NL West 2021 Season Preview

Story posted March 19, 2021 in CommRadio, Sports by Logan Bourandas

The story of this division begins and ends with two teams. The Dodgers and the Padres both took tremendous leaps this offseason with the goal of winning the World Series.

For the Dodgers, they are looking to win their second straight World Series title. Reigning Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer was the big-ticket item for the team this offseason. The California native joined the Dodgers on a three-year, $102 million dollar contract, spurning the New York Mets in the process.

Bauer wasn’t the only addition to the pitching staff as Corey Knebel comes over on a one year contract from the Brewers, and Cy Young winner David Price is set to return after opting out last season. The Dodgers also managed to re-sign key members of their offense including Justin Turner proving they are more than capable of another World Series run.

Competing with them will most likely be the San Diego Padres. The Padres only got better after losing to the Dodgers in the NLDS last season. They made major moves to beef up their rotation by trading for former Cy Young winner Blake Snell, Cy Young runner-up Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove. The three pair alongside Chris Paddack and Dinelson Lamet to form one of the best rotations in the MLB.

The Padres also signed one of the top players from the KBO bringing over Ha-Seong Kim from overseas on a four-year, $28 million contract. The second baseman hit .300 or better in his last two seasons in the KBO and won Gold Gloves at the position.

He’ll form an instant double play combo with Fernando Tatis Jr. who was re-signed this offseason to a historic contract. The young shortstop was given a 14-year, $340 million contract despite being just 22 years old. The Padres have become one of the more exciting teams in the MLB and turned the NL West into a two-team race.

The Diamondbacks chose to stay where they are this offseason despite finishing in last place last season. The Diamondbacks made moves last offseason in an attempt to win now with Madison Bumgarner and Starling Marte joining the team. Neither move has played as expected and now Arizona could be looking to rebuild.

The Giants are in a similar spot as the Diamondbacks. The Giants made a few moves this offseason with the major ones being Tommy La Stella and Jake McGee. Franchise icon Buster Posey is also expected to return to the team after he opted out of the 2020 season.

The Rockies, however, chose to blow things up. They made one of the biggest trades of the offseason sending star Nolan Arenado to the Cardinals for not much in return. The move of a franchise star looks to be the start of a rebuild in Colorado. Shortstop Trevor Story has since been in rumors regarding a trade of his own. While no Story trade has happened yet, that could be the biggest thing to look out for during the first half of the season.


Logan Bourandas is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email lxb5412@psu.edu.