Look no further than the struggles of the Red Sox, Phillies and Mets to understand that preseason projections are only as good as the paper upon which they are printed. Baseball is a funny game and the marathon nature of a 162-game season guarantees some twists and turns with surprising stretches along the way. The American League East, which many thought would be the most difficult division in baseball, sees Boston and Toronto, the defending pennant winner, floundering at the bottom, struggling to pick up victories. The National League East is upside-down as Philadelphia and New York are a combined 15-29. Meanwhile there's another division that has shocked everyone by continuing to rack up wins across the board.
Despite a solid 12-9 start the Brewers find themselves in the cellar of a division with five teams over .500. They are looking up at the 15-8 Reds, and a trio of teams (Pirates, Cubs and Cardinals) locked together at 13-9. We're only somewhere between 14-15% of the way through the year but the heartland looks as though it's going to be intensely competitive.
