There is no question the Los Angeles Dodgers are the team to beat in the 2025 MLB season. They won the World Series six months ago and added lots of players, including Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki, to an already-loaded roster.
However, you never know what will happen in any given season. While it’s safe to say the Dodgers could repeat, the National League is full of talent, even with teams such as the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres in the same division as LA.
Diamondbacks Could Give Dodgers a Run For Their Money
ESPN recently predicted six teams that can take down the mighty Dodgers in 2025, and two of them are from the National League West. Those two teams are the Arizona Diamondbacks and the San Diego Padres.
But, the Diamondbacks have a lot of pieces that could give the Dodgers a hard time, and here’s some of what Jeff Passan said about the Diamondbacks.
“Arizona’s trade for A.J. Puk at the deadline last year and the emergence of Justin Martinez and his high-octane fastball turned a late-inning liability into a strength, and while Ketel Marte might struggle to replicate last year — no shame considering he finished third in MVP voting — a Carroll comeback and a full year of Gabriel Moreno would go a long way.”
“The Diamondbacks are Dodgers Lite: good in all the necessary areas and well positioned to pull 2022 all over again, just a tick behind the team everyone is chasing,” Passan added.
Fellow ESPN Expert Likes Arizona’s Rotation over LA’s
Moreover, ESPN Alden Gonzalez revealed he has more confidence in the Diamondbacks rotation than that of the Dodgers.
“I’d actually take the D-backs’ rotation over that of the Dodgers. You read that right. The Dodgers’ group has a higher ceiling, but it’s also more volatile. At this point, I have more confidence in the quintet of Corbin Burnes, Zac Gallen, Eduardo Rodriguez, Merrill Kelly, and Brandon Pfaadt, with the thought that Jordan Montgomery can’t possibly be worse than he was last season.”
That’s quite the hill to stand on, especially with the Dodgers rotation of Sasaki, Clayton Kershaw, Snell, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, among others.
Still, the Diamondbacks knocked off the Dodgers in 2023 as Arizona went to the World Series.
The question will be, can they do it again? Only time will tell, but it could be. We have a fascinating battle between the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, and Padres in the NL West.
