SF Giants: 3 reasons they will win the National League West

The SF Giants have gotten off to a great start this season. They have the best record in all of MLB and are on top of a competitive NL West. There is still a long way to go for the rest of the season, but the Giants appear to be proving that they are more than a mere fluke.

In the beginning of the season, many believed that the NL West would be a two-horse race between the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Here are three reasons the SF Giants will win the NL West.

This was not without good reason as the Dodgers are the defending World Series champions in a pandemic-shortened 2020 and the Padres are extremely talented and played an intense playoff series against the Dodgers last year.

Many assumed, myself included, that the Giants would be a respectable third-place team for most of the year, never truly challenging the Dodgers or Padres for NL West supremacy.

Thus far, the team has exceeded all expectations. While they could still regress as the season goes on due to a number of factors, their recent play provides a great opportunity to be optimistic about the team’s future.

The great start by much of the starting rotation, the resurgence of players like Brandon Crawford and Buster Posey, and the key contributions from players who many figured would not have a large impact on the team have all been instrumental in the great start to the season.

It remains to be seen whether these trends will hold, but the following slides will examine three reasons why we should buy into the fact that the SF Giants can legitimately win the National League West for the first time since 2012.

SF Giants: 3 reasons they will win the National League West

Reason #1: The rotation will stay strong

The starting rotation was one of the biggest question marks for the Giants coming into this season. We figured that Kevin Gausman would be similar to the pitcher he was last season, but beyond that there was much uncertainty.

Thus far, that uncertainty has turned into optimism. Alex Wood, despite some rough outings as of late, has shown shades of the pitcher he was in 2017 when he earned a spot in the All-Star Game. Anthony DeSclafani has been similarly strong, posting a 3.09 ERA thus far.

Additionally, Gausman has been even better than he was last year, winning the honor of National League Pitcher of the Month for the month of May. Johnny Cueto and Logan Webb have both dealt with injuries thus far, but they have been reliable when healthy.

However, it is important to note that the Giants do have a little bit of depth when it comes to the rotation if injuries or underperformance become a bigger issue. Aaron Sanchez was serviceable before he had to go on the IL and Sammy Long was superb in his debut outing on Wednesday against the Rangers. Plus, we know Conner Menez can be a starter and he has looked very solid in relief this season.

We know how huge the starting rotation was in all three of the SF Giants World Series wins, but we also know that you do not need five aces to win a division. The Giants won the division in 2012 with a struggling Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain in his prime, Madison Bumgarner approaching his prime, a resurgent Ryan Vogelsong, and a well-past-his-prime Barry Zito.

The rotation still has plenty of time to regress this season, but there is not anything we have seen thus far to suggest that it will completely implode. If all their starters stay right around their current level, they are going to be in a good position in September.

SF Giants: 3 reasons they will win the National League West

Reason #2: Buster Posey and Brandon Crawford

One of the most surprising things this season has been the resurgence of Buster Posey and Brandon Crawford. Posey has dealt with injuries in recent years which has led to underperformance while Crawford simply has underperformed with the bat.

However, they are both looking like they are in their prime at this point in the season and there is a good chance that both of them will earn All-Star nods. The big question remains though: can they keep this up?

With Buster Posey, the answer is more likely to be yes. If the SF Giants stay committed to the careful approach they have taken with Buster this season by giving him plenty of days off, there is a good chance that he will stay rested and healthy and will continue to produce.

With Crawford, the story may be a little different. The Giants really need Crawford to play just about every day for the team. Mauricio Dubón is a more than capable shortstop when Crawford needs a day off, but the value Crawford brings defensively and offensively is just too valuable.

That’s not to say that Crawford will not continue to have a great season. Perhaps the Giants will be a little more careful with him in the second half of the year to ensure that he is as healthy as possible for what we all hope is a fruitful postseason run in the last few months of the season.

If the Giants are to win the NL West, it will likely be because Posey and Crawford continue to produce at a high level and channel their 2015 selves.