NL Manager of the Year Rankings: Davey Johnson, Don Mattingly Switch Top Spot

There's some shuffling around in this week's National League Manager of the Year rankings, which is keeping things interesting.

Teams that have performed above expectations are holding strong. But one club has taken a bit of a dive.

The St. Louis Cardinals' recent skid might not entirely be the fault of manager Mike Matheny. But his colleagues have dealt with injuries too, without the roster depth that the Cardinals enjoy. Yet those skippers have kept their teams on track. So we're knocking Matheny from the top five candidates this week. Take issue with me in the comments, if you so please. 

With that in mind, here's how I see this week's top five contenders for the NL Manager of the Year award. 

5. Brad Mills, Houston Astros

After a one-week absence, Houston Astros skipper Brad Mills is back among our top five NL Manager of the Year candidates.

Some might think it's silly to include a manager whose team isn't going to have a winning record and therefore has no chance at nabbing this award. That may well be, but as I said two weeks ago, the Astros were picked by most everyone to finish DFL. (Again, you know what that stands for.) 

Yet if you look at the standings, the Astros aren't even last in their own division. In the NL Central, they hold fourth place, sitting above the Milwaukee Brewers (who were expected to contend) and Chicago Cubs (who were not).

The Astros have a better record than the Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres, and the Arizona Diamondbacks are only one game ahead of them in the win column. 

Are Mills and his team the beneficiaries of playing in a weaker division?

Well, if they played in the NL East, the Astros would be in last place. Being in an NL Central against which they're 7-7 thus far isn't their fault. The Astros are winning a decent chunk of the games the schedule has presented them with. And they're winning close games, finishing 7-8 in such circumstances.

All things considered, with the roster he has, Mills might be doing the best job in baseball. 

4. Terry Collins, New York Mets

The past week has been something of a bumpy road for the New York Mets. They split two-game series in Milwaukee and Cincinnati, then lost two of three to the Toronto Blue Jays in interleague play. 

Because of that, the Mets have slipped just a step in the NL East, falling 3.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves for first place in the division. But they're hardly out of it, as a short winning or losing streak among the cluster of teams could shake up the standings. 

Collins took a pretty big gamble in staying with Frank Francisco to be the Mets' closer, when all indications pointed toward making a change. Plenty other managers would have. But by sticking with Francisco through a rough patch, Collins showed faith in his players, and that could pay dividends down the line.

The Mets' skipper made the most news last week for pulling David Wright from a game to prevent him from possibly getting plunked in a blowout loss to the Brewers. Did Collins overreact to the unwritten rules of baseball? Probably. But why take the chance? 

Wright certainly didn't agree with the decision, but Collins held his ground. Even better, he explained his decision with candor and passion during his postgame press conference. Collins knows his team is toast if Wright gets hurt, so he did what he could to protect him. It was the right call, even if Wright felt it made him look weak. So was standing up to his star player.

Now, if only Collins can figure out how to fix Ike Davis. If he does that, we'll have to move him up these rankings. 

3. Fredi Gonzalez, Atlanta Braves

It's easy to give managers praise for pushing their teams to exceed expectations. But how should a manager of a good team be perceived?

The Atlanta Braves were feeling high and mighty after a three-game sweep of the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Some teams might have gotten complacent after that, unable to deal with success, and gone into a malaise. 

Yet the Braves haven't gone into a down cycle after showing that they just might be the best team in the National League. After splitting two-game sets with the Reds and Marlins, Atlanta won a surprising two of three from the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field over the weekend. 

Fredi Gonzalez has kept the ship steady during what looked to be some choppy waters. He's not in clear waters just yet, with a four-game series against a Reds team that looks to be getting better. That's followed by a three-game weekend set with the Nationals that could be one of the more intriguing series of the season thus far. 

But Gonzalez's merit will truly be tested in June, when the Braves have a tough schedule against NL East division rivals and the AL East in interleague play. He'll have to keep his team sharp when the schedule really doesn't present much of a break. We should have a good idea of just how good this Braves team is after that. 

2. Davey Johnson, Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals are sliding just a bit in the NL East, not only losing first place to the Braves, but also falling 1.5 games behind going into Monday night's play.

Davey Johnson's club has dealt with injuries all season long, yet managed to hold first place through most of the first six weeks of the season. But the increasing numbers of wounded may finally be catching up a bit with the Nats.

Splitting two-game sets with the Padres and Pirates—two teams the Nationals arguably should have swept—wasn't encouraging, especially with Anthony Bass and James McDonald shutting the lineup down.

But losing two of three to the Orioles at Nationals Park was disappointing. The O's look better than virtually anyone has given them credit for, but winning a home series against an AL East team would have been an impressive statement. And if Stephen Strasburg has a tired arm or is hurt in any way, that would be the biggest blow the Nats have suffered yet.

The next nine games are huge for the Nationals, with series against the Phillies, Braves and Marlins to close out the month. They begin June with the Braves again before facing the Mets.

This stretch could be the difference between contention and looking ahead toward next year for this team. How Johnson steers his team during this span will be a huge measure of his managerial abilities. 

1. Don Mattingly, Los Angeles Dodgers

Losing Matt Kemp last week hasn't hurt the Los Angeles Dodgers badly. Despite putting the NL MVP favorite on the disabled list, where he'll be for at least another week, Don Mattingly's team has held steady and maintained the best record in the majors. 

The Dodgers have actually even increased their lead over the Giants in the NL West to seven games heading into Monday night's slate of games.

Splitting two-game sets with the Diamondbacks and Padres was a bit disappointing, but those losses showed that the Dodgers aren't really good enough to beat good pitching without Kemp in the lineup. On most nights, their own exceptional starting pitching can keep them in the game, but offense will tip the scales in those matchups.

But the Dodgers had a big weekend series with the Cardinals, one that could make a statement as to who the best team in the NL is right now. The Cards are staggering right now, but the Dodgers stood their ground with authority, sweeping all three games.

Mattingly has done a good job of mixing in new pieces such as Elian Herrera and Scott Van Slyke, who hit a go-ahead, three-run homer in Sunday night's win. That's helped the Dodgers withstand the losses of Kemp, Juan Uribe and Mark Ellis, along with Dee Gordon's continuing slump. 

The Dodgers benefit from excellent starting pitching. No question about it. But the rest of the roster is a mix-and-match puzzle right now. And Mattingly has been making the right moves with the lineup and bullpen, keeping his team on top. 

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