NL West Poised to Be the Most Competitive in 2017?

Heading into 2016, the AL East division got all of the attention as all five teams went into the year with a legitimate shot at winning the division. By the time the regular season concluded, the Red Sox ended up winning the entire thing, while the Blue Jays and Orioles both won Wild Card spots.

Looking towards this coming season, the AL East is set up to be an interesting race once again, but is likely not going to be as competitive as the NL West, which consists of four teams that can easily contend for the division and one team that could be an upset all year long.

First of all, you have the Los Angeles Dodgers, a relentless team that overcame many hurdles last year especially in the injury department. Los Angeles is poised to have another great season under the guidance of their knowledgeable manager, Dave Roberts, and his entire coaching staff. In addition, the Dodgers brought back their household closer, Kenly Jansen, this winter in free agency, retained Justin Turner over at third base, and have a big guy named, Clayton Kershaw, headlining their rotation in addition to Kenta Maeda, Rich Hill, and the up and coming, Julio Urias. Taking them down will be no easy task given how deep and talented their farm system is.

Next, are the San Francisco Giants, who never give up until the very end and have an incredible track record of postseason success especially in the past 7 years. Last season, the Giants biggest hurdle was the fact that they couldn't find someone who could shut the door at the back end of their bullpen, but that problem has been resolved altogether as the team inked former Nationals closer, Mark Melancon, to a three-year deal earlier this winter. Besides Melancon, the team is under the guidance of a great manager, possesses a solid starting rotation, and plays in easily one of the best sports towns and ballparks in all of baseball. Good luck trying to sink that ship and spoiling the magic in the city by the bay.

After the Dodgers and Giants come the Colorado Rockies, a team that has improved over what assets they held last season. Even in 2016, the Rockies surprised many and did very well given how young their starting rotation was and the challenge of playing at Coors Field. However, the Rockies young starting rotation now have another year of MLB experience under their belt, a deep bullpen along with a core of position players that is now complimented by the addition of, Ian Desmond, over at first base. Colorado has the pieces now to make a run for the division and if needed, could always make a trade come July. Don't write off the Rockies yet especially since they have a new manager who knows how to win.

After leaving the Centennial State, head down to Arizona where you will find the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks had an astonishing amount of bad luck last season and will look to rebound in 2017 with nearly the same team in tack, but with an entirely new front office staff. General Manager, Mike Hazen, and the rest of the front office have stuck to their plan all of this winter by making small, low cost additions in hopes that they impact the team in some way during the upcoming season. Beyond that, Arizona is now under the leadership of Torey Lovullo, has a nice offensive core headlined by the return of AJ Pollock and America's First Baseman, Paul Goldschmidt, and possess a starting rotation that is not only talented but deep. Trying to take down the Snakes will be difficult especially if everything that was suppose to happen last year ends up happening in 2017.

Finally, let's head back to the west cost where the San Diego Padres are now the king of the crop in The Plymouth of the West and look to take on the role of being an upset in the NL West. While the Padres don't look to be a serious contender, they certainly can make up some ground in the division if another team struggles especially since there are so many prospects on the team. Add to that the fact that San Diego now has it's cornerstone player, Wil Myers, along with plenty of talent in it's farm system and you can see why San Diego will be a relevant team in the NL West in the near future. Even though the 2017 season hasn't begun yet, the Friars look to make things interesting and add to the competitiveness of the NL West even more.

In the end, trying to pick a winner for the NL West is an impossible task at the moment, but one thing is for certain: every team in the division has an important role in 2017 and anyone could take the cake depending on how the other teams perform.