While the Phillies faithful bemoan pitching difficulties, the Fightins are currently 9-6 and 1.5 games ahead of the Washington Nationals, who are again the consensus pick to top the National League East according to four national publications.

On-paper favorite:

Despite the offseason roster upgrades of the Philadelphia Phillies by general manager Matt Klentak, many fans treat committing an additional $488 million too lightly. Translation: next! In hindsight, though, having four aces in 2011 was one-and-done.

IN OTHER WORDS: “Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window.” – Peter Drucker

The Nationals were basically at .500 for the entire 162 with an 82-80 finish. But although the red pinstripes had surprised the NL East for the first four months, they won only one third of their remaining 51 games and dropped behind the Nats in the standings.

Changewise, Washington had added starters Patrick Corbin and Anibal Sanchez plus second sacker Brian Dozier but did not re-up Bryce Harper. Besides the right fielder, the Phils also signed Andrew McCutchen for left field. As for other major acquisitions, Klentak picked up J.T. Realmuto, Jean Segura and David Robertson.

Concerning relief-corps situations, the Nationals inked Trevor Rosenthal for a setup role, but he isn’t working out so far. And their bullpen is 15th in the NL to the red pinstripes’ seventh. However, only the top eight NL pens are under a 4.61 ERA.

From a financial standpoint, the competitive-balance threshold for AAV (average annual value) is $206 million, and both organizations are under it: the Fightins by $12.7 million and the Nats by $3.8 million. But Washington must defer some money because of their television revenue dispute with the Baltimore Orioles.

Regarding intangibles, having the relief corps turn a six-run advantage into a loss can affect the starters and everyday eight. On the other hand, an offense making a long-shot comeback can propel a club on a winning streak.

According to preseason forecasts, the NL East will be a four-team race, but those victory totals are changing already after only a dozen contests or so. And, for the most part, Washington is still the favorite in the early going.