Atlanta Braves — After the 2009 season, the Braves were talking like a team that was getting ready for some hard times.  There was talk of payroll cuts and the Braves sent their best pitcher, Javier Vazquez, to the Yankees for Melky Cabrera and a couple of minor league pitchers. 

All was not dark and gloomy in Atlanta, however.  Early in the off season, the Braves added closer Billy Wagner and closer/set up man Takashi Saito to achor their bullpen.  But Braves fans were unconvinced.  The Braves searched for a power hitting first baseman, but the best they could do was sign Troy Glaus.

And then something happened in Spring Training.  And that something was named Jason Heyward.  Heyward is generally considered to be the top prospect in all of baseball.  His play this Spring has energized the Braves and has excited Braves fans.  The vibe around the Braves is completely different now than it was just a couple of months ago.

The strength of the club is their starting pitching.  Even without Vazquez, the Braves boast five excellent arms.  Derek Lowe will be looking for a bounce back year, as will former ace Tim Hudson.  Both are entering 2010 healthy and with something to prove.  Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson are two bright stars on the rise.  The Braves are counting on them to repeat, and even improve on, their 2009 numbers.  The number five starter is a very capable Kenshin Kawakami.  His won-loss record was not great last year, but he had a very respectable ERA.

The bullpen is improved with the addition of the aforementioned Wagner and Saito.  Neither is a spring chicken, so staying healthy will be key for both.

The Braves infield includes future hall of famer Chipper Jones at third, Yunel Escobar at short, Martin Prado at second and Troy Glaus at first.  Jones will be the key to the offense and Glaus, despite not being an elite first baseman, will not embarrass himself.  Brian McCann will be the man behind the plate and can be counted on for 20-30 homeruns, provided he can stay healthy.

The outfield includes Melky Cabrera in left, Nate McLouth in center, and rookie phenom Jason Heyward in right.  There’s not a lot of power in the outfield, so look for Atlanta to play some small ball and take advantage of their speed.

The Braves will contend for the division title.  Even if they come up short, I still expect them to make the playoffs as the NL Wildcard team.

Florida Marlins — The Marlins have a habit of overachieving.  Last year they finished the season with an 87-75 record, good for second in the NL East, despite being picked by many pundits to finish near the bottom of the division.

The Marlins rotation is young, but with great potential.  Josh Johnson leads the way along with Ricky Nolasco.  A lot is also expected from Anibal Sanchez.  The Marlins picked up Nate Robertson from the Tigers.  It’s unclear where he’ll fit in, but he’ll be looking for a bounce back year back in Florida after a disappointing stay in Detroit.

Leo Nunez will handle the closer duties for a good, but not great, bullpen.  Renyel Pinto, Dan Meyer (lefties), Brian Sanchez and Burke Badenhop (righties) give the Marlins bullpen good balance. 

The infield is stout with Jorge Cantu at third, Hanley Ramirez at short, and Dan Uggla at second.  Rookie Gaby Sanchez has been given the nod at first, and Ronny Paulino will do the catching.

The outfield is not quite as strong as the infield.  Chris Coughlin will play left and will hit for average.  Cameron Maybin will man center field, and Cody Ross will play right.  The outfield provides good defense, but not much power.

New York Mets — Is there a more underachieving team in baseball that the New York Mets?  They somehow take a team that includes top players like David Wright, Jose Reyes, and Carlos Beltran, and turn them into a sub-.500 team.  Granted, injuries played a huge role last year, but it’s more than that.  They just seem to be in a constant state of crisis.

Having everyone healthy in 2010 would help, but it doesn’t look like that is going to happen.  Beltran will start the season on the DL following knee surgery in the off season.  The Mets hope to have him back in May.  Reyes is battling thyroid issues which has limited his activity this Spring and may land him on the DL to start the season. 

But all is not bad news in New York.  The Mets landed Jason Bay in the off season and will have him in left field to start the season.  Third baseman David Wright is healthy and looking for a better year at the plate.  In 2009, Wright saw his power largely fail him, hitting just 10 homeruns.

Luis Castillo returns at second base, despite the Mets off season efforts to trade him.  He’ll be joined on the right side of the infield by first baseman Daniel Murphy.  Murphy began the 2009 season as the Mets left fielder, but disapointed at the plate.  He’ll be looking to add some offense to his game this year.

Behind the plate, the Mets have several options, but none are very good.  The team began the off season searching for a catching upgrade.  What they got was a cathing change, but not much of an upgrade.  They picked up Chris Coste (since released), Henry Blanco and Rod Barajas.  It appears that Barajas will get the start with either Blanco or Omar Santos handling the back up duties.

In the off season, the Mets picked up Gary Matthews from the Angels.  That was a head scratcher.  But what was even more puzzling is that in Spring Training, the Mets started shopping Matthews.  It’s unclear if Matthews will fill in for Beltran in center until Beltran comes back from the DL, or if the Mets have just given up on him.  Odd, but par for the course for the Mets. 

On the pitching side of things, the Mets are weak.  Johan Santana continues to be an ace, but the Mets have one of the league’s worst rotations behind him.  In the bullpen, closer Francisco Rodriguez is looking to come back from the worst year in his career.  Both of these guys will have to fire on all cylinders for the Mets to have a prayer in 2010.

Philadelphia Phillies — The NL’s best team in 2009 actually improved their team in the off season.  The big change was picking up Roy Halladay from the Blue Jays.  They lost Cliff Lee in the process, but the Phils rotation should be even better than last year, especially if Cole Hamels can regain his 2008 form.  Joe Blanton, J.A. Happ, and Kyle Kendrick round out the Phillies rotation.  Jamie Moyer is still around and will also get some starts.

The bullpen could end up being the Phillies achilles heel, depending on which Brad Lidge shows up in 2010.  If the 2009 version of Lidge shows up, the Phils will be scrambling to find a replacement.  But if Lidge circa 2008 makes an appearance, the Phils should be good to go.

The Fightins also improved themselves at third base in the off season.  They lost Pedro Feliz to free agency, but replaced him with Placido Polanco.  Polanco will be moving from second to third, but should make the transition with no problem.

Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley continue to anchor the middle of the infield, and Ryan Howard brings his big bat back to first for the Phils.  Carlos Ruiz will once again handle the catching duties.  He is strong defensively and improving offensively.  The Phillies infield should not be a concern.

There are some question marks in the outfield.  Can left fielder Raul Ibanez repeat his terrific 2009, or was his fall off in the second half last year a precursor of things to come.  Can center fielder Shane Victorino maintain his aggressive style of play and stay healthy all year.  Jayson Werth is in his contract year.  That should bode well for the right fielder.

Philadelphia is still the class of the field.  Once again, they will be the team to beat in 2010.

Washington Nationals — Washington will be better in 2010 than in 2009, but they still won’t be very good.  All of the hype surrounding the Nationals concerns Stephen Strasburg.  Sure, he deserves the hype, but he’s going to start the season in the minors and won’t be a savior when he arrives in the big leagues later this year.

The rest of the starting rotation is mediocre to weak.  Jason Marquis has led a charmed life, being on 10 consecutive playoff teams.  However, he’s being asked by the Nationals to be a number one starter, which he is not.  He’ll eat innings, but doesn’t have the stuff to lead a staff.  He’ll be joined by John Lannen, Scott Olsen, J.D. Martin, and Garrett Mock to start the season. 

In the bullpen, it looks like Matt Capps will take on the closer’s role with Brian Bruney acting as the 8th inning set up man.  Miguel Batista adds some depth to the Nationals bullpen.

Third baseman Ryan Zimmerman and first baseman Adam Dunn provide the power for the Nationals offense.  Josh Willingham could add another 15-20 homers.  Nyjer Morgan will use his speed in center field and on the base paths.  Ian Desmond won the shortstop job over Christian Guzman (despite paying Guzman $8 million per year), and Adam Kennedy will play second.

Behind the plate will be Ivan Rodriguez.  Does he have anything left in the tank?  Every time someone writes him off, he seems to come back and prove them wrong.  Can he do that again this year at the age of 38?

Here’s how I expect the NL East to finish in 2010:

1. Philadelphia Phillies
2. Atlanta Braves
3. Florida Marlins
4. New York Mets
5. Washington Nationals

Next time, I’ll take a look at the NL West, and then I’ll finish up with the NL Central.