I’m always surprised when I check out chain emails forwarded by friends on Snopes, they are invariably false. In a way, I see myself as a low-rent Snopes for the Florida Marlins.

For example, now that the Marlins are now 7-0 vs. the Washington Nationals and just 2.5 games out of first place, most fans might be tempted to attribute the Marlins position in the NL East to their record against the Nationals. They would be right, but not how they think. See the Marlins would be even closer [2 games out] if no one in the NL East had played the Nationals.

The Phillies are 10-2 and the Mets are 7-2 against the Nationals. The Dodgers, the team with the best record in the NL, is the only NL team without a winning record against the Nationals [1-1]. But at least if fans are talking about won-loss records, their arguments are rooted in facts. It’s not like they’re citing luck, opposition injuries and managerial moves, the unholy trinity for the nattering nabobs of negativism.