, I'm elated that the Mets are having a good year, and it's mainly because the team has been disrespected for the last few years. The sad part is that some of it is warranted; the Mets have been known to be a trainwreck at times. But here's the thing: this team was in the World Series just seven years ago! In a sport like baseball, that's a cup of coffee. The Mets went on a huge tear to start the season, and this was all despite playing a good bit without both Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, though the latter has returned.

However, the Mets enter the break seeing their huge division lead dwindle bit by bit by bit. At some point, the Mets had the largest division lead in the league, but they started falling off during the Atlanta Braves' big time winning stretch. As a result, the Mets enter the break with a 2.5 game lead in the East, and the two teams will face each other 12 times in the 2nd half.

Speaking of the Braves, they had a doozy of a World Series hangover to start the season, but apparently, the cure for said hangover was the summer season. They were 23-27 entering the month of June, and it looked like they were in for another struggling start. Since June 1, the Braves won 33 of their following 44 games, and though they have yet to catch the Mets in the East, they're close entering the break. The Braves enter the break in a much better position than they did last year, but remember: last year ended with the Braves as World Champions in spite of their standing at the halfway point. The team is more healthy and more consistent this year than they were a year prior, which will make their 12 remaining meetings with the Mets very interesting.

Central: I don't know what it is about the Central Divisions. I still remember the modified postseason in 2020, which saw 16 teams qualify and play in the Wild Card Series, which ended with every Central Division team eliminated in that opening round. Both Central Divisions have fallen off since then, and this year is no exception. The NL Central does look quite mediocre this season, to the point where the Pittsburgh Pirates (of all teams) are in third place in the division. It's a distant third for the Bucs, as the Central is a two team race, and it's the same two teams: the Milwaukee Brewers and the St. Louis Cardinals.

A half game separates the two teams in the division race. The Brewers and Cards each have 50 wins, and regarding head-to-head, the season series is even: 12 meetings, six wins each. The final seven meetings will tell the tale, as there are no more Game 163s in baseball, so if the Brewers and Cardinals do end up tied for first place, the winner of the season series will take the Central.

West: Before the 2022 season started, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts guaranteed that his team would win the World Series this year, which would be the second in three years. The Dodgers have been a National League superpower since 2016, and it's resulted in three pennants and a championship in 2020. They're reached the NLCS five times in the last six seasons, and from the looks of it, the Dodgers look to be a serious threat to go deep in the postseason once again. The Dodgers enter the break with the National League's best record (60-30) and a 10-game lead in the National League West.

The wins have come despite injuries in their rotation, first Clayton Kershaw was out, but as soon as he returned, it was Walker Buehler's turn to go on the injured list. Closer Craig Kimbrel hasn't been consistent since taking the spot left vacant by the departure of Kenley Jansen (now with the Braves), but again, the Dodgers appear to be uncrowned #1 Contenders in the National League. It's a close race in the overall standings between the Dodgers and the Mets, and don't be surprised if this is the NLCS this year.

Wild Card: The National League's Wild Card race is pretty interesting entering the break. It's a five team race at this point, with the Braves and San Diego Padres holding two of the spots, while the third features a tie between the Philadelphia Phillies and the aforementioned Cardinals, and the San Francisco Giants (who won 107 games in 2021) are a half game behind the postseason line. Let's talk about the Phillies, who finally did something they should have done two years prior: they fired Joe Girardi. Girardi is not a good manager. As a Yankees fan, I still remember how he bungled...well...everything, and kept the team out of the postseason too many times to count. Look at the Phillies. They have the strongest lineup in the National League, and it's led by the best player in MLB in Bryce Harper. Yet in three seasons with Bryce, they have not made the postseason. The problem was clearly Girardi.

The Phillies were 22-29 when Girardi was canned, and since playing under interim manager Rob Thomson, the team is 24-12 and in a playoff position. This is all in spite of Bryce Harper being out for weeks, and he could be back before the season's out. If he does return, the Phillies should ease into a postseason berth, and could possibly pass the Braves and Mets in the NL East, but as always, time will tell.

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