MLB Midseason Report: NL West

NL West Standings 7/5/08
1. Arizona Diamondbacks 43-44
2. Los Angeles Dodgers 42-44
3. San Francisco Giants 38-49
4. Colorado Rockies 36-51
5. San Diego Padres 34-53

The NL West was expected to be the National Leagues top division, when in fact it is actually the worst. No teams over .500 at this point, but expect three teams in this division to begin to surge in the 2nd half. The Diamondbacks had the leagues best record for about a month to begin the season, but have been in an absolute free-fall ever since. The D-backs are extremely young and inconsistency is very common with young teams. Arizona will be in contention for this division at the end of the season. The Dodgers always have the talent, but always seem to come up short. They needed a leader, and now they have one in skipper Joe Torre. LA has had injury issues, but have remained right there in the NL West. This team will be in contention late as well. The Rockies have b! een abysmal following their World Series appearance last season, but lately have gotten a lot better with the return of Troy Tulowitski and Matt Holliday. The Rockies will make a surge at the playoffs, but I believe will fall just short. The SF Giants have surprised many this season, but are still a bad team. Tim Lincecum could win Cy Young, but besides that they are too young to make a run. The San Diego Padres have been a huge disappointment and look to be this year's cellar dwellers. Here is how the standings will look at the end of the season:

1. Los Angeles Dodgers- NL West Champions
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. Colorado Rockies
4. San Francisco Giants
5. San Diego Padres