The division that represented the National League in the 2018 World Series, the NL West has a ton of firepower in it, even before the announced signing of Manny Machado with the San Diego Padres. Bringing an influx of talent into this division and to a team that is not named the Los Angeles Dodgers is a huge way to increase competition going into 2019.

While the Dodgers had yet another impressive season in 2018, they were exposed in certain areas in the playoffs, as both the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers were able to show what holes were ultimately exploited by the Boston Red Sox in last season’s World Series.

Here is how the NL West should shake out during the 2019 season.

San Francisco Giants — 5th

With manager Bruce Bochy announcing that 2019 will be his final season in the clubhouse before retiring, the Giants do not have the pieces to make his final run a swan song, so he may want to ask out early (if he was smart). Developing rookies and dealing with another rebuilding season should not be something that Bochy has to deal with, especially with the level of manager that Bochy is.

Outside of franchise cornerstones Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner, the Giants have few pieces they can truly say are cornerstones and untouchable – hell, even Bum was mentioned in frequent trade rumors in the offseason, so it is easy to see that new general manager Farhan Zaidi considers no one to truly be safe.

Bringing a former Dodgers executive to the Giants is a major coup for the team, and should help this team right the ship fast, but 2019 will still be bad for them.

Projected record: 69-93

Arizona Diamondbacks — 4th

Apart of one of the more stacked divisions in baseball, the Diamondbacks will fall victim to having tons of competition surrounding them, ultimately having a mildly disappointing season. After losing center fielder A.J. Pollock in free agency to the Dodgers, they now have one fewer high-performance guy that can be counted on in a clutch situation.

David Peralta, Ketel Marte and Steven Souza Jr. are the penciled-in starters for the outfield, a unit that is unlikely to elicit fear around the league. Losing Pollock seemed inevitable due to budgetary concerns, but remains a huge loss for this team.

Pitching-wise, Zack Greinke and Robbie Ray headline the rotation, which is the most solid unit of the club. Both Greinke and Ray were rumored to have been shopped during the off-season, but have remained with the team, at least to open the year. This team, while having certain important pieces in place, is not at that point of competing yet and took a step back this off-season. They will be sellers come the Trade Deadline.

Projected record: 75-87

Colorado Rockies — 3rd

After beating the Chicago Cubs in the National League Wild Card Game last season, the Rockies were immediately trounced by the upstart Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS and were seemingly out of the playoffs barely before they began. This team is talented, but lost a big piece over the off-season in the form of right-hander Adam Ottavino.

With the shutdown reliever joining the New York Yankees, manager Bud Black can now no longer call on Ottavino late in games and must rely on other arms to carry the weight. Ottavino was a huge part of the team’s success in 2018, but must be replaced.

The club added Daniel Murphy during the off-season, but may have to hide his fading defensive abilities at first base.

Nolan Arenado has re-upped for a historic contract to remain in the Mile High City, reportedly set to receive the highest average annual value of any position player in MLB history during his new eight-year contract.

The rotation is solid, as Kyle Freeland and German Marquez are solid arms to ride through the season. This team has the potential to compete for a Wild Card spot, but will need to grind it out in August to make it close.

Projected record: 80-82

San Diego Padres — 2nd

Before the Machado addition, this team was pegged for third, fighting with the Diamondbacks to not be second to last in the division. But with Machado now in the fold, all of the chips have been moved into the center of the table, thus opening the franchise’s window to compete.

While he is in on a 10-year deal, Machado will be looking to be on a competitive team from the get-go. Plugging Machado in at third-base immediately gives the Friars a defensive surplus in the infield, while giving them a strong addition to the batting lineup in what will probably be the two or three-hole.

Starting pitching is the biggest downfall for this team, as there currently is no ace-potential member on the staff. Acquiring one would most certainly mean digging into their developed farm system, but could be well worth it considering what kind of team they are striving to be as early as 2019. Outside of Machado, the likes of Eric Hosmer, Wil Myers and Franmil Reyes all will take on the lions share of offensive production, helping give Machado a cushion in the order.

This team will skyrocket to the top of the division if Machado becomes a good fit and will plummet if his character issues arise again. Relying on the first option coming true is what this projection is riding on.

Projected record: 83-79

Los Angeles Dodgers — 1st

Another trip to the top of the division is in the team’s sights, albeit not without some competition. Any of the teams projected to finish lower than the Dodgers can go on a run and make things interesting, but LA is built in a way that helps quell any issues of a run that could ruin playoff aspirations.

While losing Machado’s production that helped propel them to the World Series, they were able to ship out some high-priced pieces during the off-season to help with any mid-season additions they may choose to make.

As there are with all teams, there are holes in this Dodgers squad, as the bullpen and bench depth have taken hits. But as they have in most seasons of late, the Dodgers have proven to have the resources and capital to make those issues become positives at any point, and they should be a busy player at the Trade Deadline.

Projected record: 93-69