Fangraphs' opinion on the Miami Marlins will surprise you

The Miami Marlins are playing very well this season. So good that Fangraphs has finally taken notice. It wasn't just them, MLB.com took notice last week too. The Fish look like a playoff team, and that's in large part to stars such as second baseman Luis Arraez, who is having an NL MVP caliber season. Just imagine how much the team would be if Sandy Alcantara got himself back on track. So what does Fangraphs think?

The Miami Marlins are expected to make the playoffs.

Let's start with the bad news.... Fangraphs expects the Atlanta Braves to win The NL East. They give them a 93.8% chance to do that. They're also giving them a near perfect 99.5% chance to make the playoffs, (in the unlikely chance that they lose the division). The Miami Marlins only have a 3.2% chance of doing that.

The Milwaukee Brewers are expected to win the NL Central with 48.5%, and to make the playoffs with 50.9%. The second likeliest team is none other than the Chicago Cubs with 16.3%. The Los Angeles Dodgers are expected to win the NL West with 38.9%. I actually don't see it anymore, the Arizona Diamondbacks are just playing better. They have a 27.0% chance of making the playoffs.

The Tampa Bay Rays have an 83.3% chance of winning the AL East. The Minnesota Twins have a 60.0% chance of winning the AL Central. I agree with both predictions. The Texas Rangers are expected to win the AL West with 54.6%. The AL Wild Card teams are projected to be the Baltimore Orioles (63.6%), New York Yankees (60.6%) and the Toronto Blue Jays (52.4%).

How about the National League Wild Card race? I'm glad to see my predictions for the NL East be validated. I said that Atlanta would run away with the NL East, but that the Miami Marlins would be the next best team. Fangraphs agrees! Their NL Wild Card teams are the Arizona Diamondbacks (70.5%), the San Francisco Giants (64.8%) and the Miami Marlins (53.5%)!! Of course there's the San Diego Padres (52.7%) to worry about.