After the 2019 Major League Baseball season, some all-decade teams have been speculated. Of course, there are different opinions on what players should make the rosters, but if everyone agreed on the same roster, it could get boring. Some may even go as far as saying the decade should count as 2011-through-2020 while others say 2010-through-2019. Either way, here is a potential all-decade team for the NL East from the years 2010-through-2019.
(This includes a starting lineup [without a DH,] a pitching rotation and two relievers.)
Starting Lineup
1.) Daniel Murphy (2B)
Teams- New York Mets (2008-2015) and Washington Nationals (2016-2018)
Daniel Murphy spent a majority of the decade on National League East teams. Even though his time with the Nationals was less than three full season, he put up some solid numbers with them. His line with Washington was .329/.380/.550. Murphy also finished second in the National League MVP voting in 2016. Murphy led the NL in doubles that year with 47 along with 25 dingers.
2.) Freddie Freeman (1B)
Team- Atlanta Braves (2010-Present)
There shouldn’t be many people that disagree with Freddie Freeman making the list. If they do, what first basemen should be in this spot instead of him? He had a .504 slugging percentage during the decade that included 227 homers, 319 doubles and 805 RBIs. Just last season, he had a career-high 38 homers with a .938 OPS, which helped him get his first Silver Slugger Award.
3.) Bryce Harper (CF)
Teams- Washington Nationals (2012-2018) and Philadelphia Phillies (2019-Present)
Rookie of the Year, six-time All-Star and 2015 NL MVP are some of the accolades Bryce Harper secured in his time with the Nationals. His MVP season in 2015 was insane. He had a 1.109 OPS, 81 extra-base hits and 118 runs scored. After leaving the Nationals, he stayed in the NL East and joined the Phillies. In his first season there, he hit .260/.372/.510 and had 35 homers.
4.) Giancarlo Stanton (RF)
Team- Florida/Miami Marlins (2010-2017)
Giancarlo Stanton had a .554 slugging percentage in his eight seasons with the Marlins. This includes 267 home runs. A whopping 59 of them came in 2017, the same season that Stanton won MVP in the National League. That was also his last season with the Marlins. He accumulated four All-Star Games and two Silver Slugger Awards with Miami as well.
5.) Anthony Rendon (3B)
Team- Washington Nationals (2013-2019)
Anthony Rendon finished in the top six of the NL MVP voting in three of his seven seasons with Washington. The third basemen had one of his best seasons in 2019 when the team won the Fall Classic. He tied for the most doubles in the NL with 44 and led the MLB with 126 RBIs. The 29-year-old also finished the season with a 6.3 WAR.
6.) Christian Yelich (LF)
Team- Miami Marlins (2013-2017)
Another outfielder from the Marlins on the list is Christian Yelich. His line with the Marlins through five seasons was .290/.369/.432. Clearly these numbers aren’t the same as his stats with the Brewers, but they’re still solid. He had 21 homers and 98 RBIs in 2016, quite possibly his best year with the club. Yelich also won a Gold Glove and a Sliver Slugger award with Miami.
7.) J.T. Realmuto (C)
Teams- Miami Marlins (2014-2018) and Philadelphia Phillies (2019-Present)
Two-time All-Star J.T. Realmuto is coming off of his first season with the Phillies. He had a career-high 25 homers, and he won a Silver Slugger and Gold Glove in 2019. He hit well with the Marlins, too. In five seasons with them, he hit 59 long balls, had 243 RBIs and had an impressive .327 OBP. That one season with the Phillies in 2019 may have given him the edge over Wilson Ramos, who played with the Nationals, Phillies and Mets during the decade.
8.) Jimmy Rollins (SS)
Team- Philadelphia Phillies (2000-2014)
Jimmy Rollins played a majority of his seasons with the Phillies prior to the 2010s. However, he still played five seasons with them during that decade. He hit 70 homers from 2010-through-2014 and added another Gold Glove to the three that he already accomplished. Like the catcher spot, this one was close, but this time between Rollins and Trea Turner.
Pitching Rotation
1.) Max Scherzer
Team- Washington Nationals (2015-Present)
Max Scherzer has pitched incredibly in his time with the Nationals. He finished in the top five of the NL Cy Young voting each year with Washington. Since 2015, he also won the Cy Young Award twice. He has a 2.74 career ERA with the Nationals, and his highest in a single season with them was 2.96. Scherzer also led the MLB in strikeouts in two of his seasons in the NL East, including 2018 when he recorded 300 strikeouts.
2.) Jacob DeGrom
Team- New York Mets (2014-Present)
Jacob deGrom is coming off of back-to-back Cy Young Award seasons. The last two seasons have helped deGrom lower his career WHIP to 1.053. His 1.70 ERA in 2018 was a league-best. deGrom also had a career-high 269 strikeouts in 2018. He’s been pretty consistent throughout his career, as he won the Rookie of the Year in 2014, and was still winning awards over the past few years.
3.) Stephen Strasburg
Team- Washington Nationals (2010-Present)
Even while battling through multiple injuries, Stephen Strasburg still produced notable numbers during the decade. Last season, he had the most innings pitched in the National League with 209. This was big for him as it was his most innings pitched since 2014. Strasburg is also a three-time All-Star, and he finished in the top 10 of the NL Cy Young voting three times.
4.) Cole Hamels
Team- Philadelphia Phillies (2006-2015)
The lone southpaw in this rotation is Cole Hamels. He had some of his best seasons on the mound in 2011 and 2012. His total ERA those two years was 2.92. The current Atlanta Brave allowed 140 earned runs in 431 1/3 innings pitched. Hamels also made the All-Star game those two years and finished in the top 10 of the NL Cy Young voting.
5.) Noah Syndergaard
Team- New York Mets (2015-Present)
This past season wasn’t Noah Syndergaard‘s best. He had a 4.28 ERA and a career-high 24 homers allowed. However, his career numbers are still better than last year because of his first four big-league seasons. His career ERA is 3.31 along with a 2.92 FIP. He is still on the Mets heading into the 2020 season, so he can still turn things around from last year and get back on track.
Bullpen
Craig Kimbrel
Team- Atlanta Braves (2010-2014)
Craig Kimbrel made the All-Star game every season from 2011-through-2014. He was also in the top 10 of the NL Cy Young voting in each of those seasons. In 289 innings pitched with the Braves, he had a 1.43 ERA, 476 strikeouts and a 0.903 WHIP. Kimbrel was dominant on the mound and was overall a huge benefit to the Braves out of the bullpen
Jonathan Papelbon
Teams- Philadelphia Phillies (2012-2015) and Washington Nationals (2015-2016)
Jonathan Papelbon closed out his career in the NL East. He joined the Phillies for the 2012 season where he posted a 2.44 ERA in 70 innings pitched. Papelbon made the All-Star game that year as well. He went on to pitch with the Phillies for a few more years before joining the Nationals in 2015. A 2.31 ERA and a 1.022 WHIP are some of his stats with the Phillies. He pitched with the Nationals through 2016 before retiring.
Feature Image Courtesy of TomahawkTake.
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