Camila Sosa
With Opening Day just one week away, the National League West division will be one of the most entertaining groups to watch during the 2022 MLB campaign. With the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants leading the way as favorites to win the division pennant, the San Diego Padres hoping to surprise them both, and the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks happy just to participate, we list reasons for every fan of their team to be eager for the season to begin.
We present a reason for every National League West Division team to be happy to see their team this year in the big leagues.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Zac Gallen
For the division’s 2021 runners-up, any improvement in their record will be a reason to rejoice and to achieve this season won’t be that difficult at all – or at least so we hope -, but the most exciting thing for fans of the Arizona franchise should be the opportunity to have a full, injury-free season for their ace Zac Gallen, who due to his physical condition had the worst season so far in his career: 4-10, 4.30 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 139 strikeouts and 58 runs allowed in 121.1 innings.
Having posted a 2.78 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 178 strikeouts in 152 innings during his 2019 and 2020 seasons, there is hope to see the 26-year-old pitcher in his zone, and accompanied by the newly renewed Ketel Marte, the Diamondbacks are in an almost impossible position not to improve.
Colorado Rockies: The Arrival of Kris Bryant
The arrival of Jose Iglesias and Randal Grichuk could also be added, but all the other arrivals are diminished when we remember that star third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant will wear Rockies colors in 2022. While the 30-year-old veteran hasn’t reached his MVP levels again like he did in 2016, he remains to be one of the most consistent bats in all of the majors, and now having half of his games at Coors Field, his performance could skyrocket very drastically in the current season.
Last year while splitting time with the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants, he had a .265/.353/.481 line with 25 homers, 73 RBIs, 86 runs scored, 32 doubles and 10 stolen bases in 12 attempts through 144 games played. As Colorado’s leadoff hitter, we will surely see a new version of Kris Bryant who is here to stay.
Los Angeles Dodgers: The Addition of Freddie Freeman
The Dodgers have arguably been the most consistent and the most successful team within the regular season over the past five years without any competition, always having both their starting rotation and batting lineup among the top five in the league year after year, and 2022 will be no exception, with the presence of the 2020 MVP and reigning MLB champion, Freddie Freeman.
The 31-year-old starter posted a classic season for what has been his performance in the majors: .300/.393/.503 with 31 homers, 25 doubles, 83 RBIs, 120 runs scored (a National League high) and eight stolen bases in 159 games with the Braves in 2021. This kind of production in a Los Angeles lineup that also features Trea Turner, Mookie Betts and more big-name players seems impossible to beat.
San Diego Padres: The Return of Mike Clevinger
2020 was the last year when Mike Clevinger dropped an MLB-level pitching gig, having to go under the knife and undergo Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for the rest of that season and all of 2021, but now in 2022 he’s more than ready to remind the Padres why they acquired him from the Cleveland Guardians two years ago.
Since 2018 the right-hander has a 29-14 record with a 2.91 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 3.24 FIP and 416 strikeouts in 367.2 episodes pitched, putting him among the best starters over that span in the majors. The 31-year-old veteran will form a rotation full of talent along with Yu Darvish, Joe Musgrove, Blake Snell and other interesting names that will fight for a spot in the organization. All this will make it a little easier to endure the injury to the team’s star player, Fernando Tatis Jr.
San Francisco Giants: The Rise of Logan Webb
Although the 25-year-old’s 2021 campaign was the best of his career so far (11-3 mark, 3.03 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 158 strikeouts in 148.1 innings), his postseason performance left everyone even more excited about the potential of Logan Webb, limiting his opponents to just one run in 14.2 innings of action with a WHIP of 0.68 and 17 strikeouts, numbers that remind any Giants fan of a familiar and important name in the team’s modern history: Madison Bumgarner.
We’re not saying Webb is the next ace to win three championships with San Francisco, but it’s something they would need now more than ever as they are starting a new cycle, with manager Gabe Kapler and without star catcher Buster Posey. The team doesn’t want to stop at just having 107 wins in 2021, they are going for it all this season and the additions of Carlos Rodon, Matthew Boyd and Joc Pederson indicate that.
