Most of the talk around the MLB over the past month has centered around the NL West. The division currently features three of the best teams in all of baseball, such as the Colorado Rockies, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Los Angeles Dodgers.
As of Friday, the Dodgers lead the NL West with a 48-26 record. But the Diamondbacks (46-27) and the Rockies (47-28) are not far behind. If we put it in another way, Arizona and Colorado are just 1.5 games behind LA for the division lead.
Considering how well these three franchises have performed, it would be shocking if any of them doesn’t make the playoffs. But which team has been the best of that trio? Each team has a clear strength, and now we will analyze which one has the biggest chances to win the Division once it’s all said and done.
Hitting
Let’s start with hitting. These three teams have some of the best offenses in the Majors, and the numbers back that up. Let’s look at some stats to see where they rank among each other, and in comparison with the rest of the league.
Batting Average: Rockies .274, Diamondbacks .266, Dodgers .255 (Rockies and DBacks Top 5 NL)
HR: Dodgers 101, Diamondbacks 99, Rockies 90
Runs: Rockies 395, Diamondbacks 388. Dodgers 384 (all Top 10 MLB, Top 5 NL)
OPS: Diamondbacks .788, Dodgers .779, Rockies .778 (all Top 10 MLB, Top 5 NL)
SLG: Diamondbacks .453, Rockies .446, Dodgers .440 (all Top 10 MLB)
The first stat that pops up is the fact that the Rockies don’t lead the HR department, and in fact they’re the worst team of all three. But that’s the only area in which they falter. Colorado leads this group on both batting average and runs scored. In fact, they are among the Top 5 in the NL in average while among the Top 10 in all of baseball in runs. So we know they can produce.
On the other hand, the Diamondbacks would be top team on the sabermatric scale, because they lead on both OPS and slugging percentages. This shows they are a consistent team from top to bottom, and that depth is always useful come playoff time.
As for the Dodgers, they lead in home runs with 101, but that’s mostly because they got into a hot streak of late. Otherwise, this lead would belong to the Diamondbacks who have hit 99 as a whole. Colorado only has 90, but we can expect that number to increase sooner than later.
Pitching
Now let’s jump into the pitching side of things:
Saves: Rockies 27 (Lead MLB), Diamondbacks and Dodgers 21 (All Top 5 MLB)
Starters’ IP: Diamondbacks 434, Rockies 426.2, Dodgers 412.1 (Arizona and Colorado, Top 5 NL)
Earned Runs Against: Dodgers 247 (lead MLB), Diamondbacks 250 (2nd), Rockies 324 (12th worst)
ERA: Dodgers 3.35 (lead MLB), Diamondbacks 3.45 (2nd), Rockies 4.35 (17th)
AVG: Dodgers .229 (lead MLB), Diamondbacks .236, (3rd), Rockies .253 (14th)
WHIP: Dodgers 1.15 (lead MLB), Diamondbacks 1.24 (5th), Rockies 1.33 (12th)
There are no doubts here. The Dodgers have one of the best pitching units in all of baseball. Even though their starters are not going deep into games, Los Angeles have managed to thrive either way on the mound. In fact, the Dodgers currently lead the Majors on ERA, earned runs against, batting average against, and WHIP. That’s not an easy feat, and it has been one of the main reasons why they are leading the division.
The Diamondbacks have done a good job when it comes to going deep into games, but that’s not everything. They currently sit second in ERA, third in batting average against, and fifth in WHIP. They have 21 saves as well, a figure that ranks in the Top 5 in MLB.
Last but not least, we can see that Colorado’s Achilles Heel has been their pitching. They might lead the Majors in saves, but they are a middle-of-the-pack team in all the other statistics. There’s a saying in baseball about “never having too much pitching”. And well, it looks like the Rockies do need some help on that department.
Conclusion
Look, all three teams will make the playoffs this season in the NL. It would be absolutely shocking if that’s not the case, because all three have strengths. The Dodgers have the pitching, the Rockies have the offense, and the Diamondbacks have the consistency.
But if we had to decide on which team has been better so far, the numbers do not lie. There’s a reason why Los Angeles leads the Division, and perhaps their manager Dave Roberts is right. Maybe they are the best team in the NL West after all. The numbers do back that statement up.
