The NL East is bound to be one of the most exciting divisions in baseball in 2026. After a long period of the division being dominated by the Atlanta Braves, the last two seasons have seen the Philadelphia Phillies emerge as the winners. This year, it is even tighter, with a few teams rebuilding, but the others looking to contend.
NL East Standings Predictions
5. Washington Nationals
This is going to be a miserable season for the Washington Nationals – nothing more, nothing less. After trading away MacKenzie Gore, the rotation is young and quite frankly awful. The bullpen also remains to be in shambles. The lineup has some potential, but not enough to make up for the pitching. A ERA below 5 would be very surprising to see for this team. As Washington continues to rebuild, they must hope for something good out of their farm system and out of their young players, to at least show they can compete in the future.
4. Miami Marlins
The Miami Marlins actually feel like they can compete for at least a Wild Card spot. The rotation isn’t exactly great, but it definitely can be. The lineup and bullpen aren’t horrible either. The biggest thing the Marlins want this season might be a good Sandy Alcantara. Why? A deadline trade for Alcantara could transform the team massively. If not, then the Marlins could a sleeper for the playoffs this season. Even though Miami probably isn’t a playoff contender this year, this team has excitement written all over it.
3. Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies have won the NL East in the last two seasons. However, this season feels a bit different. Philly did retain Kyle Schwarber and J.T Realmuto, but lost Ranger Suarez, not to mention both of those players they retained are getting older. The team itself is aging and isn’t adding much young talent at all. With the loss of Nick Castellanos, Suarez, and others, it doesn’t feel like the team has improved over the offseason. Winning the division is definitely a possibility for this team, but it will no doubt be very hard with the team’s rotation and a lineup having a lot of question marks.
2. Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves offseason has been rather boring, adding very little to a team that honestly, doesn’t need too much (at least so it seemed). The era of dominance from 2021-23 is looking like it is very much so in the past. From the end of 24 to almost all of 25, two things massively affected the team. For one, the team’s injuries, especially to the rotation, have really hurt the team badly. And also, the team’s top stars have underperformed massively.
Coming into 2026, the team looked like the top NL East team until Spencer Schwellenbach went to the 60 day IL, and Hunston Waldrep also is dealing with injury issues, which is a continuation of the teams problems since 2024. Simply put, the offense is very good, but without big help from the rotation, this team so far has it’s work cut out for them. Not to mention, the remaining players in the rotation aren’t exactly too healthy in their career either.
1. New York Mets
While some say this team hasn’t improved over the offseason, you have to watch baseball in order to talk about it. This is an extremely uninformed take:
.@StevePhillipsGM thinks the Mets are one of the “least improved teams” from the offseason and predicts them to finish 3rd in the NL East 😳#MLBNHotStove reacts to the Mets taking a cautious approach with a handful of their players early in Spring Training. pic.twitter.com/zZWcidHFoV
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 18, 2026
The New York Mets rotation and bullpen is massively improved, with the rotation headed by Freddy Peralta, ROY favorite Nolan McLean, a healthy Kodai Senga, a healthy Sean Manea, and a lot of depth, including Clay Holmes, David Peterson, and Tobias Myers. Those who don’t start will go into the bullpen, which is undoubtedly much deeper than 2025, but I guess they’re one of the most “unimproved teams” in the offseason.
The lineup meanwhile is much better, even without Pete Alonso. The Mets added good bats in Marcus Semien, Jorge Polanco (still a star), Bo Bichette (gets more hits than Alonso, by the way), and Luis Robert Jr. (replaces Tyrone Taylor). Add that with a young core that is healthy coming into 2026, then the team is 100% improved. The Mets will have to have things come together and injuries not derail them, but as long as injuries don’t creep in like last season, then winning the NL East feels likely.
Main Image: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
