Mets NL East Sunday Battleground: 2021 season predictions

Marlins

The feel-good story in baseball last year was the Miami Marlins. They came out of nowhere and shocked the world by not only making the playoffs but actually winning a round. They had the National League Manager of the Year in Don Mattingly and overcame a massive Covid outbreak that sidelined half of their roster at one time. Yes, a lot of their wins came in shortened seven-inning doubleheaders but they still deserve a lot of praise for what they accomplished.

With that being said, with more of a regular-season taking place I do not expect the Marlins to be anywhere near the playoff picture. They simply don’t have the talent that the other four teams in this division do.

They do have some really good young pitching in Sandy Alcantara, Sixto Sanchez, and Pablo Lopez. But other than that, their lineup is pretty weak and their bullpen is not very impressive on paper. They lost their best reliever from last year Brandon Kintzler in free agency.

I do believe if they played in another division they would be more competitive because I am a very big believer in their pitching. I think Sixto Sanchez is a future ace and Sandy Alcantara is really good too.

The Adam Duvall signing I like as he is a power bat that can hit some home runs in their massive ballpark but other than that, I don’t see so many threats in that lineup that really make me think this team will be a contender in this division.

In a couple of years when more of their prospects come up or if they decide to ever spend money on bats in free agency, they should be really good but this is not their year.

Record: 72-90

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