Major League Baseball’s trade deadline is still 3 weeks away but, some of the biggest moves have already been executed and the impact of these moves could shake the National League to its core.

It all began when the Milwakuee Brewers became a late player in the bid for Cleveland Indians ace CC Sabathia. The Brewers saw an opportunity to land one of baseballs best pitchers and the reigning Cy Young winner. The Brewers jumped on the opportunity. Striking the first blow in a National League in which a number of teams have a legitimate shot at claiming the title.

With the addition of Sabathia the Brewers now have one of baseballs most formidable starting rotations. Sabathia and Ben Sheets should be considered starters 1 and 1-A, making them a threat to any team in a divisional or wild card playoff series.

But, perhaps the team feeling most threatened by the Brewers acquisition of Sabathia were the current NL Central leading Chicago Cubs. And so the Cubs went out and did exactly what they needed to do, landing the best available pitcher on the trading block in RIch Harden from the Oakland Athletics in a six player deal just one day after the Sabathia trade.

With Harden in Chicago’s rotation the Cubbies are capable of putting together a similarly deadly one-two combination consiting of Harden and current Cubs ace and 2008 All-Star Carlos Zambrano. This suddenly makes the NL Central baseball’s most provacative division and the front runner to have two of its teams in the playoffs.

Personally, I’m truly excited to see how this division will play out. With the All-Star break rapidly approaching the second half of the season will be something to keep a close eye. Will the St. Louis Cardinals continue to outperform expectations and challenge for the division title? Will the addition of Sabathia be enough to propel the Brewers to the top of the Division and a possible trip to the World Series? Or will the long anguishing Cub fans finally see a World Series game played in Wrigley Field?

Since, I’m not one for waiting, I’m going to make my own prediction on how the NL Central will play out. The Brewers are the team to watch out for, if they’re key players can catch fire like it has recently they could have one of baseball’s most fearsome lineups. The key to the Brewers hitting success will be steady continued production from the likes of Ryan Braun, Cory Hart and J.J. Hardy,but the real X factor for the Brew Crew is Prince Fielder. After batting .288, driving in 119 runs and knocking 50 homers last season Fielder’s average and power numbers have slipped. If I was the Brewers manager I’d start force feeding Prince some red meat over the All-Star break and hope that brings back his power stroke.

Obviously the other key to the Brewers success will be their pitching. After a slow start Sabathia has seemingly returned to form going 4-3 in his last 10 Starts never relinquishing more then 4 earned runs. In fact, Sabathia’s impact has already been felt in Milwaukee when he won his debut. The Brewers other ace Ben Sheets has been lights all season going 10-2 with a 2.77 ERA.

The Cubs are still one of baseball’s best team and the addition of Harden only strengthens their chances to end their 100-year World Series drought. The Cubs also have one of baseball’s best lineups. Kosuke Fukudome has played as advertised and was the perfect addition to the Cubs lineup. Geovany Soto has been a pleasant surprise posting 15 HR, and 52 RBI. Aramis Ramirez and Derek Lee are always a threat to go yard while still hitting for a solid average and the return of Alfonso Soriano from the DL will add even more firepower to an already stacked lineup. I expect the Cubs to hold on to their division lead, but it will be by a close margin and should come down to the final weeks in a tight race with the Brewers.

The Cardinals have exceeded expectations as is and will have an incredibly difficult time matching the pitching and hitting of the Cubs and Brewers. They should begin to fade away from contention after the All-Star break. The Astros, Reds and Pirates have never been a threat to these teams and will fall further back in the divisional race.

In the end the Cubs are still the deeper team, so sorry Brewers fans no divisional title this year. However, the National league wild card is still a likely possibility as teams like the Mets, Florida, and Arizona have played inconsistently in the first half and cannot match the pitching or hitting of the Brewers. So be happy Cubs and Brewer fans because your teams have just cemented themselves a shot at a World Series title.

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