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The Washington Nationals aren't expected to have ​Bryce Harper back in D.C. when the 2019 MLB season begins, but the team is still favored to win the NL East – at least according to the projected win totals on FanDuel Sportsbook.


The Nats are still favorites to win the NL East in 2019, despite losing arguably the most talented player in the franchise's history. With an 88.5-game over/under win total, Washington is projected to win four more games than the New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves, who are all tied with an 84.5 game over/under total.

The Nationals, who have won the NL East four times in the last seven years, have one of the ​most talented rosters in the National League, even without Bryce Harper, and look poised for another run at the ​National League pennant.


The one team in the NL East that could potentially leapfrog the Nationals' projected win total before Opening Day is the Phillies – if their aggressive pursuit of Harper actually pans out.  

Philadelphia has been the favorite to land the free-agent outfielder for quite some time, but Los Angeles Dodgers are suddenly back in the mix, meaning Philly doesn't look like the slam-dunk landing spot it once was. With just four games separating four NL East teams, according to their projected win total on ​FanDuel Sportsbook, this division should be a tight race throughout the 2019 season.

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Mike Esposito is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Mike Esposito also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username espo6891. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.