That Balls Outta Here
FanSided

How do the Phillies stack up against their NL East foes?

By Seth Humeniuk

NAGOYA, JAPAN - NOVEMBER 15: (L to R) Infielder Amed Rosario #1 of the New York Mets, Outfielder Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals, Infielder Carlos Santana #41 of the Philadelhia Phillies and Pitcher Kenta Maeda #18 of the Los Angeles Dodgers are seen prior to the game six between Japan and MLB All Stars at Nagoya Dome on November 15, 2018 in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images)
NAGOYA, JAPAN - NOVEMBER 15: (L to R) Infielder Amed Rosario #1 of the New York Mets, Outfielder Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals, Infielder Carlos Santana #41 of the Philadelhia Phillies and Pitcher Kenta Maeda #18 of the Los Angeles Dodgers are seen prior to the game six between Japan and MLB All Stars at Nagoya Dome on November 15, 2018 in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. (Photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images) /
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Phillies
PHILADELPHIA, PA – SEPTEMBER 11: Juan Soto #22 of the Washington Nationals hits a two run home run in the top of the fourth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies in game two of the doubleheader at Citizens Bank Park on September 11, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Washington Nationals

Where the Phillies are better: Bullpen. The Washington Nationals have come a long way from the days of Jonathan Papelbon choking people out and have built a pretty solid bullpen. They posted an ERA of 4.05, allowing 247 runs and 81 homers. Sean Doolittle is lights out as a closer, converting 25 of 26 attempts last season.

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The Phillies’ bullpen actually posted worse numbers than Washington last year (4.19 ERA, 290 runs and 67 homers), but the offseason additions of David Robertson, James Pazos, Juan Nicasio, and Jose Alvarez should change that.

This year, Seranthony Dominguez and Robertson should vie for the role of “Guy who comes into the ninth inning with his team leading by three runs or less and records the final three outs” since Gabe Kapler doesn’t believe in closers. Hector Neris and Pat Neshek are also elite relievers at their best, so long as the former doesn’t need another demotion to stay in form all year.

Where are the Phillies worse: Starting Pitching. I know I said the same thing about the Mets, but this is just the nature of this division. Four of the top five Cy Young vote-getters reside in the NL East, and the Nationals have two of them. Max Scherzer went 18-7 last year with a 2.57 ERA and exactly 300 Ks to finish as the Cy Young runner-up. The Nationals also signed Patrick Corbin in the offseason, coming off an 11-7 record, with a 3.15 ERA and 246 strikeouts.

Next. Bryce Harper deal to be done by Monday afternoon. dark

You know your rotation is good when Stephen Strasburg, who was the first pick of the ’09 draft and has a career ERA of pi (3.14) gets lost in the shuffle. Like the Mets, the Nationals also have a top-5 rotation in baseball. It will be interesting to see how the Phillies hitters fare against their division foes this year.

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