With Opening Day just over the horizon, teams all around the league are gearing up for another pennant chase in hopes of being crowned this year’s World Series champion. Of course, there’s still another seven months to go before someone raises the Commissioner’s Trophy. And until the playoffs begin, teams will be focused on a smaller goal: winning their division. We’ll be conducting a series of polls to gauge who MLBTR readers believe is the favorite in each division, and that series begins today with the NL West. Teams are listed in order of their 2024 record.
Los Angeles Dodgers (98-64)
The Dodgers have already notched two wins over the Cubs in the Tokyo Series for 2025, and they did so coming off a season where they finished the year with the best record in baseball and went on to win the World Series over the Yankees in five games. The club’s core of MVP-caliber talent remains in place with Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman all set to once again anchor the lineup this year. Meanwhile, a pitching staff that already included Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Clayton Kershaw has been bulked out further not just by Ohtani’s impending return to the mound but also the additions of Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki.
In the bullpen, the team’s solid late-inning mix of Blake Treinen, Alex Vesia, Michael Kopech, and Evan Phillips got a pair of major additions in the form of Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates, while the lineup is largely unchanged from last season with Hyeseong Kim set to replace Gavin Lux eventually and Michael Conforto stepping into the outfield in place of Jason Heyward. There are few clear places to nitpick a team that appears to be a clear juggernaut on paper, although the combination of Betts and Max Muncy on the left side of the infield figures to be below average defensively and the club’s strategy of stacking talented, oft-injured rotation arms always runs the risk of health problems.
San Diego Padres (93-69)
While many view besting the Dodgers as a mountain that’s near impossible to climb, it’s worth remembering that San Diego came within just one game of toppling them during the NLDS back in October. The Padres were restricted in their offseason activities by financial limitations, but the core of the 2024 club remains largely in place with Manny Machado, Jackson Merrill, and Fernando Tatis Jr. poised to anchor the lineup, Xander Bogaerts and Luis Arraez providing support and a front-of-the-rotation duo of Dylan Cease and Michael King who will be motivated to build on their excellent 2024 campaigns ahead of free agency this winter.
That’s not to say the club made no additions this winter, of course. The Padres waited out the market to sign talented right-hander Nick Pivetta to anchor the middle of their rotation alongside Yu Darvish, allowing them to make a splash on a tight budget. Other additions were less flashy, but could still prove valuable. While a supporting cast of Jason Heyward, Connor Joe, Jose Iglesias, and Yuli Gurriel may not look like much on paper, no one expected Jurickson Profar, David Peralta, and Donovan Solano to be as impactful for the club as they were last year. If the Padres are to win an NL West that got even more loaded this winter, they’ll need to hit on those dice rolls once again.
Arizona Diamondbacks (89-73)
While the Diamondbacks missed the playoffs by a hair in 2024 when they finished tied with the Mets and Braves for the final two NL Wild Card spots, the 2023 NL champions put together an excellent team in 2024. The Diamondbacks led the majors in runs scored last year, and many core pieces like Ketel Marte and Corbin Carroll are back for more this year alongside supporting veterans Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Eugenio Suarez. The losses of Christian Walker and Joc Pederson will certainly sting, but Josh Naylor should help to make up for some of that lost production and it wouldn’t be a shock to see longtime top prospect Jordan Lawlar break into the majors this year, either.
The pitching side of things is where Arizona figures to improve the most over last year. Zac Gallen is now complemented at the top of the Diamondbacks rotation by a co-ace in Corbin Burnes, and Merrill Kelly and Eduardo Rodriguez should be able to offer far steadier mid-rotation production than they did in injury-marred 2024 campaigns. The club also enjoys a deep group of back-of-the-rotation options, with Brandon Pfaadt set to get the first crack at starting. Should injuries once again complicate matters, Ryne Nelson is one of the best sixth starters in the league and there’s nowhere for Jordan Montgomery to go but up after last year’s disastrous campaign.
San Francisco Giants (80-82)
The Giants enjoyed a reasonably strong offseason during Buster Posey’s first winter at the helm, but after finishing with a middling record for the third consecutive season it would take a lot of things going right for the club to make significant gains in the standings. The addition of a star-caliber shortstop in Willy Adames alongside Matt Chapman should make for one of the stronger left sides of the infield in the sport this year, but it would take a renaissance from Justin Verlander to even match Blake Snell’s production down the stretch last year. Meanwhile, the club has no established talent at DH and faces questions about the productivity of its outfield after Jung Hoo Lee’s debut season was sidetracked by injuries.
That’s not to say 2025 is a season without hope for fans in San Francisco, however. Verlander and Robbie Ray are both former Cy Young winners, and vintage performances from the duo in conjunction with Logan Webb’s ever-steady production could make an impressive front-end of the rotation. Young players like Heliot Ramos, Tyler Fitzgerald, and Patrick Bailey could build on solid 2024 campaigns and take further steps forward. And if they do so while the rotation plays up to its potential, it’s possible to see the Giants surprising this year.
Colorado Rockies (61-101)
While the division’s other four teams all have reasonable paths to contention this year, the Rockies would need to move heaven and earth just to get to .500 after a season where they finished 37 games back in the NL West and made no significant additions during the offseason. The club has a few potentially exciting pieces in place, with center fielder Brenton Doyle and shortstop Ezequiel Tovar creating an exciting up-the-middle duo, but the supporting cast leaves much to be desired.
The club traded its highest-ceiling offensive player, left fielder Nolan Jones, for utility man Tyler Freeman over the weekend. And exciting top prospects like Zac Veen and Chase Dollander remain in the minor leagues. Even a return to form from $182MM man Kris Bryant wouldn’t be enough to return playoff baseball to Colorado this year unless it was paired with strong performances from those aforementioned prospects in addition to veteran arms like German Marquez and Kyle Freeland turning back the clock to 2018.
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With four of the division’s five teams making an effort to get back to the playoffs this year, which club do you expect to come out on top? Will the Dodgers remain the league’s dominant force, or will they be overcome by a big season from one of their rivals like San Diego or Arizona? Have your say in the poll below:
Guys at MLBTR are real jokesters.
Oh good, I thought this was a joke. Or a delusion.
No we all know that the Rockies are going to win the division
Well, they are the trendy choice. #2 after the Dodgers.
We have 9% morons here, as a Rockies fan, there is no way they win the division, however, because of healthier pitchers and offensive upside, they will not lose 100 games this season.
@60s fan….I beg to differ (as in: no morons here). I chose the Rockies to win on the poll purely due to the fact that this poll is ludicrous! 100% of MLBTR KNOW, for certain, that the Dodgers will win the NLW. The Dodgers will win the division again, so, For the sake of being ludicrous in return, I couldn’t help myself from voting for your team. I expect all 9% did so for the same reason!
Even as a Padre fan I had to laugh at this and give the Rox a vote.
I voted the Padres, but believe LA has the division.
I’m a giants fan and I chose the dodgers. Surprised to see the Rockies second, not surprised to see the giants last.
People being funny. I knew Colorado would be second in the poll.
I mean obviously Colorado is better than the padres and giants and snakes
I’ll just guess everything in the world goes horribly wrong for the Doyers, and the DBacks win it all! Ha!
“Goes horribly wrong”…Things did go “horribly wrong” for the Dodgers last year and they won the World Series. Am I right?
MLBFan….this is 2025! Not the same horribly wrong I’m talking about. Ha! Chances of a repeat of a World Series win is very rare but not unheard of but yes you’re right about 2024.
@mlb fan things went “horribly wrong” for a lot of teams, not just the Dodgers.
They figuratively fell ass backwards into a championship because the Padres blew it, the Mets remembered they were the Mets and the Yankees imploded.
That doesn’t take away from what they accomplished, they still had to step up and take advantage of their opponents’ failures.
Balk — D-Backs would be the only team that could top L.A.if all Dodger arms fall off and they lose Betts or Freeman for an extended time, but it’s a long way to Tipperary.
However, could easily see the NL West finish like this:
Dodgers
D-Backs
Giants
Padres
(oh yeah, and the team in Denver)
Hahaha, I agree and would love to see it.
Rockies have 30 votes. Humans can be so funny.
Its at 140 now. lol.
Ah, come on, swanhenge, sarcasm is a beautiful thing!
Sorry Dodgers, but the NL West goes through the Rockies!
The Rockies may never win the division in my entire lifetime but I voted for them anyway.
Sadly, you could live as long as Methuselah & still be right, yetipro.
They do have a pennant in the last 20 years though
I’m 4
What a waste of a poll.
Right, pretty soon they will run out of them. And who will be responsible?
Second place for the Rockies might be a stretch. I think Rockies fans are feeling a little frisky. I’m not going to be that guy to rain on their parade though.
Sarcastic voters, pollsters, the Poles, the Pols, the Festivus pole, the magnetic North Pole, and people with the initials of POL will all be held responsible.
But only the sarcastic voters will be sacrificed to save the polls.
And the maypole will be a thing of the past, because it already is.
It would be a decent poll question for every division except the NL West.
No, because injuries can always affect the outcome of a race, plus, the Padres are a pretty good team, who played very well against the Dodgers in the playoffs last year.
So, if the Dodgers have some key injuries (or Ohtani gets nailed for illegal gambling, AGAIN!), and the Padres have some breakout seasons from their best players, the Dodgers could finish behind the Padres (>10% chance) or the D-backs (<5% chance)..
You left out that the Dodgers got even better in the offseason while the Padres got worse. The Dbacks will finish ahead of the Padres as well
Ohtani wasn’t nailed for illegal gambling you micro dick.
As will the Giants.
@Mantle, the Dodgers bench & AAA team would be competitive in this division. They could have 10 major injuries & still win the division. Maybe 20. Plus they have all the prospects & resources to trade for any player they think they’ve started liking.
This is not just a normal good team, this is MLB broken.
Also, the fact that the Dodgers were like in the top two in MLB of significant injuries (by WAR) and won the WS is an example of Dodger dominance.
Says the yeti.
@paddyo Dodger dominance? last year they benefitted from 3 teams falling apart in the playoffs.
But this year’s team is much better and won’t need luck even if it goes through injuries
You’re A Very Gullible Person if you believe that BS (!) Story Ohtani told about his compulsive gambler friend having UNFETTERED ACCE$$ to mega dollars of his money!
My best friend was a compulsive gambler (he’s deceased), and he once told me to never lend him money because he’d never have the money to repay the debt as a a compulsive gambler. (And he made >$100,000.)
So, you Actually Believe that Ohtani didn’t’t know that his Best Buddy in America & his employee was a compulsive gambler? Wow, do you still believe in the Tooth Fairy?
Even if Ohtani didn’t know he was a compulsive gambler (which is laughable, having had a friend who was a compulsive gambler), then ask yourself this:
Why the heck did Ohtani give his friend unfettered access to so much of his money, if it wasn’t to bet for the both of them?
I assume you’re not that foolish & you’re a loyal Dodgers fan who doesn’t want to lose Ohtani from your lineup. I can appreciate your feeling that way, BUT . . .
There’s a 0.00% chance Ohtani didn’t know about the betting. Zero point zero, zero! Only a gullible fool, like the MLB Commissioner** would believe a BS Story like Ohtani told.
**The Commissioner really isn’t a fool; he just preferred to wear blinders in Ohtani’s case & ignore his illegal wagering.
I agree with your last sentence in the sense that MLB needs to do something about how much money a team can defer over a given time (into the future).
The Dodgers have been shrewd in their use of deferrals (and I’m not a Dodgers fan), but they’ve begun to overuse that mechanism to sign people to the point where they may be hampered as a franchise 10-years down the road.
I don’t agree with your saying the Dodgers MiLB roster could win the NL West. That’s wishful thinking: about 99% of prospects don’t make it at all or they vastly underperform their projections . . . and then there’s the injury plaque that’s haunting baseball.
So, no, the Dodgers 26 best MiLB players would (maybe) beat out the Rockies, but that’s hardly an accomplishment. 😉
So they should do a poll for only 5 of the 6 divisions?
The bookies have the Dodgers at -600 to win the division. They have the Padres 9-1 and the D’Backs 10-1
I set my odds across all divisions before reviewing the books and had the Dodger’s -300, the D’Backs 7 to 1, and the Padres 12-1. I think the D’Backs will give them a run. Padres don’t have the SP.
I like the D’Backs at 10-1.
“I like those odds!” -Not Ohtani (according to MLB)
It’s good to laugh.
Hence, those who have Botox injections in their face are suboptimal humans.
Go Rockies go!
The Rockies will be a cinderella story this season and shock the world.
My thumbs up is contingent the (hopeful) fact that you’re joking, otherwise, seeking psychiatric help, immediately. 😉
Thank you for the good laugh, Darren, , ,, assuming it’s the former, not the latter..
All jokes aside, the NLW is only one of two divisions where the PECOTA projected wins of the second-place team is not within ten games of the first-place team. Compare to the ALE, where all five are.
34% have not been paying attention.
Yes because the other 66% are really smart people that are so smart they don’t know the definition of a joke
Hardly. Your posts are always a lot of laughs.
I am pretty sure they were laughing when they posted it.
Rockies could lose 200 games this year and it would surprise no one.
To justify their spend,the LAD need 130 wins.
“Justify their spend”..I don’t think you understand modern economics. If you want to win big you have to invest big. When the grand stands and your cash receipts are both overflowing, you spend.
When new Asian and American sponsorships and luxury box sales have already paid for the Ohtani contract and then some, you spend.
When your profitability and TV ratings are both soaring, you spend.
I’m not sure why many fans don’t see or understand that any successful business will always reinvest large percentages of their profits back into their core on-field product, the Dodgers.
I’d argue that anything short of another ring is a complete failure for the Dodgers… but then again, we have 29 teams become failures every year. Here’s hoping everybody in the Division stays as healthy as possible and we all get to see the competition elevate to extreme heights!
Amen Gwynning
With how much Otani and Teo strikeout they’ll be lucky to win 90 games.
Yucki are you really as stupid as you seem to be?
Ohtani doesn’t strike out very much, especially for someone banging 45+ homers. He’s only finished top 10 twice.
the deferrals are -750 to win the division. absolutely insane odds
Does that factor in all the blown out arms
Rockies got my vote. The division’s theirs to lose, right?
Yes, “to lose, right,” Armaments216. Thank you for the joke.
Like usual, the Dodgers will buy their way.to the playoffs. There needs to be a salary cap in baseball.
The Dodgers could lose two MVPs for the season and still win the division by five games.
The rhetorical question of the year.
lol is this a joke? Uh, hmm, lemme think about this for a second? Giants, no, Rockies, no, Diamondbacks, no, Padres, no…man, who else is in the NL West?…Oh that’s right, the team that’s going to win the world series again, the Dodgers. Smh lol, it’s just like, why even bother?
It isn’t a joke the Rockies are stacked to the brim this year and the dodgers are rebuilding
We know 1 of 3 things from this poll; that is, that the 10.66% of MLB Trade Rumors readers who voted for the Rockies to finish in 1st place:
1.. Are serious delusional (and probably voted for Trump)
2. Have exceedingly dark senses of humor
3. Have some combination of #s 1 & 2, above.
Hopefully, the answer is #2, otherwise America is doomed. 😉
Sounds like another poll: Is America doomed?
This is a silly poll since the dodgers are the clear favorite to win the world series, Stanley cup, and the Kentucky derby next year….but as a Denver native, let a boy dream!
Snap into a Slim Jim! Oh yeahhh!
66% think this is a serious poll. 34% know that it is a joke. MLBTR having some fun with us.
Oh goody.. a limp dick Democrat. Shouldn’t you be crying over Venezuelan gang members?
America is doomed regardless because 77.3 million Americans knowingly voted against their own best interests just to own the libs by voting for Trump.
“against their own best interests”…Nice recycled/reheated argument/slogan from the 90’s. What next, “War on women”?..
I think you should probably restate your point and say that 77M+ people voted against the “best interests” of Hollywood, Silicon Valley, the media elite and the plethora of leftist software billionaires that seem to be everywhere. Your welcome.
Big mistake making point Number 1. Good luck from the masses.
Also, the rest of the votes for any team except the Dodgers are people just joking around…unless they really believe that any of the other teams will win the west, which in that case, they’re just stupid.
Just joking around? Nah, baseball fans are pretty serious folks. Especially Dodgers fans, who are known to have no sense of humor whatsoever.
While the Dodgers are massive and deserving favorites, I do think the games within the division will largely be fun to watch.
Padres and D’backs are no joke and the Giants have talent.
Agreed Halos! I’m a Dodgers fan, but I know the Diamondbacks will be good, plus the Giants may be a sneaky threat. Not too worried about the Padres, but that may be my downfall.
Today’s MLBTR made-you-look post. Time for some Play Ball!
The padres have improved but not near enough to overtake the dodgers.
I wonder if the Rockies will choke with the target on their back this year.
Gee, I wonder who will win the NL West! The suspense is killing me.
Padres 3rd place this yr
Two words….. Lake Placid….
Dbags could if the dodgers slip or have some key injuries. You still have to play 162.
Only 160 left for the Dodgers, though.
The poll question should be which team or teams could win a wild card spot in the playoffs from the NL west
Its gonna be ROCKTOBER IN 2025, ROCKIES SHOCK THE WORLD AND TAKE THE DIVISION!!!
Well, we know how many trolls are answering these polls. lol
Rockies World Series win odds: 400-1
MLBTR Rockies WS win odds: 10-1
I’m with ya! Keep up the enthusiasm, gang!
You list Kim as the Dodgers 2nd baseman for 2025, but I think he is headed to the minors to start the season.
@Buck
read it again. that is not what it says.
the key word is “eventually.”
Who last year supported the Dbacks pitchers by offering them guidence and training and worked with them closely with that different unique slider pitch?
Dodgers are insanely overrated. Roki Sasaki is a rookie that could be a complete disaster and I hope he loses 20 games for making the lazy, boring choice. And Ohtani and Teo strikeout way too much to ever be great players.
I’m going to go with the Padres.
As usual Yucki has no clue what is happening in the real world.
Bud Black should ignore all black noise around him.
C’mon, it’s funny that over 10% of us chose the Rockies. People need to lighten up. Most people here are reasonably serious fans and know the answer is pretty darn obvious.
The team that wins the NL West might not be the one with the best players, but the one with the smartest manager who can handle crazy, unpredictable games.
I’ll pick the Arizona Diamondbacks to win the NL West.
Here’s why: The Dodgers have the best roster on paper, but their rotation’s injury risks (Glasnow, Kershaw, Yamamoto) and bullpen depth could overwhelm Dave Roberts if unpredictability spikes—his 2024 success relied on stability, not improvisation. The Padres are close contenders, but A.J. Preller’s front-office aggression doesn’t guarantee Mike Shildt can outmaneuver in real time with a thinner margin. Torey Lovullo in Arizona, however, has shown flexibility managing a less star-heavy squad (89-73 in 2024 despite injuries to Kelly and Rodriguez). With Gallen and Burnes as anchors and depth like Pfaadt and Nelson, he’s got tools to pivot fast when games go off-script—say, a starter implodes or a lineup flips. The Giants lack consistency, and the Rockies are outclassed. Lovullo’s edge in handling entropy could tip the scales in a tight division, even if it’s not the obvious choice.
and then there’s the challenging managerial decisions such as how to get Mookie to hold down his pancakes.
In all seriousness, I’m not sure some managers can overcome stingy owners, bad GM decisions, poor player development and stochastic events such as injuries and untimely thunderstorms. But I am a little concerned about 157 lb Mookie, having recently gone through a similar debilitating stomach mystery ailment myself.
really?
no one is gonna do it?
I guess it’s up to me…
The Dodgers actually got 100% of the vote, but 34% of it is deferred
Duh. With a $500 trillion payroll, they better
The Dodgers are clearly the best roster in baseball and they have a weak April schedule, so we’ll see if they perform as expected. I will bet on the long shot that the Dbacks take the division if the Dodgers only win 55% or less of April games and the Dbacks take most of the seven they face one another in May.
This Rockies low-key ways have the Dodgers right where they want them! Sure…you can be a great team and EVERYONE expects you to win. Try being lousy at baseball.
The Rox being 2nd tells you all you need to know about how valid these polls are.
Without reading any comments, and as a Rockies fan, I voted for the Rockies hoping to give them at least one dark-humor joke vote.
Surprise, a goodly number took the same dark-humor approach. Shoot, most Rockies’ fans would consider a 99 loss season a real winner considering how most baseball knowledgeable people view the Rockies.
This is America! Gotta root for the underdog!
And….
This IS baseball!
Anything could happen.
That’s why we play the game.
Yep, the Dodgers are heavy favorites. However, It could be worse. It could be the AFC. Nobody wins there except for the KC team. Fifteen teams are wasting their time playing the game.
Dodgers win the west but don’t make the WS as is their norm over the last 5-10 years.
Didn’t they make it to the WS in 17, 18, 20, and 24?
Rox are still in 2nd place.
There shouldn’t be a comma before “either.”