Which Is The Best Team In The NL Central

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The National League Central is arguably the tightest division in the majors right now. Thats subjective but borne out by projection systems. The have all five teams currently slated for between 83 and 77 wins, the smallest spread from first to last out of the six divisions. The arent quite as tight, with a spread of 11.7 games from first to last, but thats still narrower than any other division in the league.  Last year, the Brewers took the division fairly easily, going 92-70 and finishing nine games up on the second-place Cubs. But a lot has changed since then and there could still be more changes to come. The Boras Four of  ,  ,  and  remain unsigned, as do several other free agents. One of those players joining an NL Central club could change the calculation but lets take a look at where things stand now, in order of last years standings.  Brewers: 92-70 in 2023, FG projects 80 wins in 2024, PECOTA 79  The reigning champions have undergone some significant changes, particularly in their rotation.  underwent shoulder surgery late last year, with the rehab putting his 2024 season in jeopardy. He was non-tendered and re-signed but wont be a factor until late in the upcoming season, if at all. On top of that, the club traded  to the Orioles, meaning they are now without both of their co-aces from recent years.  That makes the rotation clearly weaker than it has been in previous seasons, even though they did acquire some reinforcements.  came over in the Burnes trade and the Brewers will give him a chance to earn a rotation job. They also re-signed  and  in addition to bringing in  and  to back up  , who has now been vaulted to the top spot. Prospects  and  could push for roles during the season.  While the starting rotation has clearly been diminished, the lineup should be better. They didnt lose any core pieces from last years position player mix while they have signed free agents  and  for some extra thump. Prospect  should  Kelly Olynyk Jersey be up to make his debut this year while other young players like  ,  and  will hopefully continue to take steps forward.  , who came over in the Burnes deal alongside Hall, could seize a role on the infield.  Cubs: 83-79 in 2023, FG projects 80 wins in 2024, PECOTA 80.8  The Cubs have been retooling for a few years but just narrowly mi sed a return to the postseason in 2023. Their finished 83-79, just one game behind the Diamondbacks and Marlins, who got the last two Wild Card spots. They then saw Bellinger,  and  become free agents, subtracting two regulars from the lineup and a starter from the rotation. Candelario since jumped to the Reds and Stroman to the Yankees, though Bellinger is still out there.  In the rotation, Stroman has effectively been replaced by the signing of  . The Cubs signed him in January and its hoped that he can supply at least some mid-rotation production to make up for the lo s of Stroman, slotting in next to  ,  and  . A bounceback from Taillon could arguably make the rotation even better this year. The same could be said about a step forward from rookie  , who debuted last year.  In the lineup, the Cubs are hoping that  can be a difference maker. Acquired from the Dodgers in an offseason trade, he has always hit well in the minors but was blocked from seizing a role on his previous club. Hell take over the first base spot, which was a bit of a hole for the Cubs last year. Bringing back Bellinger to center field still seems po sible, but until it happens, the plan appears to be to count on  to seize a job. The youngster is considered a great defender but his bat is questionable.  is on hand if PCA doesnt make a case for himself.  Signing Chapman to take over third could be a logical move but its also po sible the club could slot  there. He has an exciting amount of power in his bat and his throwing arm, but concerns about his defense and propensity for strikeouts. Still, the bar is not too high for him to be better than guys like  or  .  Reds: 82-80 in 2023, FG projects 79 wins in 2024, PECOTA 78.7  A surge of young position player talent was almost enough to vault the Reds into the playoffs last year. They did that despite a team-wide ERA of 4.83 and and 5.43 mark from their starting rotation. No significant contributors to the 2023 club reached free agency, so even just a bit of internal improvement could make them a contender.  But the Reds werent just going to rely on their incumbent options, as they have been fairly active this offseason. They added Candelario to their position player mix despite already having plenty of bats for their lineup. That should give them some cover for any of their young players suffering some regre sion or an injury.  They also bolstered the pitching staff which, as mentioned, was an i sue last year. Free agents  ,  ,  and  were all signed to the roster. Montas is coming off a lengthy injury absence but was quite effective the last time he was healthy. Martnez could be a back-end addition for the rotation or he might wind up in the bullpen with Pagn and Suter. They could also get better just via health, as no one on the club logged 150 innings last year as each of  ,  ,  spent time on the IL, while  didnt debut until midseason.  Pirates: 76-86 in 2023, FG projects 77 wins in 2024, PECOTA 73  Somewhat similar to the Reds, the Pirates also rode a wave of young talent last year, though it didnt have the same staying power. They were in first place in the division as late as June 15 but faded as the season wore on and finished outside contention.  They were facing almost no roster lo ses, as their most significant free agents from 2023 were  and  . McCutchen re-signed while Velasquez only made eight starts last year anyway due to elbow surgery. But they faced other challenges as right-hander  and catcher  both required UCL surgery this offseason and will mi s all of 2024.  With Rodrguez out, the club is hoping  can pivot back behind the plate and take over. They signed veteran  as a bit of insurance in case things dont work out with Davis. They grabbed a couple of veteran starters as well in  and  , hoping that duo can over for the lo ses of Oviedo and Velasquez as well as the struggles of  . The impending debut of prospect  could also help in that department as well, with  and  perhaps not far behind.  The lineup hasnt drastically changed, with  brought in as a bounceback candidate. Perhaps their most impactful lineup upgrade could be the health of  , who mi sed most of 2023 due ankle surgery. They also signed  to help  form a lockdown late-inning duo.  Cardinals: 71-91 in 2023, FG projects 83 wins in 2024, PECOTA 84.7  Many predicted the Cards to win the division last year but it clearly did not happen. Plenty of things went wrong, particularly on the pitching side of things, and they ended up in the basement. The team-wide ERA of 4.83 was better than just five teams in the majors, with the 5.08 rotation ERA even worse.  s swan song turned out to be ear-splitting while  and  also struggled. Depth guys like  ,  ,  and  were all bad to varying degrees.  Remaking the rotation was the clear priority this winter and they have been active in that department. They quickly signed  ,  and  at the start of the offseason to replace Flaherty, Montgomery and Wainwright.  ,  ,  and  were all acquired at last years deadline and could make the emergency depth stronger. was added this offseason as part of the  trade.  Not too much has changed on the position player side of things. As mentioned, ONeill was shipped out but the club is hoping to replace him internally. The emergence of  Udonis Haslem Jersey