Where the Mets rank in the NL East entering 2022

4. Miami Marlins

While the Marlins may not have the big names that the Nationals have, they are much better than people think. The Marlins have an extremely young team that is on the rise, and the main reason for their rise is their pitching staff. Sandy Alcantara heads a young pitching staff that features established young starters: Trevor Rogers and Pablo Lopez. Rogers was named to the All-Star team last year as a rookie, while Alcantara threw over 200 innings, and served as the ace of the staff, and Lopez pitched to an ERA just over 3.0. Add in tantalizing young arms Jesus Luzardo and Sixto Sanchez, and the Marlins could have one of the most dominant rotations in all of baseball this year.

As for the offense, the team may not boast a top-end lineup, but they surely are no slouches either. Newly acquired Jorge Soler figures to bolster the lineup, after signing a three-year contract last week with the team. The World Series hero proved he can play in the clutch last year for the Braves and will join the likes of Jazz Chisholm, Jesus Aguilar, Joey Wendle, Miguel Rojas, and Avisail Garcia. While it is not one of the most potent offenses in the league they can surely hold their own.

Like the rest of their team, the Miami bullpen is not comprised of any big names, however the unit as a whole pitched very well last year. Dylan Floro flourished in the closer role last year, and figures to return to it this season after pitching to a 2.81 ERA with 15 saves in 64 innings, according to Baseball Reference. He is joined by Anthony Bender, Richard Bleier, and Steven Okert, all of whom had ERA's under 3.0 last season. If the team can get results like that out of their bullpen again this season, they should have one of the league's better bullpens.

Despite losing, Starling Marte and Adam Duvall the Marlins figure to be the fourth best team in the division, while likely seeing some improvement upon their 67 win season last year. While their lineup may hold them back a bit, they have one of the most underrated pitching staffs in all of baseball, and play in a pitcher friendly ballpark, which should aid them heavily.