E-Mail This Article to a Friend The NL at the three-eighths-pole BY CHRISTOPHER YOUNG

Finally resuming the column after a week away laying to rest the Young-family matriarch. Despite having no interest in or knowledge of sports whatsoever, my late mother apparently kept close tabs on my chosen profession, and I took solace in the fact that I found a lot of "Sporting Eye" print-outs as I cleaned out her apartment — presumably for reading, rather than for birdcage lining. Tough to tell. Anyway, RIP HWY.

Back to the business at hand. Ten days ago we presented the AL pennant race at the quarter-pole; today, the National League.

In the NL East, the tightest race in all of baseball is unfolding, and what a dandy it is. All five teams are at .500 or above, and even the last-place team is only two-and-a-half games out. Not surprisingly, the pitching-rich Marlins and Braves are leading the pack, tied atop the division heading into this weekend’s action. Outfielder Miguel Cabrera’s .355 average has helped offset the substandard seasons turned in by some of the other Marlin veterans (Juan Pierre .260, Mike Lowell .201), but Carlos Delgado has also sparkled, showing no ill effects from his transition from the AL. Florida leads the league in both pitching and hitting categories, and realistically should be better than 28-23. Still, they’ll pose a realistic threat for their third title in nine years (amazing, ain’t it?) if this success continues. The Tomahawks have struggled with the bat (.249 team avg.), but their pitching staff is third-best in the league behind Tim Hudson (6-3) and Mike Hampton (4-1). Pedro Martinez (6-1) has delivered as advertised, though Carlos Beltran (.294, seven HRs) has yet to, but the Mets’ 28-26 record is nearly identical to their cross-town rivals, and they’re within striking distance of the division lead. Tied with the pride of Flushing Meadow, amazingly, is the former Expos franchise, the Nationals, who are also just a game-and-a -half back. A team devoid of stars or marquee names, the DC franchise is much improved over the Montreal team that finished 67-95 last season. Pulling up the rear in the division but still at .500, the Phillies have won seven of their last 10 to shake off a 12-17 start.

Like last year, the Cardinals are threatening to run away with the NL Central. At 34-19, Tony La Russa’s Redbirds are the league’s deepest team. St. Louis is a remarkable 19-4 against its division mates, even though a schedule quirk has resulted in the Cards playing their long-time rival, the Cubs, only twice to this point. The injury-riddled but red-hot Cubbies’ 28-24 record would challenge for the division lead in the East, but in this division they’re a distant five-and-a-half games out despite their current seven-game win streak. The league’s second-best pitching staff (3.54 ERA) has helped the small-market Brewers (25-27) remain respectable, but no such optimism lurks in the hearts of the Pirates (24-28), Reds (already 13 games out), and the downward-spiraling Astros (20-32). Houston’s offense is absolutely putrid (at .239, it’s the majors’ worst), and has already cost the halfway-decent pitching staff nine shutout losses. Roger Clemens, have your bags packed!

After a slow start (they were 9-13 on April 27), the Padres have gone on a 24-8 tear to seize control of the NL West. San Diego’s Jake Peavy, Chris Hammond, and Adam Eaton have combined to go 17-1 thus far as the Pods have opened a three-game lead on the surprising Diamondbacks. Arizona is six games over .500 despite coming off a miserable 51-111 2004 campaign, and the D-Backs need win only 22 of their final 108 games to top last year’s disastrous finish. Off-season acquisitions Javier Vazquez (5-3) and Troy Glaus (13 homers) have helped to spark the resurgence in the desert. The 27-26 Dodgers were picked by many to win this division, but LA has faded after a 17-9 start and is six games back. Free-agent pick-ups J.D. Drew (.263) and Jeff Kent (.255) have proved disappointing, and the team’s supposed strength — its pitching — has been stunningly ordinary (4.77 ERA, 24th in the big leagues). Even former Soxer Derek Lowe has struggled, as the lanky righty is only 4-5 with a 3.58 ERA. The Barry Bonds–less Giants still boast the NL’s third-most-potent offense (.277), but their pitching staff has proven to be the team’s detriment, and at nine games out, even Bonds’s uncertain return may not be enough to turn the team’s fortunes. In last place, with a measly total of 16 wins, are the moribund Rockies, who are already 20 games below .500 and nearly 17 games out. The Rockies have already put together a 10-game losing streak along with an eight-gamer, and, well, what more is there to ask than: whose great idea was it to give Tampa Bay and Colorado MLB franchises in the first place?

Sporting Eye runs Mondays and Fridays at BostonPhoenix.com, and Christopher Young can be reached at cyoung[a]phx.com