National league preview: the Braves and Mets in the East, Cardinals and Astros in the Central and Diamondbacks and Padres in the West will be in the thick of the pennant race in '06.

IF THE HOUSTON ASTROS PROVED one thing last year on their way to reaching the World Series, it's that a worn-out baseball adage just happens to ring true.

It really isn't about how you start, but how you finish.

The Astros were sitting 15 games under .500 on May 24 and talk of breaking up the 2004 team that won its first-ever playoff series started to intensify throughout Houston. That is until the Astros caught fire and made an improbable run toward history.

For the second consecutive year, the Astros made a late surge to win the N.L. wild-card berth, grabbing it on the final day of the season when they completed their turnaround with a sensational 74-43 record over the final four months.

Unlike 2004, the Astros weren't content to win just one post-season series. They also took care of the 100-win St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS before running out of gas in the Fall Classic, where they were swept by the White Sox.

Because of that unlikely success in 2005, the Astros had a relatively low-key off-season, preferring to watch other N.L. teams shake up their rosters in hopes of making a similar run through the league.

In the East, the Mets arguably were the busiest team, acquiring Carlos Delgado, Paul Lo Duca and Xavier Nady. The Braves' biggest move was adding Edgar Renteria to replace Rafael Furcal. The Phillies cleared a spot for Ryan Howard by trading Jim Thome. The Nationals rebuilt much of their rotation, and the Marlins upset fans by holding their second fire sale in a decade.