5 pressing questions in NL West

September 6th, 2018

There's no need to manufacture drama or reasons to watch the National League West this year. It's been -- from top to bottom -- arguably baseball's most consistently watchable division over the past five months.
It may be down to a three-team race with 3 1/2 weeks remaining (though don't tell the Giants that), but there are things to keep an eye on with all five clubs. Here is one question to be answered down the stretch for each team.
D-backs
The question: What do they do in the late innings?
The D-backs thought they had one of baseball's best late-inning duos in Brad Boxberger and . In the first half, they may have been right. Lately, that's not so clear.
Both pitchers have had strange and similar second halves. Both have seen their strikeout rates go up some, their walk rates go up a bit and their home run rates stay more or less steady. They've both experienced massive jumps in BABIP, which should be encouraging, but patience is rarely a trait shown with late-inning relievers on contending teams.
If both get sorted out, as the numbers suggest they should, Arizona's late relief is strong. If not, Torey Lovullo will have to figure out some alternative options quickly.

Dodgers
The question: Whither ?
The problem is that it's not entirely clear what exactly the right question even is regarding Jansen. Is his health the primary concern? Or is that in the past? And if that's the case, we still haven't entirely established how effective he'll be.
• Doctor: Jansen should skip road trip to Denver
The Dodgers' lineup is deep and dangerous from both the left and right sides. Their rotation has front-line talent and plenty of depth. And in the middle innings, they have more quality options than you might think. But then there's the ninth, which should be the most cut-and-dried aspect of the whole club.
Until and unless Jansen turns in a string of outings that show that he's both healthy and effective, the Dodgers will have to wonder.

Giants
The question: Can the kids play?
At their peak earlier this decade, the Giants masterfully combined the ability to stay competitive with the ability to cycle in talented young players. The past couple of years, neither of those has gone quite so well.
As this season approaches a close, they'll give a long look to two of their better prospects, outfielders Chris Shaw and . Shaw, the Giants' No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline, has flashed power throughout the Minors and may have more upside, but he also comes with the risk of being strikeout-prone. Slater, meanwhile, has the better bat-to-ball and on-base skills, and he has held his own at the big league level for a while now.
The club must find out as much as it can as to whether these two promising youngsters can be contributors to a competitive 2019 team.

Padres
The question: What do they do with ?
Mejia, baseball's top catching prospect, makes his first Padres start on Thursday. He's known for his bat, while the Padres already have one of the game's most talented young defensive catchers, , to compete for playing time.
So San Diego must start figuring out where Mejia will play. He could well split time at catcher with Hedges or even emerge as the long- (and possibly short-) term starter, but he's also played third base and outfield in the Minors. If the bat plays, or if Hedges forces the issue, Mejia could see much of his time at other positions. We'll start getting some idea soon.

Rockies
The question: What will they get from ?
As recently as a few weeks ago, Arenado may have been the leading candidate for the NL MVP Award. He could still take the trophy, but a recent slump can't be helping his chances. Arenado has two home runs since Aug. 6, a stretch over which he's slugging .385. He's driven in 12 runs in that span and scored 14, so it's not like he isn't contributing, but he's this team's most important player.
That's in large part because this Rockies team is not the offensive juggernaut of some past Colorado teams, and it needs Arenado playing like an MVP. A right shoulder problem cost him a little time early last month, and though Arenado has said the discomfort does not affect his swing, it's hard not to wonder a little bit.