MLB Week 6: The Injury Bug Kicks In

Week 6 of the MLB season has turned into a brutal reminder of how quickly the injury bug can derail seasons. The MLB injury report has exploded this week with several star players hitting the IL. From Hunter Greene’s groin strain, to Tyler Glasnow’s shoulder issues, and Triston Casas crushing Red Sox fans’ spirits. The baseball gods are showing no mercy. Oh, and let’s not forget Dylan Cease walking off the mound during a no-hit bid against the Yankees. A moment that had Padres fans collectively holding their breath. These MLB injuries allow fans to see who can stay afloat in increasingly competitive division races.

National League

NL East

Atlanta Braves – The Braves heat check finally cooled off a bit this week in a competitive but losing series against the Dodgers. Austin Riley’s 2 homer game on Sunday night baseball helped them bounce back and they took 2 of the next 3 in a 4 game set against the Reds. Still below .500, they sit only 6 games back on the division lead.

Miami Marlins – The Braves weren’t the only NL East team who fought hard against the best of the west. The Marlins dropped 2 of 3 to both the A’s & Dodgers, both in competitive fashion. I hate to talk about the Dodgers during the Marlins portion of this article but Shohei Ohtani is a bully every time he steps into LoanDepot Park, clubbing 2 homers once again.

New York Mets – The Mets had been on a small slide of inconsistent play. They lost another winnable series to the Cardinals in St. Louis before picking up a desperately needed series victory in the desert against the Diamondbacks. Pete Alonso’s journey to become the Mets first ever MVP is becoming more serious, as he continues to tear the cover off the ball.

Philadelphia Phillies – Phillies are hot, no way around it. They took 2 (nearly 3) from the Diamondbacks at home, & have pounded the Rays in their first two games in Florida. Despite their early season slide, you’d be foolish to think these veteran Phillies were going to let any team run away with the division. Especially considering this could be the final season with this main core in place.

Washington Nationals – The Nats took 2 of 3 vs the Reds before getting bludgeoned by the Guardians in their series. The Guardians scored 26 runs over their 3 game series, a sign the Nats pitching could be headed in the wrong direction for the summer.

NL Central

Chicago Cubs – Cubbies posted their 2nd straight .500 week in a row, beating the Brewers and losing to the Giants. Cubs have slowed down a bit & there are 3 teams who are only 3 games behind them in the standings at 19-19. It’s yet to be seen if any of those teams are serious though.

Cincinnati Reds – The Reds are the first .500 team looking up at the Cubs thinking “why not us?”. Well this week they averaged a measly 3 runs per game & lost both series to sub .500 teams. Hunter Greene also left in the 3rd inning of what was shaping up to be a dominant start with injury. Not to say they aren’t serious, but it gives the haters a rebuttal to the “why not us?” question for the time being.

Milwaukee Brewers – It’s becoming incredible, but this is the 4th consecutive week the Brewers have finished with a .500 record on the week. Where does that leave their record for the season? You guessed it, 19-19. Feels like they’re owning this identity a little too well.

Pittsburgh Pirates – The Steelers traded away fan favorite George Pickens to the Cowboys for a 3rd round pick. That is the only notable sports news in Pittsburgh, as they lost every single game they played this week & are far out of the division race already. They may want to consider a basketball team because everything else is disappointing at the moment.

St. Louis Cardinals – Last week I mentioned the Cardinals being a tale of two teams: the home Cardinals & the away Cardinals. This week all their games were played at home so naturally they won nearly all of them & currently hold a 5 game win streak. Two series on the road this week, we will continue to monitor this narrative.

NL West

Arizona Diamondbacks – Tough week for the snakes as they dropped both series to the Phillies & Mets. Both good teams so nothing to get too down about, but given the potential of their starting rotation I’m sure the fine folks of Arizona are expecting more than they’re currently getting.

Colorado Rockies – The Rockies managed to win one game this week which feels to be about the average amount of wins they get over the course of these blogs. Godspeed Colorado.

Los Angeles Dodgers – The Dodgers continue to make my questions about their depth look silly as they are probably the hottest team in baseball once again at the moment. Granted, my comment about their depth isn’t too far fetched. They’re still reaching down into the minors with some regularity for starting pitching, that just isn’t stopping them from winning. Teoscar Hernandez went down with injury this week, we’ll see if it disrupts their stride as their depth continues to be tested.

San Diego Padres – The Padres continue to push the So. Cal. big brother Dodgers in the standings as they took 4 of 6 games this week. Lost the other two to the Yankees, both in the late stages in the game otherwise it could’ve been a special week for them. Cease left one of the losses with an apparent injury, which hurts because it was in the midst of a quality start which had been tough to come by for him this year.

San Francisco Giants – I can’t explain why the Giants are good but they are. Webb & Robbie Ray have been an elite 1-2 punch, but the rest of their starters are above 4 ERA. Their lineup is playing well, but it’s far from star studded. Yet another week has passed & they won 5 of 6, with a series win over the Cubs. Hats off to San Fran, they’ve been great so far.