SF Giants still looking up in crowded NL West despite stellar start to season

The SF Giants are off to a great start to the 2025 MLB season. They are 5-1 in their first six games and have played very sound baseball for the most part. However, they are still looking up in a crowded National League West division.

It has been fun to watch the Giants this first week of the season. They have made their impressive play in spring training look less like a fluke and more like foreshadowing. The team is playing largely mistake-free baseball and the pitching staff has been great while their offense is doing just enough, particularly in clutch situations, to get them victories.

Despite this, they are still third in the division.

SF Giants still looking up in crowded NL West despite hot start to season

The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres have both yet to lose a game. The Dodgers are 8-0 and are seemingly continuing their dominance coming off a World Series victory which is to be expected for a team with that kind of payroll.

San Diego, sitting at 7-0, has looked strong as well despite a contentious ownership battle in the offseason which made some wonder whether the team would take a step back in 2025. They still have an incredibly talented roster so it should come as no surprise that they look strong again.

The Giants are currently in third place in the division at 5-1 and not far behind them are the Arizona Diamondbacks at 4-2. Arizona had a strong offseason so they are a team to be reckoned with as well.

Now, is it too early to be doing intense standings-watching a week into the season? Yes. But it is a reminder that the Giants are going to have some really stiff competition this year if they are going to snag a spot in the playoffs.

While it is fine for fans to obsess over the standings, the Giants would be well served to keep their heads down and just keep adhering to the fundamentals that have been preached since the beginning of camp.

The MLB season is long. Every team is going to have its good and bad stretches, so the Giants should not get too caught up in what their NL West rivals are doing right now. They should take a lot of pride in the way they have played thus far and should look to build upon it as they try to contend in a crowded and strong division.