Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels, right, sits in the dugout with fellow Phillies starting pitchers from left; Roy Oswalt, Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, and Joe Blanton.

BY SCOTT CARSON
sportsnet.ca

Should Bud Selig just anoint the Phillies National League champions before Opening Day?

The Phillies' front four of Roy Halladay, Clff Lee, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels is already being hailed as one of the best ever.

That's fair when looking over the body of work for all four. The Phillies shocked the baseball world with their stealth signing of free agent Lee, who everyone assumed would be wearing pinstripes this spring after leading the Texas Rangers to their first-ever World Series appearance.

It's not out of the realm of possibility for all four of these "aces" to win 20 games.

Will it happen,? Probably not, but it might.

Quite frankly, the only team in the East that might beat the Phillies is...the Phillies. While their everyday lineup is deep from top-to-bottom, injuries could easily derail their best laid plans.

All-star second baseman Chase Utley has yet to play this spring due to a right knee injury that may require surgery. Third baseman Placido Polanco hyper-extended his left elbow in an exhibition game; the same elbow that required surgery last November.

Meanwhile, closer Brad Lidge had to be shut down recently due to soreness in his right biceps.

Just what the hand-wringing Philadelphia fans needed.

Stephen Strasburg arrived to much fanfare last season before Tommy John surgery ended his rookie year. When will we see him again?

Anyone who saw Strasburg's highly anticipated debut last season marvelled at the ease and fluidness of his delivery and how the ball jumped out of his hand.

That's why his elbow giving out, followed by the surgery, brought a lot of concern around the game. Will he return to his former dominance? It's too early to tell, but many great arms have returned to prominence following ligament replacement surgery. It's really not a question of if, but when we see him pitch again.

With the Nationals still building their franchise and not even close to being considered for contention, there is no reason at all to rush Strasburg back.

The latest update this spring has the 22-year-old phenom playing catch from 90 feet, but there is no real rush to get him back on the mound. It's been reported that his recovery is ahead of schedule and there is an outside shot of him returning for some September appearances.

It says here that the next time Strasburg should be toeing the rubber for the Nationals is Opening Day 2012.

The Braves have some of the best young hitters in the league. What can fans expect from Jason Heyward, Freddie Freeman, etc.?

Few young hitters have arrived to as much fanfare than Heyward, who blasted out of the gate in 2010, homering in his Major League debut while driving in four runs, showing his seemingly limitless ceiling. While he did slump in the middle of the season, he finished with 18 home runs and 72 RBI and his career is on its' way.

Lefty slugging first baseman Freeman has rocketed through the Braves system and made his MLB debut last September at the tender age of 20. As one of the youngest players a year ago at triple-A, Freeman drove in 87 runs on 18 home runs and a .319 batting average.

With the career of Chipper Jones winding down, young sluggers such as Heyward and Freeman will need to step it up if the Braves are going to be able to hang in with the Phillies. Dan Uggla will also be expected to also produce after coming over from the Marlins in an off-season trade before signing a five-year, US$61 million contract that will have him in a Braves uniform through 2015.

The Braves also have a pair of pitching prospects knocking on the door in right-hander Julio Teheran and lefty Mike Minor.

The Mets, discuss.

Where do you start?

Playing in the huge shadow cast by the Yankees has never been easy for the Mets. Thus, they have added some questionable high-priced talent over the last half decade and received little in return.

The Mets payroll has been north of $100 million in seven of their past eight seasons, but they have made the post-season just once over that time span.

Former general manager Omar Minaya was lauded as one of the bright baseball minds when he took over the Mets in 2005 but for whatever reason, he couldn't put the right pieces together.

Sure, the Mets have suffered injuries to key players such as Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes and Johan Santana, but something always seemed to be missing, whether it was in the dugout or on the field.

Not much is expected from the Mets in 2011, now under the leadership of veteran general manager Sandy Alderson and no-nonsense manager Terry Collins. The franchise also appears stuck in a holding pattern as long as its name is being linked to Bernie Madoff and his elaborate ponzi scheme.

We have no idea when the air will be cleared, they can focus on competing again and not have to worry about MLB covering their salaries.

With their talented rotation, can the Marlins' young, talented hitters produce enough in 2011 to make them Wild Card contenders?

The Marlins are always a team to keep an eye on.

Despite having one of the lowest payrolls on an annual basis, they continually build, break down and then rebuild championship-quality teams.

This current version is no different.

They have one of the top right-handers in the game atop their rotation in Josh Johnson, an under-the-radar No. 2 in Ricky Nolasco and a solid No. 3 in Anibal Sanchez. All three are young and controllable. But what should get baseball fans in South Florida really excited is their blossoming offence, led by Hanley Ramirez, who if he played in front of bigger crowds in a major market, would by a superstar by now.

They also have one of the top young hitters in the game in Mike Stanton, who slammed 22 homers last season in just 100 games.

They overpaid to bring in veteran catcher John Buck after he hit a career-best 20 homers last season with the Blue Jays.

This team isn't deep, but it is talented and will cause a lot of problems within the division.

STATSMAN'S NON-BINDING PREDICTION IN THE NL EAST

PHILADELPHIA

ATLANTA

FLORIDA

WASHINGTON

NY METS