MLB Power Rankings: NL West Starting Rotations

The NL West is home to the reigning World Series champions, the San Francisco Giants. Now pitching was a huge contributor to snagging the bling-bling in October, and it didn't hurt that their bats got hot at the right time. 

But we are on to a new year. We are now in the eighth week of the 2011 baseball season, two months in and we are starting to see who may be some of the major teams positioning themselves to make a run. The NL West, as projected by many, are led by the Giants, with a surprising No. 2 in the Arizona Diamondbacks. 

The Giants are building after their season with solid pitching all through their rotation and bullpen. Today we shall rank the pitching rotations for the NL West. 

5. San Diego Padres

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ATLANTA - MAY 31: Mat Latos #38 of the San Diego Padres pitches against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on May 31, 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)

Currently sitting at the bottom of the barrel, the San Diego Padres are struggling and currently 7.5 games back of the NL West leaders San Francisco.

Their ace, Mat Latos is sitting on a 4-6 record with a 3.94 ERA and 60 strikeouts on the year. The good news for Latos is he has won his last three starts. However, Latos is going to have throw some gems this summer if he is going to help lead the Padres toward the top of the NL West ladder. 

The rest of the rotation has not done that much either, Tim Stauffer is 2-4, Clayton Richard is 2-7, Aaron Harang is at a respectable 6-2, but then Dustin Moseley cleans out the rotation with a 2-7 mark. If the Padres want to do anything this year, then they are going to need their pitching staff to step up, because Aaron Harang is not going to lead the Padres to the promise land with a 3.77 ERA.

To Harang's credit he has a 6-2 record with nine quality starts thus far into the season. Now I understand the Padres hitting is not really helping the cause, but Latos needs more wins to get the ball rolling for the Friars. 

4. Colorado Rockies

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SAN DIEGO, CA - JUNE 7: Ubaldo Jimenez #38 of the Colorado Rockies looks up at the scoreboard after giving up a run in the fifthinning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on June 7, 2011 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Denis

What a difference a year makes.

This time last year Ubaldo Jimenez sported a win-loss record of 11-1 and an ERA under 1.70. His numbers so far: a 1-6 record with a 4.73 ERA. Ouch. To the pitching ace's credit, the bats in the Mile High City have gone ice cold and one of their main pitchers, Jorge De La Rosa, has been lost for the next 60 days of the season, at least.

Jimenez last year was the reason the Rockies were getting the recognition they were getting, aside from Carlos Gonzalez going crazy and making a run for a possible MVP. The pitching staff has seemed to follow suit after Ubaldo. At one point, the Rockies had the second best record in the majors, but pitching and a lack of hitting have spun them into a tizzy.

Jhoulys Chacin and Jason Hammel are trying to do the best they can, but 3.19 and 3.66 ERAs, respectively, are simply not getting it done for a team who cannot find their swing. Manager JIm Tracy is going to have to light a fire under these boys if they want to get back in contention for the NL West title race.

It will all start with their main man Ubaldo, pending how he finishes the rest of the season, which will be a true testament to where the Rockies place.  

3. Arizona Diamondbacks

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PHOENIX - MAY 20: Ian Kennedy #31 of the Arizona Diamondbacks delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins at Chase Field on May 20, 2011 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)

Here come the red hot Diamondbacks, led by their ace, Ian Kennedy. Kennedy is leading the D'backs with a 6-2 mark and a 3.01 ERA. However, the biggest story to date has been the No. 4 man in the rotation, Josh Collmenter. 

In five starts, Collmenter has a 3-1 record while posting the second best ERA in the majors (minimum of three starts), an astounding 1.23. Joe Saunders has had a tough early part of the season with a 3-5 record, but winning his last three starts has been the confidence he may have needed to get out of his slump.

Daniel Hudson has 3.98 ERA and a 6-5 record, not the best, but considering the late-inning pitching help he has received (or in this case has not received) then you would see he is pitching quite well. He also has won his last three decisions.

The reason this rotation is at the middle of the pack, even though they are currently second in the division, is due to the fact that they were so bad early on. However, I am not saying they are the real deal, I just want to see them a few more weeks and figure out if they can stay consistent going into the All-Star break. 

2. Los Angeles Dodgers

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CINCINNATI, OH - JUNE 4: Clayton Kershaw #22 of the Los Angeles Dodgers gets set to pitch against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on June 4, 2011 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Dodgers won 11-8 in eleven innings. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Imag

Now I know what you are thinking, how is it that the Dodgers who are only one game better than the bottom of the barrel Padres, rank as the second best pitching staff in the NL West.

To answer you in short. Clayton Kershaw. This kid is the real deal, and he is not even close to his prime potential. He has a 6-3 record, winning his last four decisions, and has 102 strikeouts. (That is best on the bigs.)

Chad Billingsley, after a horrid start to the year, has also won his last three decisions. He will need to work on his control and getting behind in the count, but at 26 years old, he will also be a monster for the Dodgers.

Hiroki Kuroda, does not have a good record or ERA, but in his last three starts (all losses), the Dodgers have scored two runs, total. Kuroda has not been pitching bad, he has just been unlucky when the Dodger bats turn to ice. 

With all the hoopla and front office concerns, the Dodgers are going to be okay and are in the process of turning their season around. They have a pitching rotation that allows them to turn it around, thus the reasoning for them as the second best rotation. 

1. San Francisco Giants

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JUNE 06: Tim Lincecum #55 of the San Francisco Giants pitches against the Washington Nationals during an MLB game at AT&T Park on June 6, 2011 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Big Time Timmy Jim. He is 3-1 in his last four outings and leads the Giants rotation with a 2.85 ERA and 93 strikeouts. However, the big arm on the staff so far this season is Ryan Vogelsong who has a 4-1 record with a 1.68 ERA.

The other starting pitchers, Matt Cain, Jonathon Sanchez and Madison Bumgarner, all have been pitching really well, but they have not gotten a lot of hep in decisions due to their relief pitchers late in the game and in part to the bats.

For example, in the last four starts for Matt Cain he is 2-2, but in the two losses the Giants scored all of one run in both of those decisions. Regardless of how many Cain might have given up, it would not matter if he doesn't get run support. Bumgarner is 2-4 in the six games where he has gotten the decision. In those four games he lost, he has pitched solid baseball, giving up a grand total of five earned runs in four games.

You get the picture.

The Giants have by far the best pitching staff in the NL West, and once the bats wake up, they will go on a tear. They currently lead the NL West by 1.5 games over the D'backs, and they will continue to ride the arms of their pitchers all the way to the World Series once more.  

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