The National League was extremely top-heavy with THREE teams earning over 100 wins in 2022, including Atlanta, the NL East champion. While none of those teams even advanced to the NLCS, they're all loaded in Showdown -- for Atlanta, even with Acuna performing well below his usual standard due to injury, that means a deep rotation and very, very fun bullpen.
At this point, I'm going to keep sharing fun cards I recently made of old stars...
So I hope you enjoy this powerful, elite defender -- HOF or no for Jones?
Let's get to the team!
Lineup: You can understand how this lineup would be great over 162 games vs a plethora of 3500ish pt teams while also seeing why it didn't perform in the postseason against some nasty Control 3, 1-18 out pitchers in Philly. Acuna had an unfortunate down year, but oddly gave managers a fantastic value pick -- OB 8, 240 pts with xbh starting at 14??? Sign me up! There are no hitters with an OB higher than 8, but they've got five OB 8 guys and most of them are 350 pts or better. Rookie of the Year Michael Harris is an absolute stud, with a 12 to begin the xbh and 18-20 HR mixed with A speed. Riley and (now a Brewer) Contreras bring 360 pt power to the middle of the lineup, along with OB 7 Matt Olsen's all or nothing OB 7, 12-15 2B, 16-20 HR chart. Olsen can absolutely make low control pitching pay, but comparing him to Freeman's card and it's clear Atlanta made a huge mistake letting Freddie walk... we'll see if the same is true with Swanson, but he seems more easily replaced. He had a career year and it resulted in a 350 pt, OB 8 card that will be more sought after because of its +5 defense than expecting him to be a top 4 hitter in a lineup. From the remaining OB 6 hitters, I think Duvall will get the most love in drafts because of that sweet, sweet CF +3 for under 200 pts.
Bench: D'Arnaud gives Atlanta two very draftable catchers in a 12 team league, and honestly I'd flip him into Ozuna's lineup spot asap. Vaughn Grissom has another OB 8 card that can sub in for Albies and it'll be interesting to see him take Swanson's SS position after a 2B+0 year... can he come close to matching that SS +5?
Rotation: Another year, another dominate Atlanta rotation. The Tier 2, Control 3 pitcher feels like the most common pitcher in this year's set (at least on these good teams), and Atlanta has their own version in studs Max Fried and Spencer Strider. Neither gives up a double, making them extra enticing from a draft perspective. I think Fried's 9-14 GB range is going to draw more attention, but for my team building constructions, I'm infatuated with Strider's 1-10 K range. Kyle Wright is a Tier 3, Control 3 with no doubles... his card is another great example of why Wins (Kyle was 21-5) are a useless stat, as he was a whole step below Fried and Strider. Charlie Morton rounds out the rotation with the David Cone starter card... sure, he's got higher control, but we all know how frustrating that kind of card can be!
Bullpen: If that rotation wasn't good enough for y'all, the bullpen should take a weight off your shoulders! We start off with TWO Tier 2 big name closers, including save leader Kenley Jansen. They're supported by a TWO Derek Lowe clones -- what a luxury!! Not only are they Tier 1 studs, but the Control 6 will let them easily pitch multiple innings. Rounding it out is an affordable 160 pt Dylan Lee -- another Tier 2 with no doubles! This bullpen is perfect for a strong regular season and honestly all five should be drafted in a 12 team league!
Atlanta's 22 players come in at 6230 points. It really feels like they're one big bat away from being as good as the Dodgers (or even Phillies)... but I think that comes not from new catcher Sean Murphy, but Ronald Acuna returning to 500ish pt form. End of the day -- the NL East is going to be a special sort of competitive this upcoming year!
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