Grading each NL West team's 2022 season

The National League West featured a 111-win Dodgers club that managed a ludicrous +334 run differential. With the Giants coming off a surprise 107-win performance in 2021, the club seemed destined for another run to the postseason. But San Francisco flopped and came nowhere close to the playoffs. Instead, the Padres earned the other division playoff spot. 

Here is a synopsis and grade for every NL West team:

Los Angeles Dodgers (1st | 111-51) Grade: A

When it comes to regular-season play, the Dodgers don't seem to have losing in their vocabulary. Their problems reside in the postseason, where aside from a World Series win in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, they have failed to show up recently.

This year's Dodgers finished at or near the top of the National League in nearly every offensive and pitching category, including a league-best 2.80 ERA. The Dodgers seem to always have a reliable offense. In 2022, the pitching was stellar. 

Led by one of the most lethal starting pitching trios in recent memory in lefthanders Julio Urias (17-7, 2.16 ERA) and Clayton Kershaw (12-3, 2.28) and righty Tony Gonsolin (16-1, 2.14 ERA), the Dodgers' staff gave opponents fits.

MORE: AL: East | West | Central | NL: East | West | Central

San Diego Padres (2nd | 89-73) Grade: B+

While the Padres win-loss record was not sexy, the club got outstanding performances from third baseman Manny Machado (.298 BA, 32 HR) and RHPs Yu Darvish (16-8, 3.10 ERA) and Joe Musgrove (10-7, 2.93 ERA).

At the trade deadline, the Padres not only brought Juan Soto and Josh Bell aboard from the Nationals, but also utilityman Brandon Drury from the Reds and Josh Hader from the Brewers. San Diego won two of the three deals (Hader being the loss).

Soto, 24, wasn't the flashy hitter he was in D.C. with the Padres, but he managed to be worth just under 2.0 WAR per Baseball-Reference and had more walks (44) than strikeouts (34). He was statistically 30% better than league-average per OPS+.

San Francisco Giants (3rd | 81-81) Grade: D+

No MLB team disapointed more than the Giants. Statistically, they were at or just below league average in home runs, batting average, hits and stolen bases. Their team ERA was 3.85, seventh in the league, but there is little else to be excited about from this performance.

To make matters even worse for the Giants, ace Carlos Rodón (14-8, 2.88 ERA) elected to opt out of his contract after a strong season in the Bay. He will test free agency and is all but guaranteed to move on, leaving a huge hole in next year's starting rotation.

Arizona Diamondbacks (4th | 74-88) Grade: D

The Diamondbacks got encouraging performances from unexpected places. First baseman Christian Walker (5.1 bWAR, 36 HR) and rookie outfielder Jake McCarthy (2.4 bWAR, 8 HR) took huge developmental steps and look to be building blocks.

RHP Zac Gallen (12-4, 2.54 ERA) had a breakout season of his own, and LHP Joe Mantiply (2-5, 2.85 ERA) seemingly came out of nowhere to earn his first All-Star Game selection.

Outfield prospects Alek Thomas and Corbin Carroll each saw their first major league action, but they were not enough to propel this team anywhere close to contention. The Diamondbacks are still a few years from being a serious threat in the division.

Colorado Rockies (5th | 68-94) Grade: F

No team is more deserving of an "F" for 2022 than the Rockies. Not only did they make what could end up being the worst free-agent signing in recent memory in Kris Bryant, but their offense flopped.

The "Coors Effect" on players has often been discussed in baseball circles. This essentially is an improvement in offensive stats thanks to the higher altitude in Colorado, where balls tend to fly farther than elsewhere. 

Even with the Coors Effect, the Rockies had just one player who was statistically above average: 1B  C.J. Cron (2.1 bWAR, 29 HR), who finished with a 107 OPS+, meaning he was 7% above league average.