With final roster decisions in the books and the 2020 season underway, it’s time to make some predictions. We’re polling the MLBTR readership on each of the game’s six divisions — though plenty more teams will crack the postseason under the rather inclusive new playoff qualification system. We’ve already surveyed the AL East, AL Central, AL West, NL Central, and NL East landscapes, so it’s time to wrap things up with the National League West.
The Dodgers have owned this division for some time now and are perhaps more laden with star-level talent than ever with Mookie Betts on board. Then again, they may be more vulnerable than ever in a short-season format. There’s a nice assembly of talent on the Diamondbacks roster, which includes an elite young player in Ketel Marte and a sturdy slate of veterans now highlighted by intra-division transferee Madison Bumgarner. Then again, you could argue that the Padres have the greatest capacity to surprise with their own budding legend in Fernando Tatis Jr., still-youthful star Manny Machado, and a potential-laden rotation. The Rockies have an excellent core unit in their own right and perhaps have more upside than is generally recognized. And while the Giants don’t really appear primed to compete, they managed to do so last year and still have a lot of players with lofty established performance ceilings at the game’s highest level — even if it has been a few years.
Which team do you think is going to take the division title? (Poll link for app users.)
Voting Rockies for 3 irrelevant reasons
1) The pleasant uniforms in the shade “Grandma’s inflamed haemorrhoids”.
2) Comprehensively beating the A’s twice in a row
c) I’m rather bored with Dodgers winning that division on an annual basis
4) It might clam Arenado and his “you didn’t sign anyone” anger issues down a bit.
Lol at the Giants somehow having 5% and still being higher than the DBacks at the time of this comment
Yaz cannot be stopped.
DBacks behind the Giants…rough
Would love to vote for SD, but I just think LA is too powerful and Im not sold on the Padres’ bullpen
If anyone but the Dodgers win will be a shocker.
The bullpen was supposed to be their strength, but they’ve blown 2 games already. As a Padre fan, I am hoping it is affects of the Summer Camp and that all of them start delivering like they can. Losing Castillo, Munoz and to a lesser extent Wingenter isn’t helping matters, but these guys should be producing better.
On the bright side, Guerra has looked really good in a small sample size.
season is young. after a 3 month lay off guys are still working things out, hitters and pitchers.
Padres: + starting pitching, + bullpen.
Blowing two games was actually questionable pitcher decisions on our rookie manager.
The pitching will be the best in the NL.
The loss to the Giants was on Tingler I feel, yesterdays game not so much. Stammen does have the odd clunker, (4 homers to 4 straight Nationals last year), lets hope that is all it was.
I had some concerns when Olivares and Tatis were both picked off first after consecutive walks. That just doesn’t happen to clubs that are ready for prime time.
Bingo
The Tatis one was an obvious balk (pitcher moves SIGNIFICANTLY towards home plate before throwing over), so bad umpiring on that part, but it still shouldn’t be happening.
You’re in denial the Dodgers are the best team in the NL. Probably the whole MLB tbh. I would be shocked if they even make it past the DBACKS for 2nd as they have a great well rounded team
The Padres just handled the snakes like Steve Irwin.
This might be the most overlooked division in all of baseball. Fans generally write this off as the Dodgers’ division, but I could see up to three wild cards sneaking in as well.
Of course, LA is the heavy favorite once again. Their lineup is the deepest and most talented within the division, with a bevy of versatile athletes allowing them to match up against certain pitchers and change positions in a heartbeat. The starting pitching will improve with a healthy Kershaw and even if Wood sucks, May can hold the fort as a fifth starter. Treinen looks to have fortified the bullpen a bit and this team once again possesses few weaknesses.
The Padres have gotten off to a hot start with a steady and consistent rotation. Nobody outside of Paddack would be considered “elite,” but I could see all five starters keeping their ERA below 4.5. The bullpen has been a bit disappointing thus far, but with talent like Yates, Pagan, and Pomeranz, I can’t see that continuing. My problem with this team is the unsustainable offense. I actually like the outfield of Grisham, Olivares, and Pham. Tatis and Machado are excellent as well, but the remaining infield is mediocre at best. Hosmer will not sustain his current output and Profar should not be a regular starter in any capacity. The bench is also a bit weak for my liking, but at least Hedges is an excellent defensive catcher.
I was high on Arizona to start the year and I’m still a big believer despite the quiet bats. The lineup is chock full of emerging stars such as Escobar, the Martes, and Carson Kelly. The defense is pretty impressive as well, with standouts such as Ahmed and Calhoun. The rotation is similar to the Padres, with steady options like Gallen and Ray. The bullpen could stand to get deeper however, as I only really trust Bradley and Lopez in critical innings.
Colorado’s lineup isn’t especially deep, but it’s top-heavy with the likes of Blackmon, Story, Arenado, and Dahl striking fear into the hearts of opposing pitchers. The starting pitching is led by a rather underrated trio of Marquez, Gray, and Freeland, who should be closer to his 2017-18 form. That said, the bullpen is still held together by strings and the lineup has holes at second base and catcher. If someone gets hurt, Colorado is screwed. Although, in a condensed season, they’re a team to watch out for.
The Giants probably aren’t going anywhere, but I’ve actually been impressed with what I’ve seen thus far. Kapler seems to be managing the pitching quite well and the outfield is pretty solid with Yastrzemski, Ruf, Pence, and Dickerson. Nonetheless, the pitching lacks any notable names besides Watson and Cueto, while the infield and catcher are notable areas of weakness. Unless a miracle happens, I don’t see this team competing.
Thoughts? I’d appreciate any feedback
Awesome post. You certainly have a good understanding of the NL West. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.
Agreed, good knowledge and no attitude…am I still on the internet?
“Kapler seems to be managing the pitching quite well” A statement that was never uttered in Philadelphia. LOL
Lol…that’s why I was so surprised
It always is the most overlooked division.
Lamet would be on the same line or better.
Lamet is certainly loaded with potential, but I need to see evidence of proven ace production before I put him in that conversation
In ways lamet is better than paddack. At the same time, paddack command is top notch compared to lamet. Paddacks best pitch is consider is change up and lamet has a wipe out slider. They both struggle with a third pitch, but they both have no hit stuff.
Solid post and I agree with much. Dodgers will win this division. Padres: I would argue that Lamet is better than Paddack and will fly under the radar producing outstanding numbers much like Carlos Zambrano did under Mark Prior and Kerry Wood years with the Cubs. Lamet deals! And when they bring up elite arms in Gore and Patino up, the fifth starter will be Garrett Richards. 2021 belongs to the Padres. DBacks: can’t trust Bradley or Lopez I’m leverage situations. They must find relief help. Rockies offense is way too top heavy. Giants look reborn in my opinion. Leaning on the likes of Sandoval and Pence can’t be a recipe for success. But they may not need to with Yaz looking like his grandfather! They bullpen is trash and thus it is going to be a long year of development. Final standings: Dodgers, Padres, DBacks, Rocks, Giants
Pence? Popular with fans, he was signed to put butts in the seats to watch a lousy team in full rebuild and aging overpaid core. Joke.
AZ? Bumgarner is in serious decline, Snakes will finish in last place tie with Crumblin Rocks.
Padres always offer a plate of promise and deliver leftovers.
Dogs are so good they have exhausted themselves reading their press releases, forgetting as always you have to actually play the game.
The National League does not have a good team.
LA – A deep team that is built to last. Complacency might be their biggest weakness. So far they seem very motivated though.
Arizona – Young, solid starting pitching, should make the playoffs and could definitely see them being a thorn in LA’s side.
SF – A veteran club that is rebuilding, but should manage enough consistency to stay out of the cellar and have some hot streaks. If they manage to trade assets like Shark and Cueto at the deadline, they will drop to last.
San Diego – Until they can prove anything different, I got to put them here. They have had 9 seasons of under-.500 baseball and might be the most underachieving team in the game.
Colorado – No depth, no pitching, questionable ownership.
Arizona isn’t really good. They have a lot of holes. It should be 1 la, 2 sd, and 3 dbacks
You think Arizona has holes but San Diego doesn’t? There is a whole lot of unproven players on that roster.
Last season the D-Backs won 85 games and they are going to have full seasons of Greinke and Bum.
Last season the Padres crushed their season with a last-place finish. Leapfrogging to second is going to be a tough one.
Yeah! Greinke playing for Houston is really going to give Arizona great production this year. Greinke is going to pitch so well for Houston it’ll leave teams baffled so the Dbacks can win games easily!
Why on earth did I say Greinke when I meant Ray. Dang it! Ya got me Bison.
You must not follow the west very closely. The dbacks were below the padres all year while tatis was healthy. When he went down the padres dropped. When Their heart was traded to Cleveland they further dropped. They also had a really bad manager in green and now he is gone. They have beefed up everything. If anything they need to figure out second base, replace the lefty in their rotation and cut hedges.
Dodgers ? Arguably the 2nd best team in MLB besides the Yankees. They’ll win the NL West effortlessly.
The Padres? This isn’t your Dads Padres. Organizationally their bulging with talent. But their really young and may not have discipline as a group to maximize that talent this year. They could finish 2nd if they pitch the ball
D-Backs ? Off to a slow start but this is arguably a playoff team w / expanded postseason play. But they need to tighten it up this week and play better.
Colorado? They have the talent at the plate but not on the bump. That being said , they hit well enough to surprise a lot of people and if they get on a winning streak during a short season could Clearly qualify for the expanded post season pool
The Giants? Just a huge pile of horse manure . They’ll be lucky to win 20 games. Clearly, the worst team in the division
Over 162 this is simple, over 60 I am going to take SD in this SSS season.
Why not LAD? SP pitching depth is already challenged and at early glance neither their bullpen or Dave Roberts running of the bullpen has been improved.
X factor if early results of Eric Hosmer are to be believed and he can put together one of those ~ 120 OPS+ he’s had in the past, I think they have a legit shot.
xfactor 2, if COL and SF are the bottom of the division the ability for top teams to beat up on those two might be the difference maker
If you don’t think the dodger bullpen has improved, you clearly haven’t watched a single inning they pitched this year
Just last night, 9.2 innings, 0 earned runs. That’s a freakin shutout against Houston, in Houston
Treinan looks like it’s 2018 and Kenleys cutter has more movement than it has in years. Brusdar is showing his massive potential
I stopped reading your post at that point. Clearly you’re not actually following the games and spewing non sense
In 2 days it’s August 1 the pitching depth of LA is challenged by Price opting out and Kershaw’s delayed start and Woods out yet again.. At a time they’d normally be positioning themselves for a deep post-season run they instead need to focus on cobbling together a rotation and winning games.
Treinan has pitched 3 innings and has 1 k, that’s NOT the 2018 version. Jansen like Kershaw simply is no longer in his prime + really has he (or Morrow) ever been the same since the 2017 post season?
Running a bullpen is the hardest thing for managers to learn, Roberts still hasn’t shown an acumen for it, worse the front office hasn’t helped either deadline after deadline picking up platoon bats here or there and never adding a high leverage arm or two for those deep runs which made no sense when their staff was a bunch of 5IP guys.
The lineup needs nothing but the staff could use a starter capable of starting playoff games + a high leverage bullpen arm. In theory if that starter bumps Urias to the pen you’ve just added 2 impact arms. Brusdar’s true value to the LAD might be as a trade chip in 30 days.
You sound so uninformed. Enjoy last place. You’re not worth my time
They have a 1.14 era as a relief staff after going into Houston and have a BAA under 150 They have 3 maybe 4 guys who throw 100 and Kenley has shown his best movement on his cutter since 18. Treinan was painting the corners at 98 on his two appearances. He’s a sinker baller getting ground balls. Gonsolin is just getting his first start and kershaw is back Monday
You’re a joke
What I love about this division is that there are no “free” wins for the top teams, like when you see the Yankees beat up on the Orioles. We just saw the Giants split against the favored Dodgers and the Padres take 3/4 against the favored Diamondbacks.
Dbacks were not favored.
Those pick offs I thought were clear balks
We could see two or even three teams from this division fighting for the wildcard. The D backs look solid but as always it will be a question of their bullpen… The Padres are extremely young clearly talented, short season should help with young players struggles,Although that could also mean anyone who gets in a slump won’t have as much time to recover. I’m not sold that Tatis is repeating last year…there were a lot of statistical reasons to be cautionary that he can truly repeat that level. They’re gonna need that though to win the division.
As always Colorado is a rush against injury. Their offense should carry them if they all stay healthy but they are so top-heavy it won’t take much to knock them off their game. They also haven’t played in Colorado yet so let’s not talk too much about their pitching
Over last 10 years the D backs Rockies and Giants have all made the post season as a wildcard in the west and for the most part made noise in the playoffs. Obviously sub Padres for Giants in that sentence, but Don’t overlook them if they are hot and or healthy at end of year
If Roberts makes Treinen the closer, then the Dodgers are a lock. If not, they may win the NL West but they’re not going deep in the playoffs…
Go watch Kenley in Houston. His movement is fantastic so far on the cutter. He had no problem owning the Astros with his over the hill self You’re way too fast to say he’s done
…As as most dodger haters Re: their pitching
A “lock” great last night lol