VIEW OUR MLB CAPPERS LEADERBOARD FOR 2009 – PICKS PACKS FOR 2010 ON SALE NOW! \u2014\u2013><\/strong><\/p>\n NL East <\/strong><\/p>\n With such an impressive 2009 showing and the swapping of elite pitchers Cliff Lee for Roy Halladay, the Phillies remain the class of this division. Halladay is one of the more consistent hurlers of the last decade and is perennially in the Cy Young race. The Marlins and Braves field intriguing squads on the rise, the Mets need to recover from a disaster \u201909 and the Nationals, unfortunately, don\u2019t have a snowball\u2019s chance in Hell.<\/p>\n National League – Odds TO WIN 2010 MLB NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST<\/strong><\/p>\n ATLANTA BRAVES\t +250 Philadelphia<\/strong> Phillies Prediction: 1st<\/sup> NL East<\/strong><\/p>\n Those of the Liberty Bell persuasion have no reason to doubt their team in 2010. Last year\u2019s N.L. representative at the World Series will be as strong as ever. Roy Halladay anchors a rotation supported by young stud J.A. Happ and slightly inconsistent Cole Hamels. Though Hamels has been a bit of a wildcard, when he\u2019s on, he\u2019s fantastic. The offense will again be paced by 2B Chase Utley, 1B Ryan Howard and CF Shane Victorino. Right fielder Jason Werth\u2019s breakout 2009 performance was indeed a welcome addition; Werth will surely continue to show his worth.<\/p>\n Florida<\/strong> Marlins Prediction: 2nd<\/sup> NL East<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/strong>I\u2019m going to take a sizable leap of faith by calling the Fish to place second in the division. The Braves have a great ball-club that many envision as a sleeper in 2010, but the Marlins have an excellent young nucleus and for once have stability in the pitching rotation, headlined by the re-signed Josh Johnson. SS Hanley Ramirez might be the best young player in baseball, fellow young stud CF Cameron Maybin looks to follow in Ramirez\u2019s footsteps. OF Chris Coghlan emerged as a superb leadoff guy and 2B Dan Uggla has some nice power.<\/p>\n Atlanta<\/strong> Braves Prediction: 3rd<\/sup> NL East<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/strong>Though the chips could easily fall with the Braves in second, I have a little less faith in the\u00a0Peachtree\u00a0City\u00a0than some. In manager Bobby Cox\u2019s last year, there are dynamic players all over the roster and a nice mix of youth and veterans. New York<\/strong> Mets Prediction: 4th<\/sup> NL East<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/strong>It says a lot for the division that the Mets, with their massive payroll and hunks of talent, don\u2019t stack up better than fourth in 2010. There was just too much stomach churning luck and play last season. Virtually all the major players went down with injury, star 3B David Wright lost his power and Francisco Rodriguez was underwhelming in the closer role. The Mets need health, the re-emergence of big-ticket guys like Reyes, Beltran and Wright, and someone to pitch well beyond ace Johan Santana. That\u2019s quite a laundry list.<\/p>\n
\nFLORIDA MARLINS\t +600
\nNEW YORK METS\t+600
\n PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES\t -175<\/strong>
\nWASHINGTON NATIONALS\t+2500<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/banners.bmaker.ag\/images\/baseball_300_250_0.gif?cmpid=13385_1322\")
<\/a>However, some of these vets \u2013 3B Chipper Jones and 1B Troy Glaus \u2013 are quite brittle. While the pitching staff has some gems like Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson, I\u2019m not sure how much faith Tim Hudson engenders. If everything goes right,\u00a0Atlanta\u00a0could almost nip at Philly\u2019s heels. Don\u2019t expect everything to go right.<\/p>\n