The New-Look NL Central.. The NL East of old?

With the acquisitions of C.C. Sabathia and Rich Harden to the Brewers and Cubs, respectively the N.L. Central immediately became more of a powerhouse division than it already was.

The Cubs now boast a solid 1-2 punch with fan favorite Carlos Zambrano who is 9-3 with a 2.96 ERA, and new acquisition Harden is 5-1 with a 2.34 ERA in 13 starts with Oakland.

Harden, who is coming from a less than stellar offensive ball club in Oakland will join a Cubs team who leads the National League with a .282 batting average.

With other starters such as Jason Marquis and Ted Lily, and relievers Carlos Marmol and the revitalized Kerry Wood, the Cubs have cemented what seems to be one of the best staffs in baseball.

Sadly for them, another similar staff looms in the same division.

The newest beermaker, and last years Cy Young award winner, Sabathia has already proven he can win in the National League by pitching six innings and allowing two earned runs yesterday at home in front of 42,500 fans.

Personally, I thought he showed real guts in the start, a trait that is needed for National League pitchers. Adding Sabathia with the incredibly tough Ben Sheets makes the Brewers 1-2 punch as potent as the Cubs.

The Brewers bullpen also boasts big names such as flame-throwers Guillermo Mota and Saloman Torres to close out games.  Along with another potent offense that ranks 12th in the National League, the NL Central is shaping up for a photo finish.

With a division that is built around pitching it is hard not to compare it to the NL East of old, compared to the sluggers division the NL East has become.

The Atlanta Braves 1-2, punch of Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine was not very comparable in pitching styles, because of the power Zambrano, Harden, Sabathia, and Sheets all bring to the table, but consider this:

Between the years of 1995 and 2001 the NL East was stocked with pitching, much like the NL Central now.

The Braves, as mentioned before, boasted Maddux and Glavine with Smoltz in the bullpen.

The Mets battled it out with the Braves with Al Leiter, Hideo Nomo in his prime, and Turk Wendell in the Bullpen.

Neither team had the offensive power that both the Brewers and Cubs now possess, but it is interesting to see a division stock up with pitching in today's offensively dominated game.

Perhaps that team in the Bronx should take notice.

The comparisons between the two divisions, though in different eras, is setting up the NL Central to be a dominating division for years to come.