NL West report: Offense hard to come by for Dodgers pursuers
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 05: Rafael Devers #16 of the San Francisco Giants slams his helmet to the ground after striking out against the New York Mets in the bottom of the first inning at Oracle Park on April 05, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) | Getty Images While the Dodgers have won seven of their first nine games to sit atop the National League West, the rest of the division is off to a tough start to 2026, with none of the other four teams having a winning record.
The Arizona Diamondbacks are in second place after the first three series of the year at a break-even 5-5, which is more impressive considering they’ve won five out of seven since getting swept by the Dodgers in the opening weekend at Dodger Stadium . Los Angeles has outscored its opponents by 20 runs through nine games this season, while every other team in the division has a negative run differential. The San Francisco Giants have the worst run differential in the majors, having been outscored by 25 runs through 10 games and scoring a league-worst 2.
6 runs per contest. Arizona, even at . 500, has been outscored by 17 runs, third-worst differential in MLB thus far.
The lack of success by the rest of the west has been bad largely due to bad offense, with teams ranked 24th, 25th, 27th, and 30th in the majors in runs scored per game through Sunday. Division news & notes D-backs outfielder Jordan Lawlar was hit by a pitch on Thursday that broke his right wrist, landing him on the injured list . The Giants were swept by the Mets, including a particular odious 9-0 defeat on Saturday .
The San Diego Padres are averaging just 3. 56 runs per game, including scoring three or fewer runs in seven of their first eight games . But it could have been worse for the Friars, who won their final two games in Boston over the weekend to salvage the week.