In the National League East, the Atlanta Braves cruised to their 11th consecutive division title with a scintillating record of 101-59. However, the Braves' excellence was oftentimes overshadowed by the futility of Atlanta's chief division rival, the New York Mets.
The Mets started the summer with visions of postseason success fueled by the off-season acquisitions of Roberto Alomar, Mo Vaughn and Jeromy Burnitz. Instead, the Metropolitans sank to their worst record in six years and their first last-place finish since 1993.
The most intriguing challenge to the Braves' dominance came from the small-market Expos, who made a couple mid-season deals for Bartolo Colon and Cliff Floyd in a genuine attempt to bolster their postseason hopes, only to eventually fall by the wayside. The Expos finished in second place, but a distant 19 games.
The St. Louis Cardinals rode a strong finish to capture the NL Central crown running away. After snagging third baseman Scott Rolen from the Phillies, the Cards assembled a potent lineup, both at the plate and in the field, that included the likes of Rolen, center fielder Jim Edmonds, right fielder J.D. Drew, first baseman Tino Martinez and shortstop Edgar Renteria, who had an especially spectacular year.
The star was second-year standout Albert Pujols, however, who emerged as a legitimate MVP candidate. Making the strongest charge behind the Redbirds was the Houston Astros, but aging stars Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio couldn't lead the Minute Maid-ers to another division title, even with an assist from Lance Berkman's career-high 42 homeruns and league-leading 128 RBI.
The NL West was far and away the most competitive and intriguing division in the National League this year. Coming out on top were the World Champion Arizona Diamondbacks, who again were largely carried on the ample backs of co-aces Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling, who ended up 24-5 and 23-7, respectively.
Also reaching the postseason from the West were the San Francisco Giants, who benefited from another outstanding season from Barry Bonds (who finished with a ML-best .370 batting average).
Also critical to the Giants' success was the quality hitting of Jeff Kent, who collected 37 dingers, 108 RBI, 42 doubles and a .313 batting average in the shadow of teammate Bonds. The Los Angeles Dodgers seemed poised to return to the playoffs until their vaunted pitching staff virtually imploded due to injuries late in the campaign.
NL Playoff Preview
National League Divisional Series
Atlanta Braves vs. San Francisco Giants
The Braves simply have too much pitching and too much experience for the Giants. The Giants' starting pitching staff simply cannot match up with such battle-tested veterans as Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine.
Also, the Braves have the league's top closer in John Smoltz. That said, San Francisco does have Barry Bonds, but the Braves will be smart enough to minimize how much damage Bonds will do. Speaking of Bonds, here's his career playoff line in 97 at bats: .196 batting average and only one home run. Not exactly a performance expected from a player of his caliber.
And, of course, Bonds' most infamous playoff moment came against these Braves, when he was unable to throw Sid Bream out at home in the 1991 playoffs, enabling Atlanta to advance to the World Series. The bad Bonds mojo is too much to ignore.
Braves in 4.
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. St. Louis Cardinals
The defending World Series champion Diamondbacks limped into the postseason and will still be hurting from the loss of their best hitter, Luis Gonzalez. Also, the usually dominant Curt Schilling has shown signs of fallibility over the last month. The arms of Schilling and Randy Johnson must be getting weary at this late stage in the year, and they will find no respite facing off against the loaded Cardinals lineup.
Cardinals in 5.
National League Championship Series
Braves vs. Cardinals
Once again, it all comes down to pitching. And the Braves have always had it. This year, the X-factor is Gary Sheffield. His presence in the middle of Atlanta's lineup will differentiate this team from the Braves teams of the past few years that have failed to make it to the World Series.
With Sheffield hitting alongside Chipper Jones and Andruw Jones, the Braves will have enough pop to be able to come up with the key runs that have eluded them in past playoff losses. This time, Smoltz will be there to shut the door on the Cardinals' chances.
Braves in 6.
