NL Pythagorean Standings - Week 9
By Zach
Your local paper might list the MLB standings each morning, and a variety of sports websites update them daily. But usually, the won-loss record doesn't exactly tell the whole story. That's why we have Pythagorean wins. Tuesdays, I'll take a look at the AL Standings, while Wednesdays I'll examine the NL. Thanks to Hardball Times for the data.
NL East
Today's random question: Is there a first name in baseball that's performing as well as Carlos? I mean, you've got Beltran and Delgado on the Mets, Lee on the Brewers, Guillen on the Tigers, and Zambrano on the Cubs. A few other names have a couple of good players (the Miguels, Tejada and Cabrera, the Davids, Wright and Ortiz), but as far as multiple potential All-Stars? I think it's maybe Jason (Bay, Giambi, Varitek, Schmidt). Any other ideas?
NL Central
A few quick thoughts on this division: As Ben wrote earlier, Carpenter's injury throws this division back wide open: the Cardinals staff is mediocre at best without him. With Clemens coming back, the Astros could mount another charge, plus I still expect the Brewers to contend. Also, the Pirates have had some terrible luck: already a -6 PWin differential in May? Yikes.
NL West
To prove the point about records being misleading, at this point we'd expect Colorado and Pittsburgh to have identical records, yet the Pirates would be nine games back of the Rockies if they were in the same division. Luck may even out over time, but right now it's smiling on Denver and frowning on Pittsburgh. This division is perhaps the only one in the NL with two elite level teams, considering the Diamondback and Dodgers should be even better than their records, at least up to this point in the season.
See you all next week.
NL East
| Team | Real | Expected |
| New York | 31-20 | 29-22 |
| Philadelphia | 27-24 | 26-25 |
| Atlanta | 27-25 | 27-25 |
| Washington | 21-32 | 24-29 |
| Florida | 17-33 | 22-28 |
Today's random question: Is there a first name in baseball that's performing as well as Carlos? I mean, you've got Beltran and Delgado on the Mets, Lee on the Brewers, Guillen on the Tigers, and Zambrano on the Cubs. A few other names have a couple of good players (the Miguels, Tejada and Cabrera, the Davids, Wright and Ortiz), but as far as multiple potential All-Stars? I think it's maybe Jason (Bay, Giambi, Varitek, Schmidt). Any other ideas?
NL Central
| Team | Real | Expected |
| St. Louis | 33-19 | 31-21 |
| Cincinnati | 28-24 | 26-26 |
| Houston | 27-26 | 24-29 |
| Milwaukee | 26-26 | 23-29 |
| Chicago | 20-31 | 19-32 |
| Pittsburgh | 18-34 | 24-28 |
A few quick thoughts on this division: As Ben wrote earlier, Carpenter's injury throws this division back wide open: the Cardinals staff is mediocre at best without him. With Clemens coming back, the Astros could mount another charge, plus I still expect the Brewers to contend. Also, the Pirates have had some terrible luck: already a -6 PWin differential in May? Yikes.
NL West
| Team | Real | Expected |
| Arizona | 30-21 | 31-20 |
| Los Angeles | 30-22 | 32-20 |
| Colorado | 27-25 | 24-28 |
| San Diego | 27-25 | 27-25 |
| San Francisco | 26-26 | 26-26 |
To prove the point about records being misleading, at this point we'd expect Colorado and Pittsburgh to have identical records, yet the Pirates would be nine games back of the Rockies if they were in the same division. Luck may even out over time, but right now it's smiling on Denver and frowning on Pittsburgh. This division is perhaps the only one in the NL with two elite level teams, considering the Diamondback and Dodgers should be even better than their records, at least up to this point in the season.
See you all next week.
posted by Zach at 3:59 PM
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