Where does the Padres' starting rotation rank in the NL West

As the 2025 winter meetings have come to an end, it is worth mentioning that the San Diego Padres left without signing anyone. With starting pitching being the biggest need, we are sure fans are questioning the decisions made by the front office.

But as of now, how does the Padres' rotation stack up with other teams in the always competitive NL West? We put together a list that ranks how each team’s starting pitching looks after the winter meetings.

Where the Padres’ rotation really stacks up in the NL West

5. Colorado Rockies

The Rockies heading into free agency already had the worst rotation in the division, and we expect that to remain the same. A core three of Kyle Freeland, German Marquez, and Antonio Senzatela, who combined for a 6.11 ERA over 418 innings, headlining the rotation ahead of 2026 simply will not cut it. On another note, the team has not made a single free agent signing to address the need for starting pitching.

Given that Coors Field is the most hitter-friendly ballpark due to its high altitude, not many pitchers would be willing to sign there in the first place. On top of that, Rockies owner Dick Monfort is notorious for not paying top dollar, so we expect no big names on the market to sign with the Rockies.

Not only are the Rockies going to have the worst rotation in the division, but maybe the worst in all of baseball.

4. San Diego Padres

At this time last year, you could make the argument that the Padres had the best starting rotation in the NL West. With the Dodgers having injuries, mixed in with San Diego getting their first full season of Dylan Cease.

However, an early playoff exit led to Cease signing with the Toronto Blue Jays on a lucrative seven-year, $210 million deal. He isn’t the only big-name Padres starting pitcher on the market, as Michael King is also in line to earn a wealthy contract elsewhere. Yu Darvish is also out for the entirety of 2026 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

With Nick Pivetta and Joe Musgrove (who will be making his first start since 2024), the only notables in rotation, coupled with the fact that the president of baseball operations, A.J. Preller, hasn’t made any additions to fill in the vacancies, will hurt this team significantly. 

That, mixed with moves that other teams have made, will drop the Padres down the NL West starting rotation power rankings.

3. Arizona Diamondbacks

While Arizona will likely lose Zac Gallen in free agency, the team brought back Merrill Kelly on a two-year deal worth $40 million. Kelly, 37, posted a 3.82 ERA over six full seasons with the team. Kelly made 22 starts with the Diamondbacks in 2025, where he posted a 3.22 ERA before being traded to the Texas Rangers.

Arizona will also get a second look at Corbin Burnes, who underwent Tommy John Surgery midway through 2025. Expected to miss a little bit of time, the team will be getting a second look at him in 2026.

Arizona also coaxed Michael Soroka away from the Chicago Cubs on a one-year $9 million deal, a right-hander who can start and also give you innings out of the bullpen.

Who knows, Gallen may even re-sign with Arizona, which would boost the rotation even more. For now, they clock in as the No. 3 rotation in the division.

2. San Francisco Giants

The Giants probably have one of the most intriguing rotations not just in the NL West, but in all of baseball. Obviously, they have their ace in Logan Webb, who posted a 3.22 ERA with a 1.2 WHIP. The team also has the 2021 Cy Young Award winner, Robbie Ray, who is coming off an excellent 2025 campaign.

What makes this team very interesting is that they have Landen Roupp, a young, up-and-coming right-hander with a nasty sinker/slider combo. At 27 years old, Roupp spent time in both the major and minor leagues.

The third aspect is the fact that the Giants have money they are willing to spend. They have already been linked to the top international free agent, Tatsuya Imai, but negotiations reportedly fell through with him as the team was unwilling to meet his market value. Nonetheless, it will be fascinating to see how aggressive Buster Posey is in his first full offseason as the team's GM.

1. Los Angeles Dodgers

An obvious No. 1, the Dodgers have everything and them some for an ideal starting rotation, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, and Shohei Ohtani (the pitcher) headlining it. However, what if we told you that this isn’t even the tip of the iceberg?

Rumors were percolating about Los Angeles potentially trading away right-hander Tyler Glasnow, but it was reported that he would be staying put, adding another high-quality arm to the stacked rotation.

The team will be greeted by the return of Gavin Stone and River Ryan, two promising young right-handers who look to make a name for themselves after missing 2025 with injury. The Dodgers will hopefully see a full season of Roki Sasaki, who showed what he could truly do in the postseason, coming out of the bullpen.

It is clear that the Padres don’t really stack up well against the other teams in their division. But we should not hit the panic button yet, as there are still plenty of household names on the market. It will be interesting to see what A.J. Preller has in store over the course of the next couple of weeks.