The 6 Biggest X-Factors for the 2024 National League Playoffs
"Baseball is a lot like life. It's a day-to-day existence, full of ups and downs. You make the most of your opportunities in baseball as you do in life." - Ernie Harwell
Picking up where I left off on Wednesday this week with the American League X-Factors, I will throw out my National League players that I think can be game-changers for their respective teams.
Again I am rolling with the teams that would be in the playoffs as of today!
National League:
Los Angeles Dodgers (76-52) {NL West}
Philadelphia Phillies (74-53) {NL East}
Milwaukee Brewers (73-54) {NL Central}
Arizona Diamondbacks (72-56) {Wild Card}
San Diego Padres (72-57) {Wild Card}
Atlanta Braves (67-58) {Wild Card}
LOS ANGELES DODGERS
This one is tough to start with as so many guys can turn it on for LA, and help them win a World Series. At least to me, the Dodgers have somewhat of a similar problem to the Yankees. The lineup is somewhat top-heavy with star power coming from the likes of Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez, and Will Smith. The pitching needs to get healthy and stay healthy if they have any shot of capturing a World Series title this year so I am going to pick Gavin Lux! Former 1st round pick back in 2016, Lux has had a lackluster career thus far but has an immense amount of talent. He is starting to pick things up here in the 2nd half of the season. Over the last month, he has been hitting at a .341 AVG and 1.018 OPS. Pair that with 5 home runs and 16 RBIs while walking at an 8.5% clip, Lux can be the difference maker at the bottom end of the lineup for Los Angeles this postseason.
PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
The lineup is stacked. The frontline starters are stacked. The bullpen…not so stacked. After 48 ⅔ innings of work, Orion Kerkering has really caught my eye this season. He is just 23 years old and is carving up batters. Pitching to a 2.40 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP, I have deemed this guy a DUDE. At the deadline, Philly was making moves to address the bullpen as it’s been a fluid situation for the 7-8-9 inning slots all season. Kerkering is a highly effective pitcher who can make that leap forward to help this team close out games come playoff time.
MILWAUKEE BREWERS
Another tough one as the Brew Crew seems to find a way to fill voids all over the field, especially with their pitching depth. As Yelich just went down for the year, I am going with a bat here. That is why I am taking Joey Ortiz. Ortiz was acquired in the Corbin Burnes deal last year and Milwaukee is already seeing a return on investment here. Ortiz is having a solid season across the board slashing .244/.333./.385. Ortiz was an intriguing prospect and a part of the Baltimore minor league factory where his numbers show he can improve in the bigs. If he can pop off come September/October he can be the guy to help absorb some of the blow from Yelich's absence.
ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
The Arizona lineup has been showing signs of life recently as Corbin Carroll has started to hit his stride. The D’backs are going to need quality starting pitching if they want to survive a playoff series with a legitimate contender. Eduardo Rodriguez has to be the guy to step up. Montgomery looks like a lost cause out there right now and I have lost faith in a resurgence from J-Mont. Pfaadt, Nelson, and Gallen have been solid all year long and they need E-Rod to do his thing coming back from his shoulder injury. Already claiming two victories since he has been back, Rodriguez looks to be the ace in the hole Arizona needs to make another run at the World Series.
SAN DIEGO PADRES
I am being lazy. FERNANDO TATIS JR. is San Diego’s x-factor. Tatis Jr. is a superstar who has had his fair share of issues, but when he is on the field is a machine. The baseball world just received positive news yesterday that he has progressed to sprinting in his recovery from a leg injury and could be back as soon as September! Plug in Tatis Jr. and this lineup is just a different level.
ATLANTA BRAVES
This might be the hardest pick of the 12 teams that have been covered in this mini-blog series. It just does not seem like Atlanta’s year with all of these injuries. Not to mention it is their studs who keep getting hurt. When productive this lineup still has Michael Harris II, Matt Olson, and Marcell Ozuna. I need to go with another pitcher here as if those guys are hitting they can advance. The pitching concerns me and I’ll go with the new Spencer in town. That is Spencer Schwellenbach. The 24-year-old has been spectacular in his rookie campaign. He is shoving with 94 Ks across 82.1 IP. Not to mention a 3.94 ERA on the year. If he can keep going and continue developing as he sees more MLB hitters, this is the guy Atlanta will need come playoff time.