2011 MLB Season: Arizona Diamondbacks' 5 Factors for Winning the NL West

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Last year, the Arizona Diamondbacks lost 92 games and finished last in the division. Having finished April with an 11-15 record, another losing season and last place finish in the division looked to be in place again.

However, Kirk Gibson and his squad did not have losing as a part of their plan this year.

The month of May was the turning point for this team as they won 19 games and moved from last place to first.  

The D-Backs are currently second in the NL West, trailing by a half game to the San Francisco Giants, and look to continue their scorching roll in this 2011 season.

Luck has played its part for Arizona, but ultimately, the D-Backs are playing great, fundamental baseball.

There is no particular order for these five reasons. 

Bullpen

J.J. Putz has been a big reason in the D-Backs' bullpen turnaround.
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Last season, Arizona's bullpen was dismal, posting a 5.74 ERA and blowing 24 saves. 

Going into the offseason, many changes and new faces needed to be addressed.

Joe Paterson, David Hernandez and J.J. Putz have been the guys when it comes to the late innings of games, and all are new faces to this newly revamped bullpen.

Putz has been brilliant all season with 17 saves, second in the National League.

According to Steve Gilbert on MLB.com:

"Close games have really been a big difference," center fielder Chris Young said. "J.J. has come in in a lot of big situations, and he's been getting it done."

The bullpen is posting a 3.21 ERA so far this season and GM Kevin Towers must feel great about that.

Starting Pitchers

With only one full season under Kennedy's belt, he is already proving to be the ace of the staff.
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Recently, the Arizona starters have been posting quality starts left and right.

The three most impressive starters have to be Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson and Josh Collmenter. All three are young and proving that they can contend in the big leagues.

Add to that the recent outings of Joe Saunders, and the rotation has been rock solid.

Kennedy (6-2, 3.01) has been the most consistent starter, while Hudson (6-5, 4.22) struggled early on but has managed to turn it around as of late.

I expect the pitching staff to keep it up, especially Kennedy and Hudson. Both seem to have the number one stuff that you look for in a starter, and potentially these two could become like the Webb-Haren duo we used to once have.

Timely Hitting

Not the greatest overall hitting team, but when needed they can score runs at will.
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When you look statistically at the Arizona offense, the only thing that really jumps out at you is the amount of home runs they are hitting.

As of late, they have started to crack the top ten in average, runs and RBIs, but overall, the timeliness of their hitting has been their strength.

A lot of this is due in large part to Ryan Roberts and Willie Bloomquist.

Roberts was only on the roster due to Geoff Blum sustaining an injury, and Bloomquist has been having a terrific season playing the utility role.

Justin Upton is also starting to bring his average up and now has two walkoffs this season.

Kelly Johnson finally shook off his slump and is really mashing the ball. He probably won't post the career numbers of last season, but it's nice to see him back in a groove.

There is something about this team. No real "star" players (Upton could be argued), but the team unity and coaching staff really have these ballplayers playing well.

Ryan Roberts

The "Tatman" is off to career season.
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After briefly mentioning Ryan Roberts in the last slide, I wanted to go a little more in-depth with him.

Now typically, one man cannot change a team, but Roberts sure seems to be. His hustle and all-out determination seem to be leaking on to his teammates.

For the season, Roberts has a .268 batting average, eight home runs and 24 RBI. His most impressive stat has to be his on base percentage of .370.

Roberts is looking to be the everyday starter at third base, and is starting to get more and more starts as the weeks go by.

Melvin Mora was penciled in as the starter for Opening Day, but how can you not play the "Tatman" whenever possible.

I don't see Roberts slowing down at all, in fact, I think his average will start to blossom. This guy plays with so much heart that failure is not an option.

Division Struggles and Lucky Breaks

Buster Posey was the glue to San Francisco's lineup, and his injury could prove most helpful to NL West teams.
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San Francisco had the Buster Posey injury.

Colorado has no pitching and is playing terrible. Where are you, Ubaldo Jimenez?

Los Angeles has been plagued with the injury bug.

San Diego is just not quite there yet, and lost their best player, Adrian Gonzalez, to the Red Sox.

So as you can see, Arizona is catching some huge breaks. But it's baseball, there is always some luck incorporated.

This division is definitely up for grabs, but the Diamondbacks have the best shot and the best overall team.

Arizona Diamondbacks' baseball is back and here to stay!

Follow James Sargent on Twitter @Sargentsorders