[dirtysouthnut]

With the NL east up for grabs this year which teams lineup would you take, braves or mets?


Braves:Brian McCann (C), Adam LaRoche (1B), Marcus Giles (2B), EDGAR RENTERIA (SS), Chipper Jones (3B), Ryan Langerhans (LF), Andruw Jones (CF), Jeff Francoeur (RF)
Projected rotation: Tim Hudson, John Smoltz, John Thomson, Jorge Sosa, Horacio Ramirez
Projected closer: Chris Reitsma

Mets:PAUL LODUCA (C), CARLOS DELGADO (1B), Kaz Matsui (2B), Jose Reyes (SS), David Wright (3B), Cliff Floyd (LF), Carlos Beltran (CF), Victor Diaz (RF)
Projected rotation: Pedro Martinez, Tom Glavine, Victor Zambrano, Steve Traschel, Aaron Heilman
Projected closer: BILLY WAGNER

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by dirtysouthnut

With the NL east up for grabs this year which teams lineup would you take, braves or mets?


Braves:Brian McCann (C), Adam LaRoche (1B), Marcus Giles (2B), EDGAR RENTERIA (SS), Chipper Jones (3B), Ryan Langerhans (LF), Andruw Jones (CF), Jeff Francoeur (RF)
Projected rotation: Tim Hudson, John Smoltz, John Thomson, Jorge Sosa, Horacio Ramirez
Projected closer: Chris Reitsma

Mets:PAUL LODUCA (C), CARLOS DELGADO (1B), Kaz Matsui (2B), Jose Reyes (SS), David Wright (3B), Cliff Floyd (LF), Carlos Beltran (CF), Victor Diaz (RF)
Projected rotation: Pedro Martinez, Tom Glavine, Victor Zambrano, Steve Traschel, Aaron Heilman
Projected closer: BILLY WAGNER

I like the Mets hitting, but I think the Braves pitching will carry them.

[EmpireWF]

First off, that's not the current Mets line-up/rotation. Here's that:

C-Paul Lo Duca, 1b-Carlos Delgado, 2b-Anderson Hernandez, 3b-David Wright, SS-Jose Reyes, LF-Cliff Floyd, CF-Carlos Beltran, RF-Xavier Nady
SP-Tom Glavine, SP-Victor Zambrano, SP-Pedro Martinez, SP-Steve Trachsel, SP-Brian Bannister and CP-Billy Wagner

With that said, there's no doubt the Mets should be the better of the teams as far as offenses go. However, Pitching-wise, the Braves should have the better rotation. The Mets should have the better bullpen. Ofcourse, that's assuming everyone stays healthy. Still, it's tough to pick against the Braves even though I'm a Mets fan.

[ThePundit]

I agree with Empire's breakdown. Mets have the better hitting and bullpen. Braves have stronger starters.

[pete_b]

Braves always have better starters but isn't that because of Leo Mazzone? We will finally see who runs that pitching staff and if they can do it without Leo. I like the Mets simply because they got something to prove. With the Yankees always at the top and getting all the attention in NY, the Mets are under some pressure to perform.

[EmpireWF]

The Mets are under a lot of pressure to perform. It's a tough situation they're in mainly because of Pedro. If he does bad, they have no chance. It solely rides on his toe, their season. He has another two years left, one before Mike Pelfrey/Lastings Milledge are expected to come up and start. This is the year if they have any ideas of running for the championship.

The Braves pressure comes from wanting to win at least one more Championship during this run. The GM Schuerholz was on a NYC sports radio show last week and saying that all they need to do is win one more championship to shut up all the doubters. Remember, Bobby Cox always manages to get his team to play for him as hard as any other.

[ThePundit]

...and then they apple up in the playoffs. It's a tradition that I'd hate to see ruined.

[desertrat]

I learned this years ago, always go with the Braves to win the NL East. It has happened for so many years in a row that I have lost count now. It truly is an amazing run for them.

[MVB]

Mets will win the East, the Braves will win the wildcard.... Both teams lack a bit in the pitching department ( Met's starting rotation, Braves' bullpen).