The Franchise: NL East

Jason Michael Barker

"The Franchise" is back for its sixth and final installment, and, as those of you who've been scoring along home probably know, that means the National League East, otherwise known as Atlanta's Personal Stomping Ground. The division is home to four established stars and one of the up-and-coming variety. As usual, statistics play a large role in making these selections, but often don't tell the entire story, as you'll see with the second player profiled on this list.

Greg Maddux, Atlanta
Age	G	GS	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	W	L	SV	ERA
32	32	32	7	2	229.0	191	61	56	9	24	177	18	6	0	2.21

In an era marked by expansion and diluted pitching talent, Greg Maddux must look at the ever-rising ERAs of his fellow hurlers and laugh quietly to himself. The ace on a staff full of aces, he has quite simply been the best pitcher in baseball since 1992. In that span of time, only once has his ERA been over 2.50 (2.72 in 1996); twice it's been below 2.00. But perhaps most amazing are his walks, or lack thereof. In 1991, Maddux struck out 198 batters while walking just 66, exactly a 3-to-1 ratio, excellent for any pitcher. In '93 the numbers were 197 and 52 (3.79:1),  in '95 181 and 23 (7.87:1), and last season 177 to 20 (8.85:1). Stop and think about that for a moment. In 232.2 innings last year, Greg Maddux walked only 20 batters. Six of those 20 were intentional passes, meaning he really only allowed 14 walks, or roughly one walk every 16.2 innings.

Over the past three seasons, opposing hitters have managed only a .226 batting average against him, while slugging a paltry .305. It must be frustrating to opposing hitters that a man of Maddux's appearance (standing six feet tall, weighing 170 pounds and wearing glasses, he looks more like a high school English teacher than a baseball player), who doesn't throw a blazing fastball, can dominate a sport played predominantly by muscle-bound sluggers. His secret? Location, location, location.

Charles Johnson, Florida
Age	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	AVG
26	114	372	39	89	18	1	14	46	49	90	0	1	.330	.408	.239

Who better to have as your franchise player than the first ever draft pick in team history? The Marlins chose Johnson with the 28th overall pick in the 1992 free-agent draft, and he has proven to be a wise selection. You're probably aware of CJ's defensive reputation, and it's a good thing, too; If he relied solely on his hitting ability to gain notoriety, nobody outside of Miami would ever have heard of him. This much is certain - Johnson is far from being a great hitter. But fortunately for him, his defense is good enough to make up for it, especially playing a position for which any offense is generally considered a bonus.

The Florida native won his first Gold Glove as a rookie back in 1995, and has won the award every year since. He ended last season with 171 consecutive games played without an error, and threw out 47 percent of opposing base stealers, second-best in the majors. Just 26, Johnson still has time to bring his offense around, and showed signs of that last year when he improved his OBP 55 points and his slugging percentage nearly 100 points over the previous season. But even if his offense continues at current levels, he's one of the most valuable backstops in baseball.

Vladimir Guerrero, Montreal
Age	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	AVG
22	50	176	23	52	11	1	6	21	10	21	2	2	.339	.469	.293

Choosing the Expos' franchise player is roughly equivalent to running a marathon - you know it can be done, but is just isn't something you're looking forward to. Last season, picking Montreal's number one guy was easy. But unfortunately for Expo fans, Pedro Martinez now takes the mound for the Red Sox every fifth day. That leaves us with Vladimir Guerrero, the 22 year-old phenom with a world of potential and one injury-plagued season under his belt. The right-handed outfielder had his 1997 campaign cut short by 52 games on the DL, but when healthy he was the Expos best offensive player. He has shown good plate discipline for a player his age, posting a .350 OBP last season while striking out just 39 times in 325 at-bats.

So far in 1998, Guerrero has upped his power production at the plate, slugging. 538 compared to .483 last year, and given a full season he's got 25-home run power. There aren't very many things going right with regard to baseball in Montreal, but Guerrero is one of the league's brightest young starts. He'll be a fixture in the Montreal outfield for years to come, at least until they're forced to trade him for financial reasons.

Todd Hundley, New York
Age	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	K	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	AVG
29	125	411	67	110	21	1	29	83	68	109	1	2	.373	.535	.268

Before finally succumbing to a season-long elbow injury in September last year, Hundley was the best offensive catcher in the league whose name was not Piazza. After hitting 41 home runs in 1996, the 29 year old switch-hitter hit 30 more in 1997 to go along with a career-best .394 OBP thanks to 83 walks. And unlike one-dimensional catchers Charles Johnson and Mike Piazza, Hundley is a tremendous all-around player. He hits for power and gets on base well, and defensively he's solid, if not stellar. He also handles a staff very well, and should be given at least some of the credit for the solid seasons turned in by Bobby Jones, Rick Reed, Dave Mlicki and Mark Clark, as well as the stellar performance of the Mets bullpen. Hundley is still on the DL following off-season elbow surgery, and the best-case scenario has him joining the team around the All-Star break. If the Mets hope to compete for the NL wild card or even the division, they'll need him back in the lineup.

Curt Schilling, Philadelphia
Age	G	GS	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	W	L	SV	ERA
31	26	26	5	1	184.2	151	72	65	18	45	205	11	9	0	3.17

Schilling was the subject of numerous trade rumors early last season, and was being openly shopped by the Phils after saying he wouldn't re-sign with the club. But for whatever reason, he changed his tune and agreed to a four-year contract, which must have settled him somewhat. After turning in solid results prior to the All-Star break (9-8, 3.59), Schilling was a man possessed in the second half, going 8-3 with a 2.30 ERA and four complete games. After they hit .242 against him the first half of the season, Schilling held opposing hitters to a .203 average after the break. For the first time since 1993, he stayed healthy all year, making a career-high 35 starts and establishing himself as one of the best pitchers in the game. Schilling led the National League with 319 strikeouts (in just 254.1 innings), and finished the year with 17 wins and an ERA below 3.00. Although he's 31 years of age, he's only pitched 200 innings in a season three times, and just once since 1993, so he looks to have quite a few solid seasons left in him, which is more than you can say about the Phillies as a team.

Jason Michael Barker has a great deal of money riding on a certain team from the NBA's Western Conference playoffs that isn't named Spurs, Jazz, or Lakers. See if you can guess who we're talking about, and if you want a piece of the action, send your cash to jmb@strikethree.com.