The Morning Meeting: Injuries Continue to Strike Down Important Contributors

The National League East had some slight shakeups in the divisional standings after Tuesday's action

Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto was diagnosed with a throat contusion after leaving Tuesday's game / Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

It was an incredibly interesting day in the NL East, with the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals both winning and the rest of the division dropping their contests, causing some shuffling in the middle of the standings.  

Let's look at what each team did yesterday, where they currently stand in the division as of this morning, and what today's game has in store. It's The Morning Meeting!

Who is winning the National League East right now?

(divisional standings as of April 10th)
Braves - 7-3 (.700), -- GB, +26 run diff
Phillies - 5-6 (.455), 2.5 GB, -9 run diff
Nationals - 5-6 (.455), 2.5 GB, -8 run diff
Mets - 4-7 (.364), 3.5 GB, -13 run diff
Marlins - 1-11 (.083), 7.0 GB, -33 run diff

Philly’s continually flipping around the .500 mark in the division, but Washington’s the interesting one here - currently on a three game win streak, they’ve taken two out of three from a San Francisco Giants team that’s just two seasons removed from winning 100 games and spent a lot of money bringing in some big names this offseason - Matt Chapman, Blake Snell, and Jorge Soler. Are the Nationals ahead of schedule in the rebuild?  

Game recaps from yesterday

Atlanta Braves & New York Mets

The Braves took down New York in yet another one-run game, 6-5, to even up what’s been a surprisingly close series so far. Atlanta used a big third inning, where six consecutive base hits brought in three runs, as well as a great start from #5 starter Reynaldo López (six scoreless innings) to build a big lead. New York didn’t go quietly, scoring five runs over the final two innings thanks to a well-timed homer in the 8th and some consecutive base hits in the 9th, but Raisel Iglesias managed to close the door and get the save, his first of the year.  

A day after Brandon Nimmo finally got going, finishing 4-4 with two homers and 5 RBIs on Monday, it was Pete Alonso’s turn, going 2-4 with a homer and three RBIs. Now if Francisco Lindor, who’s only 4-45 with a .386 OPS, can be next.  

Philadelphia Phillies 

Oof. Philly let Sonny Gray come off the IL and hold them to five scoreless innings in his season debut, finishing the game with less hits (8) than strikeouts (13) as they were shut out 3-0. 

Nick Castellanos showed some signs of life, going 2-4 to raise his average up to .154, but there’s also reason for concern in Philly as catcher J.T. Realmuto left the game after taking a curveball to the throat, being replaced by Garrett Stubbs. Postgame updates were that he had a headache, but had no broken bones and passed a concussion test, so he’s being given a “neck contusion” diagnosis and is day-to-day for now.   

Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals once again took it to the Giants in Oracle Park, winning 5-3 late on Tuesday night. Shortstop CJ Abrams was the big performer here, going 2-4 with a HR and three RBIs, while Washington scored two runs late to break a tie and beat San Francisco for the second straight night to take the series and set themselves up for a potential sweep. Special mention of #9 hitter Jacob Young, playing centerfield, who went 2-4 with three stolen bases and scored twice. 

But of course, because we can’t have nice things, the game was just hours after starter Josiah Gray went on the IL with a flexor strain in his forearm. Joan Adon stepped up as the emergency starter with four innings of one run, three hit ball, while the back end trio of Dylan Floro, Hunter Harvey, and Kyle Finnegan shut down San Fran over the final three innings.   

Miami Marlins

Miami once again lost to the Yankees, this one 3-2. A third consecutive poor start for converted reliever A.J. Puk has many asking if he needs to go back to the closer’s role once injured starters Braxton Garrett and Edward Cabrera return. Puk went only 4.2 innings, although he only allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits and five walks, lowering his ERA to 5.91 on the season. 

Poor situational hitting was the issue for Miami, who once again struck out more times (7) than they got hits (4). The Marlins were only 1-6 with runners in scoring position, with most of the offensive work being done by SS Tim Anderson, who went 2-4 with a stolen base. 

MVP's from Tuesday

Hitter: Washington’s CJ Abrams - 2-4, HR, R, 3 RBIs
Pitcher: Atlanta’s Reynaldo López - 6.0 IP, 3H, 0R, 3 BBs to 6 Ks 

Who's playing today?

Everybody’s back in action today:

Philly (Nola) @ STL (Lynn) - 1:15 PM ET
Washington (Corbin) @ SFG (Hicks) - 3:45 PM ET
Miami (Weathers) @ NYY (Stroman) - 7:05 PM ET
New York (Quintana) @ Atlanta (Winans) - 7:20 PM ET

Enjoy the games, everyone.