Previewing the NL West Outlook

The Diamondbacks play in a tough division, here's what the NL West looks like ahead of 2025.

Los Angeles Dodgers Shohei Ohtani (17) steals second base against Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo (2) in the seventh inning at Chase Field on Sept. 2, 2024, in Phoenix. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Arizona Diamondbacks play in one of the toughest divisions in baseball. With the exception of the perennially bottom-feeding Colorado Rockies, there's steep competition around every corner.

The Diamondbacks have been able to hold their own against some of these tough division rivals, sweeping the Los Angeles Dodgers out of the playoffs in 2023, and putting up a winning 28-24 record against the West in 2024.

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers followed up a dominant season by adding more talent. That's what good teams do. One can argue the fairness thereof, but ultimately, Los Angeles took one of their weaknesses - the major league rotation - and added an ace in Blake Snell and a promising young rookie in Roki Sasaki.

And that's ignoring the offense that creates nightmares for all who face them. The Shohei Ohtani-Mookie Betts-Freddie Freeman trio at the top of the order is a tall enough task to conquer even without considering some of the depth and versatility in that lineup.

The NL West juggernaut will be a tough, tough out in 2025, and could casually stroll their way to the Fall Classic a second time.

Arizona Diamondbacks

As readers of this site well know, the Diamondbacks have invested a great deal into a pitching staff that ranked near the bottom of MLB in 2024. They added an ace in Corbin Burnes to a rotation that already looks deep and talented on paper, and replaced Christian Walker's slug with Josh Naylor.

With some better overall pitching performances, better health in for pitching staff, and even a slightly less catastrophic first half for players like Corbin Carroll and Eugenio Suárez, the D-backs could be the only team able to slay the giant that is the Dodgers (again) come October.

But Arizona has to get there first, and offensive regression seems like a safe bet, even if the pitching improves. It might be tough for All-Star 2B Ketel Marte to repeat what he did in 2025, but it's certainly possible. Regardless, the D-backs will likely remain relevant, barring severe injury or underperformance.

San Diego Padres

On paper, the Padres have one of the most talented lineups and pitching staffs in baseball. But the depth behind impressive young players like Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jackson Merrill is suspect at best, save for elite veteran Manny Machado. They did add Gavin Sheets and Jason Heyward, but those aren't exactly mind-blowing moves.

They added Nick Pivetta to the rotation, but with Yu Darvish likely missing the start of the season, their rotation will rely on another solid year from Dylan Cease and Michael King.

San Diego's bullpen is also impressive, but after falling short in the 2024 Postseason, losing Jurickson Profar and Ha-Seong Kim, and entering an era of ownership strife, it could be a tough road ahead for the Padres.

San Francisco Giants

The Giants made some significant additions this offseason. They added veteran star Justin Verlander to the rotation, who could look to rebound from a down year in 2024, though Oracle Park might be a good place to do so.

They also brought in Willy Adames, a needle-moving acquisition to be sure. The Giants could end up being sneaky contenders in the NL West come 2025, but they'll have to get over the hump of consistent mediocrity in recent seasons.

Colorado Rockies

It's much of the same for the Rockies. They have a handful of talented young hitters and pitchers, but it's just so difficult to survive at Coors Field, and few notable investments have been made.

Kyle Farmer, Tyler Freeman, and Nick Martini headline their offseason moves, which just isn't enough to get fans excited for another year of Rockies baseball. There is some sneaky potential in a pitching staff that has a great deal of raw stuff, but it doesn't feel likely that it'll all come together in 2025.