The 2nd NL West that I am going to look at are the Arizona Diamondbacks. The D-Backs are coming off a disappointing 5th place finish where they had a 25-35 record. On paper they look like they can be competitive for a wild card spot, but for some reason they couldn’t put it together last season. This year however, I expect them to perform better because they will get a full season of Bumgarner and Smith and Gallen. Their bullpen may be the biggest concern for them, but they are a middle of the road team.
Projected Starting Rotation
| 1 | Zac Gallen |
| 2 | Madison Bumgarner |
| 3 | Luke Weaver |
| 4 | Caleb Smith |
| 5 | Merrill Kelly |
This rotation has some promise, especially if you get a healthy Bumgarner back. But I want to focus on two names that they acquired from the Marlins two straight years in a row. Those being Zac Gallen and Caleb Smith. These two guys are very underrated and have been since their time in Miami. Gallen is a guy who won’t blow up a radar gun or strike out a lot of hitters, but he’s an excellent pitcher. He is someone you want to build your rotation around. Caleb Smith on the other hand is someone who throws in the mid 90s and will strike plenty of hitters out. These two compliment each other well, and I can see them having great pitching seasons.
Projected Line-Up
| 1 | LF David Peralta | L |
| 2 | CF Ketel Marte | S |
| 3 | 1B Christian Walker | R |
| 4 | 3B Eduardo Escobar | S |
| 5 | RF Kole Calhoun | L |
| 6 | C Carson Kelly | R |
| 7 | 2B Josh Rojas | L |
| 8 | SS Nick Ahmed | R |
| 9 | P Pitcher | – |
The lineup won’t stand out to you, but there are some hitters that you should keep an eye out for. Two in particular are Ketel Marte and Eduardo Escobar. These are the only two that I care about. Ketel is slept on and will turn heads. He is an all around great player, who has a canon of an arm, covers a lot of range, hits for power, hits for average and will steal bases. I don’t know if Arizona has extended Marte or not, but if I’m in the front office for Arizona I want to extend him. I expect him to have a good hitting season, but I don’t think he will be as much of a power hitter as he has in the past. Eduardo Escobar is a guy that is very key to the team. He drives in a lot of runs and will be in the lineup almost every day.
2021 PECOTA NL West Projections
Like I said in the Giants Preview, I agree with PECOTA’s projection for the entire division. I can see Arizona and San Francisco battling for 3rd place throughout the entire season. But ultimately I see the Diamondbacks finishing in 3rd while Giants finish in 4th.
