The offseason is over. Well… Sort of.

Free agents like Jake Arrieta, Lance Lynn and Mike Moustakas still remain, but much of the dust has settled as the season comes closer. And this offseason was indeed an eventful one for the N.L. East. Long story short: two teams got better, two got worse, and one stayed about the same.

The biggest headline this division saw in the offseason was the exodus of talent that took place in Miami, which should benefit the four other teams in the division this offseason, especially the Mets, who went 7-12 against the Marlins last year. Outside of that, some under-the-radar moves have definitely shaken up the composition of the division this year.

So let’s cut to the chase. Here are the NL East offseason standings:

Philadelphia Phillies

Key additions: 1B Carlos Santana, RP Tommy Hunter, RP Pat Neshek, RP Francisco Rodriguez, 3B Will Middlebrooks

Key losses: OF Daniel Nava, OF Hyun Soo Kim

The Phillies made the biggest individual divisional splash this offseason when they signed Carlos Santana to a three-year, $60 million contract. Santana is one of the best on-base guys in the game, with a .249/.365/.445 lifetime slash.

He’ll bring some firepower to a Phillies lineup that finished 12th in the NL in runs scored last year. The signings of Tommy Hunter (2.61 ERA) and Pat Neshek (1.59 ERA) also make for a vastly improved bullpen.

These additions will pair well with a young crop of talent, including Rhys Hoskins, Odubel Herrera, Cesar Hernandez and Aaron Nola. The Phillies won’t be contenders this season, although they’re clearly moving in the right direction. And early signals indicate that they will be very active in free agency next year, which could give them a full-fledged path to contention. This will be the last year of the Phillies rebuild.

New York Mets

Key additions: RP Anthony Swarzak, OF Jay Bruce, 1B Adrian Gonzalez, 3B Todd Frazier, SP Jason Vargas

Key losses: 1B Lucas Duda, RP Addison Reed, 2B Neil Walker, OF Curtis Granderson

The Mets didn’t make one major splash, but they made several nice ripples that should improve the team substantially from last year’s 92-loss debacle.

Todd Frazier should end the Mets’ revolving door at third base. Nobody seemed to be able to hold the job on a consistent basis last season, but this should change with someone who has played at least 147 games there every year since 2013. Jason Vargas will fill in the Bartolo Colon role that was badly missed last season; that is, a reliable veteran starter capable of eating innings. This should both provide the Mets with injury insurance and put less stress on the bullpen, which was way overtaxed last season.

Bringing back Jay Bruce will also keep the Mets with a solid outfield. And if Adrian Gonzalez can bounce back this year, the Mets will be big trouble for opposing teams. If they stay healthy, and that’s a big if, they could contend for a Wild Card spot this season. Maybe even the division.

Washington Nationals

Washington lost two key contributors to last year’s team: Adam Lind, who batted .303/.362/.513 in a part-time role last season, and Matt Albers, who recorded a 1.62 ERA in the bullpen. They made some solid signings to make up for it though: They retained Howie Kendrick, who batted .315/.368/.475 in a utility role last season, and they also bought back Brandon Kintzler, who posted a 3.03 ERA in the bullpen. Matt Adams will replace Adam Lind as the reserve first-baseman-outfield type, who is coming off of a year in which he batted .274/.319/.522 with 20 home runs.
In short, the Nats have stayed roughly stagnant this offseason.

 Atlanta Braves

Key losses: OF Matt Kemp, SP R.A. Dickey, RP Jason Motte
Still a year or two away from contending, the Braves essentially stood pat this offseason. Their biggest move came in a five-player deal with the Dodgers, in which they traded Matt Kemp back to L.A. for Scott Kazmir, Charlie Culberson, Brandon McCarthy and Adrian Gonzalez.
Gonzalez was immediately released; the Braves will pay him $16.4 million to do nothing this year. McCarthy is likely the only player that can help this team as of right now; he posted a solid 3.98 ERA in 19 appearances (16 starts) last season. Kazmir missed all of 2017 with a hip injury, and is reportedly a long shot to make the rotation. Culberson, who batted just .154/.267/.231 last season, is entirely a non-factor.
The Braves do, however, sport one of the best farm systems in the game — they had seven players in MLB Pipeline’s top 100 list at the start of last year. And with just $46.2 million in salary commitments going into next season, they could be poised to make that big jump in 2018.

Miami Marlins

Key additions: IF Starlin Castro, OF Lewis Brinson, OF Cameron Maybin

Can you name five players on the Marlins?

Okay, if you read this site, then you probably can. But that probably wasn’t too easy, was it?

The Marlins lost their four best hitters this offseason, and replaced them with Starlin Castro and Cameron Maybin. Seriously. They’ll be lucky to lose under 100 games this year. The tank is on. Someone call up Sam Hinkie.
Miami did, however, recoup some solid prospects, including Lewis Brinson, a 23-year-old center fielder who was acquired in the Christian Yelich trade, and is Pipeline’s No. 27 overall prospect. He will likely be the team’s starting center fielder this year. They also acquired some other solid prospects, including Monte Harrison (No. 75, Baseball America) and Jorge Guzman (No. 87, Baseball America). But it’ll be years before they hit the major-league level.
So there you have it: The Mets’ offseason wasn’t so bad after all.
What do you think of the N.L. East teams’ respective winters?