MAJOR LEAGUE PREVIEW National League East

Atlanta Braves
2003: 101-61, 1st place.
Manager: Bobby Cox (18th season).
He's Here: RF J.D. Drew, OF Gary Matthews Jr., INF Russell Branyan, RHP Antonio Alfonseca, LHP Armando Almanza, LHP C.J. Nitkowski, RHP Tim Drew, RHP Chuck Smith.
He's Outta Here: RHP Greg Maddux, OF Gary Sheffield, C Javy Lopez, 3B Vinny Castilla, 1B Robert Fick, RHP Darren Holmes, RHP Shane Reynolds.
Projected Lineup: SS Rafael Furcal (.292, 15 HRs, 61 RBIs, 25 SBs), 2B Marcus Giles (.316, 21, 69, 49 2Bs), LF Chipper Jones (.305, 27, 106), RF J.D. Drew (.289, 15, 42 for St. Louis), CF Andruw Jones (.277, 36, 116, 125 Ks), 3B Mark DeRosa (.263, 6, 22), C Johnny Estrada (.306, 0, 2), 1B Adam LaRoche (.295, 8, 35 in Triple-A) or Julio Franco (.294, 5, 31).
Rotation: RH Russ Ortiz (21-7, 3.81 ERA), LH Mike Hampton (14-8, 3.84), LH Horacio Ramirez (12-4, 4.00), RH John Thomson (13-14, 4.85 for Texas), RH Jaret Wright (2-5, 7.35) or RH Trey Hodges (3-3, 4.66).
Key Relievers: RH John Smoltz (0-2, 1.12, 45/49 saves), RH Antonio Alfonseca (3-1, 5.83), LH Armando Almanza (4-5, 6.08), RH Kevin Gryboski (6-4, 3.86), RH Will Cunnane (2-2, 2.70).
Hot Spot: Starting rotation took another hit with departure of Maddux, who left a year after Tom Glavine and Kevin Millwood. Braves signed Thomson, coming off a career year in Texas. With RHP Paul Byrd (elbow surgery) probably out until June, Wright and Hodges are competing for No. 5 spot in rotation. Bullpen also was retooled, with Alfonseca probably assuming setup role.
Stat Sheet: Braves set franchise records with 235 home runs and 907 runs in 2003, when four players -- Sheffield, Lopez, Chipper Jones and Andruw Jones -- reached 100 RBIs. Six players hit at least 20 home runs. Without Sheffield and Castilla, those numbers will be tough to duplicate. Rookie LaRoche will platoon with Franco at first, and DeRosa, who has only 14 career homers, takes over at third. Atlanta also needs Drew to stay healthy; he's played at least 135 games only twice in past five years.
Bottom Line: Can this team extend run of division titles? Braves have won a record 12 straight but will be hard pressed to do it again, with owner Time Warner cutting at least $25 million from payroll. But Atlanta still has a chance. Drew must stay healthy, and DeRosa and LaRoche must play up to their potential. Those two, along with Estrada, give Braves three first-time starters, hardly the recipe that has served Cox so well the past dozen seasons.
Florida Marlins
2003: 91-71, 2nd place (wild card, won World Series).
Manager: Jack McKeon (2nd season).
He's Here: 1B Hee Seop Choi, RHP Armando Benitez, LHP Darren Oliver, RHP Michael Neu, 1B Wil Cordero.
He's Outta Here: C Ivan Rodriguez, 1B Derrek Lee, LHP Mark Redman, RF Juan Encarnacion, RHP Ugueth Urbina, RHP Braden Looper, OF Todd Hollandsworth, RHP Rick Helling.
Projected Lineup: CF Juan Pierre (.305, 100 runs, 65 SBs), 2B Luis Castillo (.314, 99 runs), RF Miguel Cabrera (.268, 12, 62 in 87 games), 3B Mike Lowell (.276, 32, 105), LF Jeff Conine (.282, 20, 95), 1B Hee Seop Choi (.218, 8, 28 in 80 games for Cubs), C Ramon Castro (.283, 5 HRs in 53 ABs), SS Alex Gonzalez (.256, 18, 77).
Rotation: RH Josh Beckett (9-8, 3.04), RH Brad Penny (14-10, 4.13), RH Carl Pavano (12-13, 4.30), LH Dontrelle Willis (14-6, 3.30), LH Darren Oliver (13-11, 5.04 for Colorado), RH A.J. Burnett (0-2, 4.70 in four games).
Key Relievers: RH Armando Benitez (4-4, 3.33 ERA, 21/28 for three teams), RH Chad Fox (3-3, 3.12), LH Michael Tejera (3-4, 4.67), RH Nate Bump (4-0, 4.71), LH Michael Neu (0-0, 3.64 for Oakland), LH Tommy Phelps (3-2, 4.00).
Hot Spot: Choi was NL rookie of the month last April for Cubs, but was sidelined in June by a concussion and struggled when he returned. He'll try to replace Lee (31 homers, 92 RBIs).
Stat Sheet: NL Rookie of the Year Willis went 9-1 with a 2.08 ERA before All-Star break and 5-5 with a 4.60 ERA afterward, with a postseason ERA of 8.53. He could be bumped from the rotation by Burnett, expected to return from elbow surgery in May.
Bottom Line: Marlins won the World Series last year but say they lost $17 million. Owner Jeffrey Loria has made little progress in pursuit of new ballpark, and despite two championship seasons in past seven years, the franchise faces uncertain future.
Montreal Expos
2003: 83-79, 4th place.
Manager: Frank Robinson (third season).
He's Here: OF Carl Everett, 1B Nick Johnson, 3B Tony Batista, OF Juan Rivera, INF Andy Fox, C Gregg Zaun, LHP Randy Choate, RHP Pat Mahomes.
He's Outta Here: OF Vladimir Guerrero, RHP Javier Vazquez, 1B Wil Cordero, C Michael Barrett, LHP Scott Stewart, INF Todd Zeile, 3B Fernando Tatis, OF-INF Jose Macias, RHP Orlando Hernandez, RHP Hector Almonte, RHP Britt Reames.
Projected Lineup: CF Brad Wilkerson (.268, 19, 77, 155 Ks), SS Orlando Cabrera (.297, 17, 80, 47 2Bs, 24 SBs), 2B Jose Vidro (.310, 15, 65), RF Carl Everett (.287, 28, 92), 3B Tony Batista (.235, 26, 99, 102 Ks for Baltimore), 1B Nick Johnson (.284, 14, 47 for Yankees), C Brian Schneider (.230, 9, 46), LF Juan Rivera (.266, 7, 26) or Endy Chavez (.251, 5, 47, 18 SBs) or Ron Calloway (.238, 9, 52) or Termel Sledge (.324, 24, 92, in Triple-A) or Peter Bergeron (.302, 1, 32 in Triple-A).
Rotation: RH Livan Hernandez (15-10, 3.20, 8 CGs), RH Tony Armas Jr. (2-1, 2.61), RH Tomo Ohka (10-12, 4.16), RH Zach Day (9-8, 4.18), RH Claudio Vargas (6-8, 4.34).
Key Relievers: RH Rocky Biddle (5-8, 4.65, 34/41 saves), RH Luis Ayala (10-3, 2.92, 5 saves), LH Joey Eischen (2-2, 3.06, 1 save), RH Chad Cordero (1-0, 1.64, 1 save), RH T.J. Tucker (2-3, 4.73), RH Jeremy Fikac (0-1, 4.50).
Hot Spot: Despite loss of Guerrero's potent bat, Expos have potentially one of their most balanced offensive lineups ever. Even with his anemic batting average and on-base percentage, Batista is a huge upgrade at third base thanks to his power and run production. Everett, a surprising addition, was drawn to team's competitive spirit. And Johnson's patience at the plate will help temper free-swinging approach of holdovers who rose through Expos' minor league ranks.
Stat Sheet: Expos won 52 home games last year, including those shifted to San Juan; it was third-highest total in franchise's 36 seasons. They were also in playoff contention going into September, but finished 31-50 on the road for a ninth straight losing season away from Olympic Stadium.
Bottom Line: In a division laden with strong competition, Expos will have big challenge achieving third straight winning season. A fast start will be a key with another 22 "home" games to be played in Puerto Rico -- this year, all prior to All-Star break. Pitching will tell the tale. If Hernandez remains healthy, Armas regains form following shoulder surgery, and back end of rotation builds on last season's performance, the loss of Vazquez will be negligible.
New York Mets
2003: 66-95, 5th place.
Manager: Art Howe (second season).
He's Here: SS Kaz Matsui, CF Mike Cameron, RHP Braden Looper, OF Karim Garcia, OF Shane Spencer, INF Todd Zeile, RHP Scott Erickson, RHP Ricky Bottalico, RHP James Baldwin.
He's Outta Here: 1B Tony Clark, RHP Pedro Astacio, INF Jay Bell, OF Tsuyoshi Shinjo, INF Marco Scutaro, LHP Jaime Cerda.
Projected Lineup: SS Kaz Matsui (.305, 33, 84, 36 2Bs, 13 SBs, 124 Ks in Japan), 2B Jose Reyes (.307, 5, 32 13 SBs in 69 games), LF Cliff Floyd (.290, 18, 68 in 108 games), C Mike Piazza (.286, 11, 34 in 68 games), CF Mike Cameron (.253, 18, 76, 137 Ks with Seattle), 1B Jason Phillips (.298, 11, 58), 3B Ty Wigginton (.255, 11, 71, 124 Ks), RF Karim Garcia (.262, 11, 35 in 76 games with Indians and Yankees) or Shane Spencer (.251, 12, 49 with Cleveland and Texas).
Rotation: LH Tom Glavine (9-14, 4.52), LH Al Leiter (15-9, 3.99), RH Steve Trachsel (16-10, 3.78), RH Jae Weong Seo (9-12, 3.82), RH Grant Roberts (0-3, 3.79, 1 in 18 relief appearances) or RH Aaron Heilman (2-7, 6.75) or RH Scott Erickson (injured last season, 5-12, 5.55 in 2002 with Baltimore) or RH Tyler Yates (3-6, 4.28 at three minor league levels) or RH James Baldwin (0-1, 5.40 in 10 relief appearances for Minnesota).
Key Relievers: RH Braden Looper (6-4, 3.68, 28 for Florida), RH David Weathers (1-6, 3.08, 7), LH John Franco (0-3, 2.62, 2), LH Mike Stanton (2-7, 4.57, 5), RH Scott Strickland (0-2, 2.25, 19 games, elbow surgery).
Hot Spot: Plan is for Piazza to play some first base to keep his bat in lineup more. But he doesn't move well and nobody seems sure how often he'll play there. Phillips looks to build on rookie season, when he surprised everybody with his production.
Stat Sheet: New York's paltry .314 on-base percentage and 642 runs were second-worst in league. Matsui and Reyes can help improve those numbers by giving Floyd and Piazza a chance to hit with runners on base. If so, and the sluggers stay healthy, this offense could be much better.
Bottom Line: Coming off consecutive last-place finishes, Mets made effort to spend more wisely and improve defense in the offseason. Matsui, a seven-time All-Star in Japan, and Reyes should provide speed at top of the lineup and a nifty double-play combination. But Reyes, 20, was sidelined in spring training and has a history of leg injuries, a major concern. He is one of several injury-prone players who must stay healthy. Team is expecting too much from an old pitching staff, and lineup lacks proven power. Wigginton might be more productive in his second full season. GM Jim Duquette has helped replenish farm system some, but club still has a long way to go.
Philadelphia Phillies
2003: 86-76, 3rd place.
Manager: Larry Bowa (fourth season).
He's Here: LHP Billy Wagner, LHP Eric Milton, RHP Tim Worrell, RHP Roberto Hernandez, INF-C Shawn Wooten, OF Doug Glanville.
He's Outta Here: RHP Jose Mesa, RHP Terry Adams, RHP Brandon Duckworth, RHP Carlos Silva, LHP Dan Plesac, LHP Valerio De Los Santos, RHP Mike Williams, RHP Turk Wendell, INF Nick Punto, C Kelly Stinnett.
Projected Lineup: CF Marlon Byrd (.303, 7, 45), SS Jimmy Rollins (.263, 8, 62, 20 SBs); 1B Jim Thome (.266, 47, 131, .573 SLG); LF Pat Burrell (.209, 21, 64, 142 Ks), RF Bobby Abreu (.300, 20, 101, 20 SBs), C Mike Lieberthal (.313, 13, 81), 2B Placido Polanco (.289, 14, 63), 3B David Bell (.195, 4, 37).
Rotation: RH Kevin Millwood (14-12, 4.01), LH Randy Wolf (16-10, 4.23), RH Vicente Padilla 14-12, 3.62), LH Eric Milton (1-0, 2.65, 3 starts), RH Brett Myers (14-9, 4.43).
Key Relievers: LH Billy Wagner (1-4, 1.78 (44/47 saves for Houston), RH Tim Worrell (4-4, 2.87, 38/45 for San Francisco), LH Rheal Cormier (8-0, 1.70).
Hot Spot: Bell was signed before 2003 season to provide clutch hitting and steady defense at 3B. But he's been beset by injuries, including a shoulder problem that sidelined him this spring. If he can't play, Polanco might have to move to third. Tomas Perez and Wooten also are options.
Stat Sheet: Offense must cut down on strikeouts (1,155) and increase stolen bases (72). Burrell has to rebound from a horrible season after hitting 37 homers and driving in 116 runs in 2002. Wagner and Worrell (82/92 saves) are much better than Mesa and closers used last year.
Bottom Line: After another offseason spending spree, the Phillies move into new stadium as favorites to win NL East and end Atlanta's string of division titles. Nothing less than a playoff berth will be accepted in this championship-starved city. Bowa could feel the heat if team starts slow and he loses control of players. Starting rotation is deep, revamped bullpen is better and lineup could score plenty if Burrell finds his stroke again.
Saturday: N.L. West