Nico Hoerner’s MVP Case, Murakami Heating Up, Mets’ Losing Streak, Can Wheeler Spark the Phillies?, & Dodgers Depth Showing Out | 164
Episode 164 of Tablesetters is really about figuring out what’s actually real right now. We’re only a couple weeks in, but you can already start to see which trends are sticking and which teams are just kind of drifting without an identity.
We start with the New York Mets, and this has gone way past a rough stretch. When you zoom out, the profile tells you everything. This isn’t just a team going through a cold streak, this is a lineup that isn’t creating pressure, isn’t doing damage, and isn’t giving itself any margin for error. The approach has slipped, the power isn’t there, and the at bats feel disconnected from inning to inning. That’s why the losses keep stacking the same way. They hang around early, they don’t extend anything, and eventually the structure breaks. Until the approach changes, the results aren’t going to.
That conversation carries into Philadelphia, where the issue isn’t just one thing you can fix, it’s everything showing up at once. The talent is there, but the execution hasn’t been, and that’s why the results look the way they do. The difference here is there’s still belief internally that this can turn, and Zack Wheeler coming back is a big part of that. Not as a full solution, but as something that can stabilize one area and start to shift the overall rhythm of the team.
From there, you get a completely different picture with the Dodgers. This is what it looks like when a lineup has depth and rhythm. Dalton Rushing and Max Muncy are driving a lot of that right now, but it’s bigger than just two players. The lineup doesn’t have a break. Guys are getting on, passing it along, and doing damage when they get their pitch. It’s not forced, it’s just consistent. And when that’s paired with steady pitching, it gives them a level of control most teams just don’t have early in the season.
That same idea of control shows up individually with Nico Hoerner, and at this point, it’s fair to start asking the question. This isn’t just a hot start. It’s a player impacting the game in every way. He’s putting the ball in play constantly, producing in key spots, creating pressure on the bases, and playing elite defense. When you combine that with even a little bit of power showing up, the profile shifts. It stops being about being a solid all-around player and starts becoming something much bigger.
Munetaka Murakami fits into that same conversation in a different way. He’s not easing into anything. The power is real, the patience is real, and the impact shows up immediately. There’s swing and miss in the profile, but it’s balanced by control of the zone and the ability to do damage when pitchers make mistakes. And when that balance is working, it forces the entire game to adjust to him, not the other way around.
Around the league, you’re starting to see which teams are actually breaking through. Cincinnati is a good example of that shift. They’ve been winning without the offense fully showing up, and then you finally get a game where it clicks. That’s where it changes. When the baseline is already strong and the offense starts to catch up, it raises the ceiling quickly.
And then you have teams like San Diego, where the identity is already clear. They’re winning with pitching, controlling games, and showing they can beat you in different ways. That’s why the question about keeping pace with the Dodgers is real. Because right now, it’s not just results, it’s how they’re getting them. The challenge is sustaining that over time, especially against a team with as much built-in margin as the Dodgers.
That’s really what this episode comes back to. It’s not just who’s winning or losing. It’s who has structure, who has a plan, and who is actually showing something that can hold. And even this early, you can start to see that gap forming.
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