Buck Showalter's Mets have been great from the start, winning series after series in April and May until they were 10 1/2 games ahead of the competition on June 1. After games on June 1, the Braves, the defending World Series champions, were 24-27, the Phillies were 22-29, and the Marlins were 20-28.
Nobody, least of all the Mets' manager, thought the Amazins would get away with anything. The Braves were 12-15 after the Mets split their lone series with them so far, in the first week of May, splitting four games. On the other hand, Showalter didn't base his decision on the rankings but on what he'd just witnessed. And the Braves had recently re-signed Ronald Acua, Jr.
Showalter said, "I don't care what their record says." "The Braves will always be the Braves." And now they're back, with 13 wins in a row through Tuesday night, cutting the Mets' East division lead to five games in what feels like an instant. The Phillies are only a game behind the Braves in the standings; before Corey Knebel gave up a lead to the Marlins in the ninth inning, they appeared to be on their way to improving their record to 10-1 under new manager Rob Thomson.
This time, the Marlins came back to win in the ninth inning. By the way, they're in fourth place in the East, four games under.500. But Don Mattingly's squad can pitch, and it may not have yet played its best ball, which may not help Miami much against the teams ahead of them.
The Braves are suddenly playing even better baseball than the Yankees, who have been playing ridiculously terrific baseball all season. Just ask the Philadelphia Phillies. They've won nine of their first 11 games under Thomson, jumped-started their season, but are still behind the Braves by two games in the standings while making up a lot of ground on the Mets, who were 5-5 on a recent trip to the West Coast.
We can all see how different the Eastern Conference standings are from June 1 to June 1. I can only imagine how they'll look by the middle of July when the Mets potentially have Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer back in the rotation. As exciting as Atlanta has been recent, with no indications of slowing down, Mets supporters have been watching what their club has accomplished without deGrom throwing a pitch yet. Scherzer shut down after only eight starts due to an oblique issue.
On the other hand, Showalter is unsurprised by the Braves of this June becoming the Braves of last October.
Before the Mets trounced the Brewers at Citi Field on Tuesday night, Showalter said, "I mean, you're all going to seek your level in a baseball season." "Everyone knew they were too good to [not] get there," says the narrator.
The NL East battle is just starting — 'Buckle up,' so the champions are on their way. And here come the Phillies, who have been playing like this since Dave Dombrowski replaced Joe Girardi with Thomson, a baseball lifer who has waited a long time for a chance like this and richly deserves it, his team sitting right behind the Braves, managed by another baseball lifer, Brian Snitker.
Over the weekend, I asked Dombrowski why he thought Thomson was the appropriate man for the job in Philadelphia.
"Rob is a fantastic baseball player who is well-versed in all parts of the game," Dombrowski said. He's a terrific communicator who gets along well with the players, coaches, front office staff, and the media. However, be tough when necessary. He also commands the respect of all of those individuals. I didn't think he'd be overwhelmed by our circumstances because of those qualities.
And like, the Phillies, one of the biggest disappointments of the season in April and May, now have a season in June. Is it looking like they'll be able to beat the Mets and Braves? It doesn't, at least for the time being. However, the Trade Deadline isn't far away, and Dombrowski has demonstrated in the past that he's not hesitant to make bold moves if he believes his club has a shot. For the time being, the most significant shift in the recent managerial move he made.
The Phillies went back to.500 after failing to reach 32-30 and suffering their first tough bullpen loss under Thomson. What about the Braves? They are a force of nature at this point, having not lost a game since May 31, even though one of their players, Ozzie Albies, will be out for at least the next two months with a broken foot.
Isn't it the same season we had in the East a few months ago? It's the one that began a few weeks ago in what is essentially a new 100-game season in the National League East. Another piece of advice on the division from the Mets' manager.
Buck said, "Buckle up."
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