The Mets returned to the World Series for the first time since 1986, but were defeated by their cross-town rivals, the Yankees. The Mets were the wild-card team; the Braves once again won the East Division, and once again had the best pitching staff in the league. But it was another disappointing October for the Braves, who were knocked out in the first round by the Cardinals.

         It was also a disappointing year for the Diamondbacks. They had won their division in 1999, in only their second season. This year they had a great start to the season, but started to falter during the summer. Their ace, Randy Johnson, continued to dominate hitters, recording his fourth 300+ strikeout season. When the Diamondbacks added Curt Schilling to their staff during the summer, it gave them a great one-two punch in their starting rotation, but it wasn't enough. Randy Johnson won his third Cy Young Award, but Arizona missed the playoffs.
         The winners in the West were the Giants, who also had the best record in the league. The Giants' were led by their two power hitters, Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent, but didn't have many familiar faces in their pitching staff. Closer Robb Nen had the most spectacular numbers of any reliever in the league; Nen had already established a pattern of having big seasons in even-numbered years, and this was his best. Nen led the league in all sorts of good categories, like holding opposing hitters to a .230 on-base percentage and .241 slugging percentage. Right-handers his just .128 off Nen, who allowed only a .138 average with runners on base, and a .091 average with runners in scoring position - all those numbers led the league.
         The other top pitchers in the league were familiar faces, starting with the dynamic Atlanta duo of Maddux and Glavine. Kevin Brown had a great year for the Dodgers, though he didn't pick up a lot of wins. Mike Hampton moved to New York, and led the Mets to the pennant. Darryl Kile also helped the Cardinals win their division; after pitching brilliantly in 1997, Kile spent two seasons struggling badly in Colorado. He moved to St. Louis, and his career immediately got back onto the right track.
        Randy Johnson had great numbers across the board, and deserved the Cy Young Award. I'll take Greg Maddux second, and Nen third. I'll also take Brown in the fourth spot; although Glavine led the league in wins, I think Brown's overall performance was better.