With Opening Day looming for all teams, let’s gaze into the crystal ball to see what’s in store for every team in the National League West.
Arizona Diamondbacks | Record prediction: 90-72 (second in division)
RHP Corbin Burnes will be in the Cy Young conversation: The biggest free-agent signing in team history will pay off immediately.
Burnes, who signed a six-year, $210M deal with Arizona, won the NL Cy Young with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2021 and finished fifth in the American League last season in his only campaign with the Baltimore Orioles (2.92 ERA in 194.1 innings in 32 starts). This year, joining Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eduardo Rodriguez and others, Burnes will lead the Arizona rotation, a group that has a legitimate chance to be sneaky good.
In a survey of 32 team executives, scouts and coaches by The Athletic’s Jayson Stark, the signing of Burnes was ranked the second-best FA signing of the offseason, behind the Dodgers’ signing of pitcher Roki Sasaki.
Colorado Rockies | Record prediction: 66-96 (fifth)
OF Nolan Jones will find his stride: After a 2023 season in which he posted 4.3 bWAR and hit 20 homers and stole 20 bases, Jones regressed in 2024, slashing .227/.321/.320 and hitting just three homers and stealing only five bases.
This season, Jones will shake off his dismal 2024 and once again be the answer for the Rockies in left field. The 26-year-old Jones battled through injuries last season, but he entered spring training healthy and determined to put 2024 in the rearview.
Los Angeles Dodgers | Record prediction: 99-63 (first)
Another sub-100 win season coming: Los Angeles, which swept the Chicago Cubs in Japan to start the season 2-0, has arguably more talent than any other MLB team, but winning 100 regular-season games will once again elude the Dodgers. However, after winning 98 games last season, the Dodgers went on to win the World Series, so maybe triple-digit wins aren’t that important. (Los Angeles won 100 or more games in 2021, 2022 and 2023 but did not advance to the World Series.)
For the Dodgers, when every team you’re playing is viewing the series as a measuring stick against not only a uber-talented squad, but also the defending world champions, the weight of the crown can get heavy. The expectations that go along with a season in which everyone is anticipating greatness every game will wear on the Dodgers, who will win 99 games and capture the division with plenty of room to spare.
San Diego Padres | Record prediction: 89-73 (third)
Jackson Merrill will be the NL’s best center fielder: The 21-year-old Merrill finished second to Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes in last year’s NL Rookie of the Year race and watched as Colorado’s Brenton Doyle won the NL Gold Glove in center field. This season, Merrill will be motivated by not only last season’s award misses, but also his quick adaptation to center field to take the next step in his young career.
Don’t forget that Merrill (a top prospect at shortstop) had never played in center field before taking it over for the Padres on Opening Day last season. He went on to slash .292/.326/.500 with 24 home runs and 90 RBI. This season, even more comfortable and confident, Merrill be the center fielder everyone in the NL will be talking about.
San Francisco Giants | Record prediction: 79-83 (fourth)
OF Jung Hoo Lee will break out: After a debut season in which he logged just 145 at-bats before undergoing season-ending surgery, Lee will finally get a chance to show off his skills in 2025.
The 26-year-old outfielder slashed .262/.310/.331 in his 37 games with the Giants last season. After hitting primarily in the leadoff spot last year, San Francisco manager Bob Melvin has already indicated that Lee could move down in the order in 2025, giving him even more of a chance to make a difference for a lineup that needs him to be healthy and productive. After a spring injury scare with his back, Lee is expected to be a catalyst for San Francisco.
