Division foe's potential rotation woes could create opportunity for SF Giants in NL West

The SF Giants finished comfortably behind the San Diego Padres in the NL West. However, they have an opportunity to overtake the division foes in the NL West standings amid potential rotation woes in San Diego.

Division foe's potential rotation woes could create opportunity for SF Giants in NL West

At 81 wins, the Giants finished one game ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks and nine games behind the Padres in the NL West. That is a lot of ground to cover in one offseason.

In an interview with John Gambadoro and Dave Burns of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick has already conveyed the team's plans to take a step back from their $212.8 million luxury tax payroll in 2025. In recent offseasons, they had been one of the more aggressive teams in free agency, adding Eduardo Rodríguez, Corbin Burnes, and Jordan Montgomery.

Those moves have not paid dividends. In fairness to Burnes, he was throwing the ball well in the first season of his six-year pact, but finished the season on the injured list after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

On the other hand, the Padres look like they will have another fascinating offseason. Their ownership is exploring a potential sale. That usually limits what a front office can do, especially in free agency.

This is not new to the Padres. In recent offseasons, they have curbed spending on free agents. This has led to them watching pitchers like Blake Snell, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and now Dylan Cease depart in free agency. Michael King and Robert Suarez look to be the next in line to land elsewhere.

While the Padres have watched a lot of talent leave, the front office has found creative ways to bolster the pitching staff. This has led to trades for Cease and King, along with a creative signing for Nick Pivetta.

Despite these losses, the Padres have found ways to put together competitive pitching staffs. How much longer can they continue this trend? As currently constructed, Pivetta will lead the rotation, with Joe Musgrove expected to return to full strength following Tommy John surgery. Yu Darvish underwent elbow surgery and is expected to miss all of next season.

Randy Vásquez and Stephen Kolek could round out the rotation. On paper, it is hard to envision that being a competitive rotation.

To bolster that unit, the Padres will need to make shrewd additions in free agency. The trade channel might be closing, as they have shipped much of their prospect capital away in recent seasons.

On the offensive side, the Padres still have the star talent in Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manyy Machado. That is a good enough core to build around with smaller moves, but the pitching leaves a lot to be desired. It helps that San Diego has one of the best pitching coaches in Ruben Niebla, but this might be his biggest challenge yet.