Pages Menu
TwitterRssFacebook
Categories Menu

Posted by on Jul 18, 2013 in Pat Wong, Sports | 0 comments

Baseball Mid Year Report Card (NL West)

Justin Upton

(Records as of June 30)

NL West

1.       Arizona Diamondbacks (42-39)

Although there are no great teams in the NL West, the San Francisco Giants have come out of the NL West to win the World Series 2 of the last 3 years. Every team in the NL West is in it. The Diamondbacks are currently on top. Their run differential is +7, which indicates their record is exactly where it should be. Their best story is Patrick Corbin who is breaking out at 9-1 with a 1.01 WHIP and 2.49 ERA. However, their rotation is inconsistent. Veteran Trevor Cahill is a reliable innings eater but he is not a top pitcher. After Ian Kennedy had a big season 2 years ago, he regressed last year and continues to regress this year with a 5.16 ERA. Predictably, second year starter Wade Miley has regressed from his strong rookie season. A couple of young starters have been called up recently in Tyler Skaggs and Randall Deglado. They have both have pitched a couple of great games and that is hope that those prospects will be productive in the second half. However, the Diamondbacks will be looking for a veteran starter at the trade deadline. The back of the bullpen has been inconsistent as well as setup man David Hernandez has not been good and closer JJ Putz was not pitching well and lost his job to Heath Bell. However, the rest of the pen has been pitching well. On offense, the Diamonbacks are a one man show. Paul Goldschmidt is a legitimate superstar first basemen batting .304 with a .381 OBP, 20 homeruns, and 71 RBIs. He will need some help. Second basemen Aaron Hill has only played in 21 games and will help if healthy. Third basemen Martin Prado was acquired when they traded Justin Upton to the Braves. He is only batting .252 and needs to do better. Catcher Miguel Montero is a good hitter but only batting .227. He and veteran outfielder Jason Kubel need to pick it up. They could get a boost from top outfield prospect Adam Eaton. He got hurt before the season but should be back soon. Nevertheless, the Diamondbacks could use a couple of hitters on top of a starter.

Grade: B

2.       Colorado Rockies (41-42)

Naturally, they play half their games in Coors Field and have scored a lot of runs. However, they have patched together a starting rotation and given up a lot of runs. Their offense is anchored by superstar shortstop Troy Tulowitzi and All-Star Carlos Gonzalez. Veteran outfielder Michael Cuddyer is having a career year batting .342 with a .396 OBP and 15 homeruns while outfielder Dexter Fowler is having another solid year as the leadoff hitter with a high OBP.  Moreover, they have one of the better young, hitting catchers in Wilin Rosario who also has power with 13 homeruns already this season. Rookie third basemen Nolan Rosario has a lot of talent but has been inconsistent. He has shown his potential and can make a big difference if he has a good second half. As expected, it is difficult to be a Colorado pitcher. Jorgre De La Rosa and Jhoulys Chacin have led the rotation with ERAs of 3.19 and 3.74 respectively. The rest of the starters have struggled. They signed Roy Oswalt during the season. While he has a 7.88 ERA, his 21 Ks to 2 walks in 16 innings suggest he is pitching better than his ERA would suggest. They also have a solid back of the bullpen with veteran closer Rafael Betancourt and setup man Rex Brothers. The Rockies will need to add a starter or two as well as some bullpen help to stay in the race for the division in the second half.

Grade: B-

3.       San Diego (40-42)

The Padres have done it with smoke and mirrors and have done a good job hovering around .500 and being competitive within the division. They just do not have much talent on either side of the ball. However, shortstop Everth Cabrera has broken out batting .300 with a .376 OBP and 31 steals. Rookie Jedd Gyorko has also looked promising. Nevertheless, Chase Headley had a great year in 2012 which included 31 homeruns. He has been bad in 2013 batting only .222 with 7 homeruns. Veteran outfielder Carlos Quentin has provided some power with 10 homeruns. Unfortunately, there is not much offense overall. Young first basemen Yadier Alonso will have to break out soon for them to have any chance at staying in the race as the season progresses. The starting rotation is not much better. Veteran Jason Marquis has been solid at 9-4 with a 3.74 ERA. However, he has been a bit lucky and his ERA should regress back to his career average as his peripherals suggest. Youngster Andrew Cashner has been solid with a 1.23 WHIP and 3.82 ERA but has an innings limit. Eric Stults has also been solid with similar numbers to Cashner.  The rest of the rotation has pitched poor. They will need Edinson Volquez to step it up as he is a veteran pitcher that was effective earlier in his career. Their bullpen has been strong but closer Huston Street deals with injuries every year and is not having a good season. Even though his numbers are poor, they may be able to trade him for a prospect based on his name and past performance. The Padres have an adequate replacement in Luke Gregerson. Due to the weak division, every team is in it and can be buyers. The Padres are always constricted by payroll. As such, they will not be making any big acquisitions. However, I do not think they will be selling either. They may try to trade for low cost hitters or pitchers who can help the back of the rotation.

Grade: C+

4.       San Francisco Giants (39-42)

The defending champions have made up for a lack of offense with great starting pitching in the past. Unfortunately for them, their pitching has not nearly been as good this year. Madison Bumgarner is their best pitcher this year at 8-5 with a 1.00 WHIP, 3.08 ERA, and 107 Ks in 111. He is pitching like a legit ace. However, Matt Cain had a rough start to the season and a bloated ERA. He is turning it around and should be pitching like the ace he has been the rest of the season. On the other hand, Tim Lincecum’s best days may be behind him. He is pitching better than his nightmare season last year but still has a 4.66 ERA this year. He was a top pitcher and multiple Cy Young award winner. His strikeout rate remains high which still provides hope he can turn it around. If he is unable to adjust to his diminished skills, his days as a top pitcher are over. After a great postseason, Barry Zito has been mediocre again as he has for most of his career as a Giant. Ryan Vogelsong has been a disaster this year. Their bullpen is the greatest strength of their team. Sergio Romo has done well in his first full season as closer with a 1.00 WHIP, 2.32 ERA, and 19 saves. On offense, they are led by MVP catcher Buster Posey, who is having another excellent season. Veterans Marco Scutaro and Hunter Pence have given him support.  However, they need more production from veterans Pablo Sandoval and Angel Pagan. Brandon Belt has given them some production this year but has yet to materialize as a star they were hoping for from the prospect. Of course, the Giants are buyers as they try to repeat and win 3 of 4 World Series. GM Brian Sabean will try to trade for a couple of veteran bats to help his offense as he has done at recent trade deadlines. However, they win because their pitching and need to get all their starters going in the second half to make the playoffs. If they make the playoffs, they are a legitimate threat to win it all again. Although they are in striking distance, they get a D for a lackluster first half after winning the World Series.

Grade: D

5.       Los Angeles Dodgers (38-43)

The Dodgers have spent a lot of money since they switched ownership in the middle of last season. However, they have not received a lot of bang for their buck. They have one of the worst offenses and a -46 run differential. Nevertheless, they are in the NL West and in the race for the division. After a slow start, they called up super outfield prospect Yasiel Puig and he has energized the Dodgers batting .420 with 8 homers, 19 RBIs, and 4 stolen bases. He has taken baseball by storm immediately. Moreover, star shortstop Hanley Ramirez was hurt during the World Baseball Classic. His return has also been a big boost as he has hit .413 with 7 homers and 20 RBIs. First basemen Adrian Gonzalez has been solid but it appears that his days as a big power hitter are over while his OBP has regressed from his prime. While he is still a solid player, he is short of the superstar hitter they were hoping for when they agreed to take the large contracts of Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett to acquire Gonzalez. Crawford did have a resurgence and started to look like the outfielder the Red Sox thought they were paying before he got hurt. He is coming off the disabled list. However, the Dodgers need to figure out their outfield as they have 3 highly paid veterans and Puig, who will not be coming out of the lineup anytime soon. Matt Kemp is a superstar centerfielder but he has not been 100% so far. He has been hurt and only batting .254 with 4 homeruns. If he gets going along with the other hitters on the Dodgers, they have the potential to be a lethal offense instead of an anemic one. On the pitching side, Clayton Kershaw continues to be a top pitcher. He is 7-5 but has a .93 WHIP, 1.93 ERA, and has 126 Ks versus 33 walks in 130.1 innings. Left handed import Hyun-Jin Ryu has had a great rookie year going 7-3 with a 1.23 WHIP and 2.82 ERA. The Dodgers gave Zach Greinke a huge contract in the offseason. He missed significant time after getting hurt in a brawl with the Padres. He has been inconsistent with 1.45 WHIP and 4.30. However, he is a former CY Young award winner and more than capable of dominating in the second half. The back of the rotation is more suspect. They lost veterans Chad Billingsley and Josh Beckett for the season. However, Stephen Fife has done a good job filling in of late and veteran Ted Lilly will return in the second half. Their bullpen was shaky early. Brandon League was terrible and lost his closer job. However, Kenley Jansen has been dominating this season with a 0.97 WHIP, 2.55 ERA, and 59 Ks in 42.1 innings to solidify the back of the bullpen. Of course, the Dodgers will be buyers at the trade deadline again. They have already acquired Ricky Nolasco to solidify the back of their rotation. They could also use a second basemen. If the Phillies make Chase Utley available, expect the Dodgers to make a strong run at him. Overall, the Dodgers have played through injuries in the first half. Their grade also gets a boost with the emergence of Yasiel Puig. With their talent, they are definitely a team to watch out for in the second half.

Grade: C+

 

 

AL West

Comments

Leave a Reply

%d bloggers like this: