How does the Rest of the N.L. West Respond?

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The Los Angeles Dodgers went out and got their guy in Manny Machado. The loss of Corey Seager forced the Dodgers to be aggressive and go out and add a middle of the order bat. Now that Mannywood is back in LA, what does that mean for the rest of the division?

Let’s look at the standings as the 2nd half will be starting tomorrow.

  1. Los Angeles Dodgers         53-43     –
  2. Arizona Diamondbacks      53-44    .5
  3. Colorado Rockies                51-45    2
  4. San Francisco Giants         50-48    4
  5. San Diego Padres               40-59    5

Looking at the standings, it’s a 4-team race and you can make a case for any of them to win the division. But the addition of Machado changes the landscape in the division. Let’s look what each team should / could do before the deadline.

 

The Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers going out and getting Machado and sending 5 prospects, including the Dodgers’ number 4 prospect Yusniel Diaz signals that they are going for it. There is no guarantee that Machado chooses to resign there as of right now. I believe the Dodgers will continue to be aggressive and look to add a starter and to add to the back end of the bullpen to help Jansen in the Postseason. Adding a player like Zach Britton or Cole Hamels could be an option for the Dodgers. They are definitely in the driver’s seat.

 

Arizona Diamondbacks

Last year, the Dbacks won the deadline by trading for J.D. Martinez, who ended up having an enormous two months with the club. This year, I think they need to make another move to sure up their Postseason hopes. I think their needs are similar to the Dodgers. Adding an arm in the rotation, which ranks 16th in baseball with a 4.11 ERA would be wise heading down the homestretch. Their middle infield is not the strongest in baseball. Their middle infield of Nick Ahmed and Ketel Marte have a 3.0 WAR combined and both are hitting under .240. Arizona’s offense ranks 17th in baseball in runs scored and adding a bat like a Brian Dozier could help stabilize an erratic offense. The Dbacks are in a good position but need to do something before the deadline.

 

Colorado Rockies

The Rockies put themselves in a position to be aggressive at the deadline as they entered the break winning 8 out of 10. Like always, you never have to worry about scoring runs in Colorado. The Rockies rank 6th in baseball in runs scored and have the fire power to put up a crooked number no matter who is on the mound. The question is their pitching (starting rotation 4.39 ERA, bullpen 5.20 ERA). The Rockies can go two ways to fix their problem. They could try to dangle their top prospect, Brendan Rodgers and get a Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard or trade for 2 bullpen arms. Trading for 2 bullpen arms could shorten the game come September for their starters. The Rockies must get pitching help if they want to compete because you don’t want to waste another year of Nolan Arenado.

 

San Francisco Giants

I’m probably going to piss off Giants fans but I don’t like how this team is built. The Giants are an older team and play in a ballpark that is hard to score runs in. I still don’t understand why they got Evan Longoria because his swing doesn’t fit that ballpark. The way the Giants are built, they should be trying to go for it and win now but I would not advise that. Samardzija (terrible signing) is back on the DL. Panik is on the DL. Longoria is on the DL. Strickland is on the DL. An old team that has injury problems already is not one I would invest further in and sell my future. They are only 4 games out but with the Dodgers getting Machado and the current situation in San Francisco, it feels like more than 4 games.

 

San Diego Padres

Padres, keep on selling!! The Padres made a huge move today trading Brad Hand to the Indians for their top catching prospect Francisco Mejia. That is a significant addition to the number 3 farm system in baseball. I do not watch a lot of Padres games but if they have anyone on their Major League roster that is not significant to their future, they should deal them. I know their farm system is loaded and in 3 or 4 years, they very well could be the class of the West.

 

In my opinion, the 4 teams besides the Dodgers had a chance early to put the Dodgers away and end their 5-year run of winning the division. At one point, the Dodgers were 10 games under .500. But the Dodgers battled back, and the rest of the division struggled. Now, it’s the Dodgers division to lose, especially with the addition of Machado. The second half should be a lot of fun to watch, especially in the N.L. West.

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