Back in January, the Pitcher List staff voted on the American League All-Division Teams. Of course, every team appeared stacked, but the AL East stood out as the clear head honcho. This was proven in the poll at the end of that article, where the AL East received almost 75% of all Pitcher List readers’ votes.
This time around, we’re doing the National League All-Division Teams.
Which pitcher in the pitcher-loaded NL East received the most votes? How many unanimous (out of 42 voters) players were selected? Was touted prospect Gavin Lux — just 82 career plate appearances into his major league career — able to get the vote over breakout stud Ketel Marte in the NL West?
Well, here they are, your National League All-Division Teams!
National League East All-Division Team
Starting with the hitters:
| Position | Player | Votes (out of 42) |
| Catcher | JT Realmuto | 41 |
| First Base | Freddie Freeman | 40 |
| Second Base | Ozzie Albies | 40 |
| Third Base | Jeff McNeil | 35 |
| Short Stop | Trea Turner | 42 |
| Outfield 1 | Ronald Acuna Jr. | 42 |
| Outfield 2 | Juan Soto | 40 |
| Outfield 3 | Bryce Harper | 35 |
There was very little competition for these nine spots in the NL East. The voting blowouts included two unanimous players in Trea Turner and Ronald Acuna Jr., and JT Realmuto probably should have been unanimous as well (Kurt Suzuki stole a vote).
Of all these wide margins, though, the one that stood out the most was Pete Alonso only receiving two votes to Freddie Freeman’s 40. Coming off a historic rookie season in which Alonso swatted 53 HR and earned the Rookie of the Year award, I was expecting him to put up more of a fight in the voting than he did.
My prediction aside, the Pitcher List staff got it right.
If Freeman’s glove doesn’t separate him from Alonso enough, then his track record should. Freeman has played at least 158 games in three of the last four seasons, during which he’s hit .303 with a .948 OPS. The Braves slugger is the right choice here, but it should be noted that Alonso was almost a full win better according to fWAR (4.8 to 4.0) in 2019. The Polar Bear is on the rise!
As for the NL East’s pitching:
| Position | Player | Votes (out of 42) |
| Starting Pitcher #1 | Max Scherzer | 42 |
| Starting Pitcher #2 | Stephen Strasburg | 41 |
| Starting Pitcher #3 | Jacob deGrom | 40 |
| Starting Pitcher #4 | Patrick Corbin | 28 |
| Starting Pitcher #5 | Aaron Nola | 22 |
| Relief Pitcher #1 | Will Smith | 27 |
| Relief Pitcher #2 | Edwin Diaz | 20 |
Stephen Strasburg was not unanimous?
Two people didn’t vote for Jacob deGrom!?
Aside from those two absolute blunders (come on, guys!), I think I would have taken Noah Syndergaard over Aaron Nola. It’s certainly close (Syndergaard received 16 votes to Nola’s 22) and I may come to regret that take but Syndergaard has simply pitched at as high or higher of a level than Nola for a longer period of time. While his 2019 was disappointing, he still out-performed Nola in FIP, WHIP, BB%, HR%, SwStr%, and fWAR. I think both young arms are due for improved 2020s and wouldn’t be surprised if they both make this team next year.
Despite his awful 2019, the PL Staff’s confidence in Edwin Diaz is not waning too much. Diaz defeated two of his Mets teammates to earn the second relief pitcher spot on the team. Those two Mets – Dellin Betances and Seth Lugo – received 11 and 10 votes respectively. The PL Staff seems to be in on the Mets bullpen for 2020… or at least in comparison to their NL East foes.
National League Central All-Division Team
The NL Central had some much closer outcomes:
| Position | Player | Votes (out of 42) |
| Catcher | Willson Contreras | 34 |
| First Base | Anthony Rizzo | 24 |
| Second Base | Keston Hiura | 27 |
| Third Base | Kris Bryant | 25 |
| Short Stop | Javier Baez | 40 |
| Outfield 1 | Christian Yelich | 42 |
| Outfield 2 | Nick Castellanos | 36 |
| Outfield 3 | Kyle Schwarber | 15 |
Right off the bat, we have somewhat of an upset as Willson Contreras demolished the future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina, 34 to 8. There is no question that Contreras is the better hitter at this point in their careers and his pop time is actually significantly better as well. Molina only had five hits in 33 AB during the 2019 playoffs, perhaps leaving a sour taste in the voters’ mouths. In less PA, Contreras more than doubled Molina’s fWAR. With all of that said, I suppose it isn’t too surprising that the emerging Contreras soundly defeats Molina in the eyes of the PL Staff.
The NL Central’s first base situation was somewhat disputed. Anthony Rizzo won with 24 votes over Paul Goldschmidt (13), Josh Bell (4), and Joey Votto (1). Rizzo’s fWAR in 2019 of 4.0 was at least a full win higher than each of the other three. He also beat them in some key offensive statistics such as wOBA and wRC+. Sprinkle in his 2019 Gold Glove Award, and Rizzo was probably the easy choice here.
Keston Hiura (over Mike Moustakas) and Kyle Schwarber (over Lorenzo Cain) were two other surprises but not entirely out of left field (pun intended). Hiura is a budding star and Cain had a down year by his standards, while Schwarber learned to (kind of) hit lefties. Add in their respective ages, and I think I am fine with the decision to choose these two players over their divisional rivals.
| Position | Player | Votes (out of 42) |
| Starting Pitcher #1 | Jack Flaherty | 41 |
| Starting Pitcher #2 | Luis Castillo | 40 |
| Starting Pitcher #3 | Trevor Bauer | 29 |
| Starting Pitcher #4 | Yu Darvish | 27 |
| Starting Pitcher #5 | Sonny Gray | 24 |
| Relief Pitcher #1 | Josh Hader | 41 |
| Relief Pitcher #2 | Giovanny Gallegos | 17 |
Jack Flaherty and Luis Castillo should have been pretty easy unanimous decisions. I understand not drafting Flaherty as high as he seems to be going in some early fantasy drafts but this isn’t about fantasy value or fantasy at all. Flaherty is definitely one of the five best pitchers in the NL Central, as is Castillo.
Three veterans — Trevor Bauer, Yu Darvish, and Sonny Gray — round out the NL Central rotation. Gray edged out Brandon Woodruff by three votes and Kyle Hendricks by 13. I am fine with that result. Woodruff lacks the track record and Gray had a better 2019 than both of them.
In the bullpen, Josh Hader was no surprise and absolutely should have been unanimous. That should go without saying. His 2019 16.41 K/9 speaks for itself. Giovanny Gallegos and his 2.31 FIP were not a bad selection at all for the #2 spot. Craig Kimbrel (14 votes) has the name recognition but his 2019 was an epic disaster.
National League West All-Division Team
| Position | Player | Votes (out of 42) |
| Catcher | Will Smith | 15 |
| First Base | Max Muncy | 41 |
| Second Base | Ketel Marte | 40 |
| Third Base | Nolan Arenado | 40 |
| Short Stop | Trevor Story | 33 |
| Outfield 1 | Cody Bellinger | 42 |
| Outfield 2 | Mookie Betts | 42 |
| Outfield 3 | Starling Marte | 19 |
I think I’m going to tear up looking at Mookie Betts here in the NL West. He was unanimous in the AL East, and, now, unanimous in the NL West. It should be no surprise, either. In what some may consider a “down” year for Betts in 2019, his 6.6 fWAR was still ninth-best in baseball. His new teammate, Cody Bellinger, was the only other unanimous bat in the NL West.
Also new to the NL West is Starling Marte, who defeated Charlie Blackmon (14 votes) and Tommy Pham (six votes) to earn the third outfield spot. Pham did edge Marte in wRC+ and fWAR. He also obliterated him in BB% (12.4% to just 4.3%). But, while the speed is a wash, Marte’s glove and slugging more than make up the difference. As for Blackmon, the offensive numbers are there but the home/road splits are enough to make you think twice and ultimately give the nod to Marte. He was the right choice but this spot was certainly worth discussing.
| Position | Player | Votes (out of 42) |
| Starting Pitcher #1 | Walker Buehler | 41 |
| Starting Pitcher #2 | Clayton Kershaw | 41 |
| Starting Pitcher #3 | Chris Paddack | 38 |
| Starting Pitcher #4 | Madison Bumgarner | 28 |
| Starting Pitcher #5 | Zac Gallen | 17 |
| Relief Pitcher #1 | Kirby Yates | 36 |
| Relief Pitcher #2 | Kenley Jansen | 33 |
Walker Buehler, Clayton Kershaw, and Kirby Yates were the only three I considered locks in the NL West. Chris Paddack and Madison Bumgarner had strong showings as well.
Zac Gallen, though, was a bit surprising. Don’t get me wrong, I like him too. However, for a pitcher who has made just 15 career starts, overperformed his FIP by almost a full run, posted a high LOB%, and allowed just a 10.8 HR/FB%, I have some questions. Should those somewhat more lucky stats begin to trend in the wrong direction, will the staff have wished they voted for another, more proven pitcher, instead? Maybe, but outside of Robbie Ray and David Price, who are pretty uninspiring for their own reasons, there aren’t really any proven arms to choose from. German Marquez and Luke Weaver are arguably just as unproven in terms of what they are capable of as Gallen. So, despite some concerns, I do not have too much of an issue with the Gallen pick.
As for the bullpen, neither of those names should be shocking to see. My sleeper bet to make at least the Relief Pitcher #2 position next year? Brusdar Graterol.
That sums up the National League All-Division Teams! Please vote on the poll below to determine which National League All-Division Team is the best. As a reminder, here are the rosters:
| NL East | NL Central | NL West |
| C – JT Realmuto 1B – F. Freeman 2B – O. Albies 3B – J. McNeil SS – T. Turner OF1 – R. Acuña Jr. OF2 – J. Soto OF3 – B. Harper |
C – W. Contreras 1B – A. Rizzo 2B – K. Hiura 3B – K. Bryant SS – J. Baez OF1 – C. Yelich OF2 – N. Castellanos OF3 – K. Schwarber |
C – W. Smith 1B – M. Muncy 2B – K. Marte 3B – N. Arenado SS – T. Story OF1 – M. Betts OF2 – C. Bellinger OF3 – S. Marte |
| SP1 – M. Scherzer SP2 – S. Strasburg SP3 – J. deGrom SP4 – P. Corbin SP5 – A. Nola |
SP1 – J. Flaherty SP2 – L. Castillo SP3 – T. Bauer SP4 – Y. Darvish SP5 – S. Gray |
SP1 – W. Buehler SP2 – C. Kershaw SP3 – C. Paddack SP4 – M. Bumgarner SP5 – Z. Gallen |
| RP1 – W. Smith RP2 – E. Diaz |
RP1 – J. Hader RP2 – G. Gallegos |
RP1 – K. Yates RP2 – K. Jansen |
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Scherzer: Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire
Acuna: Photo by John Adams/Icon Sportswire
Feature Graphic Designed by James Peterson (Follow @jhp_design714 on Instagram & Twitter)