Some major MLB news occurred on Monday night as the NL Central standings were shaken up. Moving into first was the underdog team in the Cincinnati Reds with a record of 41-36. A twelve game winning streak has propelled them to this point.
On the same day the Reds took over first place of the NL Central in 2023, Joey Votto played his first game of the season. He previously had been recovering from rotator cuff surgery. Naturally he hit a home run in his season debut.
For the Reds, this is the latest into the season that they have been in first place since 2012. That 2012 team featured players such as Brandon Phillips, Ryan Ludwick, Jay Bruce, Todd Frazier, Johnny Cueto, and Arolodis Chapman. They won the National League Central that year with 97 wins and ended up losing in the NLDS to eventual World Series Champion San Francisco Giants.
MLB News: What does the remainder of the National League Central standings look like?
Currently the Milwaukee Brewers are in second place with a 39-37 record. They are 3-7 in their last ten games, but those three wins came via a series sweep against the division rival Pittsburgh Pirates over the weekend. Milwaukee is currently in the middle of a six series stretch against other playoff contenders.
Pittsburgh entered last weekend in first place, but now a 1-9 stretch has them at 35-41. They are third in the division currently and the ship appears to be sinking. If they want to stay in contention they will need to rebound quickly.
Although fourth in the division the Chicago Cubs have been playing good baseball lately. Their record is 37-38 and they have won nine out of their last 10 games. They are three games behind the Cincinnati Reds and because of the weak NL Central they are not out of playoff contention yet.
In last place in the St. Louis Cardinals. They have been a disaster all season long and are currently eight games back in the division with a 31-45 record. If they don’t turn it around before the All-Star break they will likely be sellers this year.
At the time of this publication we are nearing the halfway point of the season. Most teams have around 90 games remaining on their schedule. A lot can happen, but at this point it appears that the NL Central is wide open for whomever wants to take it.
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