Players I'm Excited to Watch in 2026 (NL East)

Braves

Spencer Schwellenbach

Schwellenbach really put the league on notice in 2025, posting a 3.09 ERA backed by a 3.25 FIP and a 0.97 WHIP, an improvement from an already impressive rookie year that featured a 3.35 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. Although he made only 17 starts last season after suffering a fractured elbow in late June, 13 of those 17 outings were logged as quality starts. That comes out to an incredible 76.5% QS rate, highest in the MLB among pitchers with at least 10 starts.

For context, if Schwellenbach hypothetically made 30 starts at that same rate, he would total 23 quality starts. Logan Webb, Christopher Sanchez, and Garrett Crochet led the MLB with 22 each, posting 34, 32, and 32 total starts respectively. Featuring a six-pitch mix, Schwellenbach was one of the best arms in baseball at limiting free bases, posting a 4.1% walk rate, 2nd lowest among pitchers with at least 100 innings pitched. Another bright spot is his chase rate, which sat in the 95th percentile, evidence for a potential uptick in his 8.7 K/9 from 2025.

While his explosive four-seam fastball was the star of the show, Schwellenbach has the secondaries to support it, headlined by a split-finger. His 3rd most thrown pitch, it posted a .132 BAA and a 42% whiff rate, numbers comparable to the splitters thrown by Yamamoto and Kodai Senga. Its .168 wOBA was the lowest among any starter’s splitter thrown at least 200 times in 2025. Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos said back in November that Schwellenbach was pain free, so I am hoping he is able to hit the ground running in 2026. 

Marlins

Kyle Stowers

This kid is the real deal. One of the headline pieces returned to Miami in the Trevor Rogers trade with Baltimore, Stowers exploded onto the scene in 2025, earning his first career all-star appearance. He hit .288 with a .912 OPS while launching 25 home runs. A deadly combination of average and power, Stowers finished with a .386 wOBA and a 149 wRC+.

Baseball Savant’s affinity tool provides similarity scores across MLB hitters by comparing batted-ball profiles (barrel, solid contact, poorly topped/under, etc) and plate appearance outcomes. Based on those affinity scores, Stowers’ closest comps include Kyle Schwarber, Nick Kurtz, Michael Busch, Byron Buxton, Jo Adell, and Pete Alonso. His 91.1 mph average exit velo ranks in the top 25% of the league, while his barrel rate and hard-hit rate sit in the top 2% and 6% of the MLB, respectively. Stowers also posted a .255 batting average and a .863 OPS with runners in scoring position. If he can rein in the strikeouts just a bit, he has the tools to become one of the best pure hitters in the game. 

Mets

Brett Baty

I’m curious how manager Carlos Mendoza navigates this lineup. Major position player acquisitions include Jorge Polanco (projected 1B), Marcus Simien (2B), Bo Bichette (3B), and Luis Robert (CF). According to the Mets’ depth chart on MLB’s website, Baty is not currently slotted in a starting role. I have a hard time believing any of the listed acquisitions lose their starting spots, so a potential path for Baty appears to be in competition for the DH role with Mark Vientos or left field with Tyrone Taylor. A super utility role is also very much at play. As it currently stands, Fangraphs’ projected lineup vs RHP has him in the DH spot.

Baty reached as high as the #2 overall prospect in the Mets organization in both 2022 and 2023, landing #27 and #22 in MLB’s top 100 list. In his first season with a consistent role, he posted a .254/.313/.435 slash with 18 home runs across 130 games. His impressive bat speed (74.8 mph) has driven to a barrel rate in the 86th percentile and hard-hit rate in the 72nd percentile. Since his 2023 rookie campaign, Baty has shown steady improvements in batting average, on-base, and slugging each year. His underlying metrics have followed suit, with increases in exit velocity, barrel rate, hard-hit rate, chase rate, and squared up rate.

Baty was exceptional with runners in scoring position in 2025, hitting .281 with a .809 OPS. His pre/post all-star splits were very encouraging, as his average jumped from .226 to .291, OBP from .282 to .353 and SLG from .403 to .477 (a .685 OPS to .830 OPS). I do think in order for Baty to have a breakout season there has to be consistent opportunities to keep him in a groove, something that might not be fully guaranteed. 

Phillies

Jesús Luzardo

The deepest rotation in baseball lost a key piece when Ranger Suarez went to Boston. Luzardo, who entered 2025 as the #4, will undoubtedly take on a massive role, jumping up to the number 2 behind Christopher Sanchez while Zack Wheeler’s availability and role remain uncertain. Luzardo posted a 3.92 ERA across 32 starts, but his performance was backed by an impressive 3.34 xERA and a 2.90 FIP.

He does everything well: he limits hard contact (78th percentile barrel rate, 77th percentile hard-hit rate), generates swing-and-miss (87th percentile whiff rate, 76th percentile chase rate), racks up strikeouts (86th percentile K rate), and does a solid job limiting walks (61st percentile). What stands out is his ability to miss bats both in and out of the zone, with an in-zone whiff rate of 20.5%, 6th best in the MLBamong pitchers with at least 175 innings pitched.

His sweeper is his deadliest pitch, thrown 31% of the time (2nd most in his arsenal), holding opponents to a .178 batting average while generating a 43.7% whiff rate and a 29.3% putaway rate. I'm eager to see the strides Luzardo takes in this more prominent role in 2026. 

Nationals

James Wood

Wood delivered a true breakout campaign in 2025, slashing .256/.350/.475 with a 132 OPS+, crushing 31 home runs and driving in 94 runs. I’m excited to see him fully establish himself as one of the most intimidating bats in the NL. The towering 6’7”, 230 pound outfielder is regarded as one of the hardest hitters in the game, tying for the 4th highest average exit velocity among qualified batters at 94.3 mph, backed by elite bat speed (76.0 mph).

While he does a great job drawing walks and avoiding chases out of the zone, Wood struggled with in-zone swing-and-miss, posting a 23.1% rate, 12th highest among qualified batters. He is also one of the league’s premier lefty mashers, posting a .493 OPS against southpaws, 4th highest among hitters with at least 200 plate appearances vs left-handed pitching.

What makes Wood’s power output intriguing is how it contrasts with his batted-ball profile. He posted a pull air rate of just 11.3%, 21st lowest in the MLB, an extremely uncharacteristic figure for a hitter who slugged nearly .500. Something to monitor will be which direction Wood’s profile trends: will his power regress to better align with his 49.7% ground ball rate (22nd highest in the MLB), or will he elevate the ball more consistently and unlock even more power than before? 2026 has the potential to be an explosive season for Wood as he looks to earn a second straight all-star nod.