Baseball season is in full swing and the National League East is starting to settle into the 2023 campaign. Outside of Atlanta, every team is below .500 after May 7’s slate of games. Here’s what you need to know in regard to the division as we are slightly more than a month into the year.
Notable News and Transactions
Braves
April 25: RHP Colin McHugh has been activated from the 15-day injured list.
April 26: OF Michael Harris II will begin a rehab assignment tonight.
April 27: RHP Raisel Iglesias will begin a rehab assignment tonight.
April 28: Michael Harris II has been reinstated from the 10-day injured list. OFs Eli White and Nick Solak have both been optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett.
April 28: According to manager Brian Snitker, Raisel Iglesias won’t have to make back-to-back appearances prior to returning to the big leagues, but it is unknown how many appearances the veteran reliever will have to make before being activated.
May 4: RHP Kyle Wright has been placed on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation and LHP Dylan Dodd has been recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett.
May 5: In a number of roster moves, Raisel Iglesias has been activated from the injured list and Dylan Dodd has been sent to Triple-A Gwinnett. Also, with INF Ehire Adrainza being placed on the 10-day injured list with right elbow inflammation, INF Braden Shewmake has been recalled to the big leagues. Lastly, C Travis d’Arnaud will begin a rehab assignment tonight in Triple-A.
May 7: Prior to today’s game, INF Orlando Arica was activated from the 10-day injured list, and INF Vaughn Grissom was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Marlins
April 25: LHP Sean Nolin has been designated for assignment.
April 26: INF Joey Wendle will start a rehab assignment tonight and RHP Jeff Lindgren has cleared waivers and has been sent to Triple-A Jacksonville.
April 27: Sean Nolin has cleared waivers and has been sent outright to Triple-A.
May 2: With Avisaíl García being placed on the 10-day injured list with left back tightness, INF Xavier Edwards has been recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville.
May 2: RHP Johnny Cueto will begin a rehab assignment on Saturday.
May 3: As part of multiple roster moves, INF Garrett Cooper is being placed on the 10-day injured list with an inner ear infection, and OF Peyton Burdick has been recalled to Miami.
May 4: The contract of RHP Chi Chi González has been selected from Triple-A Jacksonville.
Mets
April 25: With RHP Edwin Uceta being placed on the 15-day injured list, RHP José Butto has been recalled from Triple-A Syracuse.
April 28: In a rehab start for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, RHP Justin Verlander threw 69 pitches and pitched 4 2/3 innings. He gave up no runs on two hits and struck out six batters.
April 29: LHP David Peterson has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse and LHP Brooks Raley has been placed on the 15-day injured list with left elbow inflammation. RHP John Curtiss has been recalled from the minors.
May 1: RHP Stephen Nogosek has been activated from the 15-day injured list, while LHP Zach Muckenhirn has had his contract selected from Triple-A Syracuse and RHP Denyi Reyes has been optioned to Triple-A.
May 4: RHP Justin Verlander is scheduled to make his Mets debut this afternoon against the team he made his big league debut with – the Detroit Tigers.
May 4: RHP John Curtiss and LHP Zach Muckenhirn have both been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse and RHP Dominic Leone has been signed to a major league contract.
May 5: Former Mets pitcher Matt Harvey has announced his retirement from baseball.
Phillies
April 25: Manager Rob Thomson said LHP Ranger Suárez will begin a rehab assignment on Thursday.
April 27: Ranger Suárez pitched two scoreless innings in the first start of his rehab assignment. He’ll likely need two to three more starts in the minors before being activated from the injured list.
April 29: OF Cristian Pache has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a right knee meniscus tear and OF Dalton Guthrie has been recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Pache will undergo surgery and there is no timetable for his return.
April 30: According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic, if Bryce Harper is cleared to slide tomorrow when meeting his doctor, he will be activated for Tuesday night’s game against the Dodgers.
May 2: After Jeff Passan’s report from yesterday that Bryce Harper would return to the Phillies lineup tonight, the club officially activated Harper from the 10-day injured list and optioned OF Jake Cave to Triple-A.
May 3: RHP Nick Nelson has been activated from the 15-day injured list and was optioned to Double-A Reading.
May 4: The contract of RHP Jeff Hoffman has been selected from Triple-A Lehigh Valley, RHP Yunior Marte has been optioned to Lehigh Valley, and RHP James McArthur has been designated for assignment.
Nationals
April 25: Manager Dave Martinez provided updates on LF Corey Dickerson and LHP Sean Doolittle. Dickerson is rehabbing a calf injury and is “getting closer” to returning. Doolittle is currently rehabbing in Florida from elbow surgery he underwent last year and threw a live session today.
April 27: INF Ildemaro Vargas began a rehab assignment at Triple-A today.
April 30: The contract of RHP Andrés Machado has been selected from Triple-A and LHP Anthony Banda has been designated for assignment.
May 1: RHP Chad Kuhl has been placed on the 15-day injured list and RHP Cory Abbott has been recalled from Triple-A.
May 3: RHP Jake Irvin has been recalled from Triple-A and will make his big league debut tonight, while INF Ildemaro Vargas has been activated from the 10-day IL. RHP Cory Abbott and INF Jeter Downs have been sent to Triple-A.
May 4: Anthony Banda has been sent outright to Triple-A and INF Carter Kieboom will begin a rehab assignment tonight.
May 7: INF Carter Kieboom has returned from his rehab assignment and has been optioned to Triple-A.
May 7: With OF Víctor Robles heading to the injured list with back spasms, INF/OF Jake Alu will be called up to the big league roster.
Top Performers
Braves:
Atlanta’s Ronald Acuña Jr. was named the National League’s April player of the month after hitting .352 with a .986 OPS. The right-handed hitting outfielder hit four home runs and stole 13 bases in April. Acuña leads the Braves with a .338 batting average, 15 stolen bases, a .481 on-base percentage, 46 hits, and 11 doubles.
Bryce Elder leads Braves pitchers with 41 1/3 innings pitched in his seven starts. The right-hander also leads the team’s rotation with a 1.74 ERA. Spencer Strider leads the team with 67 strikeouts.
Marlins:
Luis Arraez has been one of the best hitters in baseball so far this year and leads the Marlins in a number of statistical categories. The 26-year-old is hitting .420/.476/.518 this year and leads the team with 47 hits. Jorge Soler has the most home runs (seven) and RBIs (15) on the Marlins roster.
Left-hander Jesús Luzardo has the lowest ERA when it comes to Miami’s starting staff at 3.66 and Sandy Alcantara leads the team with 43 2/3 innings pitched. A.J. Puk‘s five saves are the most on the team.
Mets:
Brandon Nimmo‘s .310 batting average, .407 on-base percentage, 39 hits, and 19 walks all lead the Mets. Pete Alonso‘s 11 home runs and 29 RBIs are the most for New York.
Tylor Megill‘s 4.33 ERA and 35 1/3 innings of work are the best numbers for the Mets’ starting staff. In the bullpen, David Roberston has pitched 14 1/3 innings with a 0.43 ERA and 18 strikeouts.
Phillies:
Brandon Marsh leads the Phillies in batting average (.314), on-base percentage (.402), and slugging percentage (.578). Kyle Schwarber‘s eight home runs and Nick Castellanos‘ 26 runs also lead the team.
Zack Wheeler leads the club with 46 strikeouts. In José Alvarado‘s 14 1/3 innings out of the bullpen, the lefty has 24 strikeouts, a 1.88 ERA, and five saves. He also hasn’t walked a batter, yet.
Nationals:
Lane Thomas leads the team with 17 RBIs and 18 runs, while Joey Meneses leads the club with 39 hits.
Josiah Gray‘s 3.03 ERA and 38 2/3 innings pitched leads the Nationals rotation. Kyle Finnegan‘s seven saves lead the team.
Current Standings
| Team | Record | GB |
| Braves | 24-11 | – |
| Marlins | 17-18 | 7.0 |
| Mets | 17-18 | 7.0 |
| Phillies | 16-19 | 8.0 |
| Nationals | 14-20 | 9.5 |
