2021 NL West Preview

And so, just one division remains.

With Major League Baseball starting in less than 24 hours, I've covered ground in five of the six Major League divisions, having worked my way from the east coast all the way out west now.

And so, let's tackle the NL West and conclude the series. Happy Opening Day, and good luck to your team!

2018 MLB Preview: NL West

Opening Day is tomorrow! Excitement is in the air, everyone is a contender (...well, except for the Marlins) and hopefully the weather will warm up so taking a trip to the ballpark will be a little more pleasant.

I've condensed my process down to three days' worth of posting instead of six, so we're down to just two divisions to preview. We're back to the National League one more time with one Wild Card berth still up for grabs.

Unwritten Rules vs Thug Baseball III

Photo by Ben Margot (AP)

Didn't I just write something about this like, not even a month ago? Thankfully this time, Manny Machado is nowhere in sight.

The big story from baseball yesterday, other than Cardinal Devil Magic being Cardinal Devil Magic over in the MLB Tournament of Champions, was a little donnybrook (I love that word) in the Nationals-Giants game in San Francisco.

2017 MLB Preview: NL West

We're halfway through our baseball predictions for the upcoming year, and just a few days from the start of the season. We're also only a few days from the start of my latest ambitious project in the MLB Tournament of Champions, which you can find out more about here.

On Day 4, we're swapping leagues again while staying on the coast. as we move to the National League West.

2016 MLB Predictions: NL West

I've taken a few weeks off from writing in the aftermath of the end of basketball season, just to get a little more free time in. With baseball season nearly upon us though, I find myself having to scramble a little bit.

I'm excited for the season to get underway, as after a few dismal years on the north side of Chicago, there's an elite team playing at Clark and Addison. I'll have more on them in a few days.

As is my tradition, I will do a division a day, alternating leagues and ending with the division containing the defending champion. This year, with the champions coming out of the Central, I have to start on one coast or the other, and this year I'm opting for the west coast. Let's take a look at the NL West.

2014 MLB Preview: NL West

It's been a long, brutal winter. Spring officially began last Thursday, but it hasn't really seemed like it yet. We're (hopefully) past all that polar vortex subzero nonsense, though Sunday saw some lake effect snow in Chicago. It's hard to believe that on Sunday, Major League Baseball officially gets underway here in the States as opposed to that Australian pair of games this past weekend.

So like I did last year, I'm going to do a runthrough of all 30 MLB teams even though I've only kind of followed what's gone on during the offseason. I think I can do enough to at least reasonably guess at what will happen. Bear in mind though, this is a guy who picked the world champs to finish last in their division last year. I was wrong then, so take these picks for what you will.

Another fun side note: I totally threw out random records last season for my projections, and my dad put the numbers together only to find that I gave, on average, about a win too many to all the teams last year. I'm actually looking at numbers this time.

Since I want to do the division with the defending champ last, I'm starting in the opposite league on the opposite coast. As such, here's how I'm picking the NL West to shape up.

Fall Classic Preview

I'm cutting it about as close as I can get to previewing the World Series. Really, this has been about a good a year for the playoffs as there has ever been, with 5 of the 6 series going the distance so far. It's teams that have been in the Classic fairly recently, and two great teams that have absolutely earned their way to this point so far. Given that we're just minutes from the start of Game 1, I'm going to throw this into quick preview mode.

Starting Pitching
Tonight the Tigers are probably going to win, if for no other reason that one Justin Verlander taking the hill. But I think top to bottom of the playoff rotation, I think the Giants are a little better. That's not a knock and guys like Scherzer or Fister, but more so a credit to the Cain/Lincecum/Baumgarner/Zito quartet. Slight edge: Giants.

Bullpen
The Tigers had some troubles during this postseason with closing, but they seem like they've figured things out. Meanwhile the Giants have had Sergio Romo fill in nicely for Brian Wilson in the 9th. Could go either way. Edge: push. 

Offense
You have the Triple Crown winner in Miguel Cabrera being protected by Prince Fielder. On the other side... just sheer balance up and down the lineup with the presumed NL MVP in Posey, and a guy with fire coming out of his rectum in Marco Scutaro. This could be fun. Edge: push.

Intangibles
In 2006, I said the Tigers were going to beat the Cardinals based on their rest and home field. They don't have home field this time, but got a lot of rest from the Yankee sweep. Meanwhile the Giants have played against the wall all postseason long it seems. The Giants seem to have "Nobody Believes in Us!" on their side based on the MLBtv guys. Edge: Giants.

Final Prediction
This is going to be a fun series. The pitching on both sides is great, and both teams have really good offenses. I think it comes down to depth in the rotation. Giants in 7.