NL West Weekly Report: Diamondbacks cool down, Padres keep winning

The week was interesting because the first place team cooled down, the fourth place team stayed hot, and one team played just five games. Let's see what else happened this week.

TEAM RECAPS:

Diamondbacks:

Arizona was 2-4 this week. The Diamondbacks lost their first four games this week, but then won the final two. After getting swept by the Padres over the weekend in San Diego, the Dbacks went back home and won two of three against the Marlins.

This week I think would be frustrating for Arizona fans because the team gave up on average just three runs a game, yet the team lost four games. In the end, that didn't matter because the offense scored on averaged just 2.3 runs per game. Overall, the Diamondback's pitching was above average this week (except for giving up six runs on Saturday against San Diego) while the offense was below average. The only true bright spot for the DBacks this week was Paul Goldschmidt's game winning moonshot on Tuesday.

Rockies:

Colorado was 2-5 this week. The Rockies lost their first two games of the week before winning two in a row against the Phillies. Colorado then went up against a hot Toronto team that swept them North of the border.

The Rockies couldn't catch a break in three of their losses. Colorado lost by one run twice, scoring four and seven runs in those games respectively. The Rockies also lost a game by two and another by three. Of their five losses this week, Tuesday's 8-3 loss to the Blue Jays was the only blowout.

Giants:

San Francisco was 4-3 this week. The Giants won their first two games this week 10-0 and 6-0 respectively. San Francisco then lost two in a row to Atlanta before heading back to the bay to win two of three against San Diego.

The Giants' offense started off this week extremely hot, outscoring its opponents 16-0 in two games. San Francisco averaged 4.7 runs per game thanks in part to Buster Posey who hit .500 the week with seven RBIs, five doubles, and just one strike out. The three loses weren't that bad in the end. One was by a single run, another was by two, and the third was by three.

Padres:

San Diego was 4-2 this week. The week started off great for the Padres when they swept the Diamondbacks at home. But then San Diego traveled to San Francisco and lost two of three. In the end, the Padres won their first four games this week before dropping the last two.

San Diego's offense was just a tad better than their pitching, giving them the chance to win so many games. The Padres scored on average 3.8 runs per game while surrendering on average just 3 runs per game. Overall, San Diego is 11-7 this month and 7-3 over its last 10.

Dodgers:

Los Angeles was 2-3 this week. The Dodgers still haven't won more games then they lost in a single week since the week of May 9th-15th when they were 4-2. LA had two off days this week (three including Tuesday when their game against New York was postponed) and started off the week in Pittsburgh where they lost two of three. The Boys in Blue then traveled to Yankee Stadium where they split a doubleheader against the Bronx Bombers.

This might have been the reason why the Dodgers still weren't able to win more games than they lost in a week:

Dodgers were 0-for-21 w/Yasiel Puig in scoring position until Hanley Ramirez HR'd in 8th inn of Gm 1. Ramirez singled in Puig in 1st of Gm 2

— Eric Stephen (@truebluela) June 19, 2013

The Dodgers haven't been able to hit well with runners in scoring position pretty much all season, and 0-21 with Yasiel Puig in scoring position is pretty depressing. Especially since he's appeared in only 15 games and gets in scoring position pretty often.

WHAT'S IN STORE FOR THESE TEAMS NEXT WEEK?

Diamondbacks: Three games against the Reds, three games against the Nationals

Rockies: Four games against the Nationals, two games against the Red Sox

Giants: Four games against the Marlins, three games against the Dodgers

Padres: Four games against the Dodgers, three games against the Phillies

Dodgers: Four games against the Padres, three games against the Giants

OVERALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK GOES TO:

Rockies' outfielder Carlos Gonzalez:

Gonzalez hit .417 this week with two homers, five RBIs, six runs scored, three doubles, and two walks. He didn't have the highest batting average, but he did have the most balanced statistics across the board. His six runs were the second most in the division (behind Tony Abreu) and his batting average was also the second highest in the division (behind Puig and Posey). What Gonzalez did lead the division in was home runs (he tied with Paul Goldschmidt and Kyle Blanks).

BEST INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE GOES TO:

Giants' pitcher Madison Bumgarner:

The young lefty hasn't been entirely himself this season, but his start on June 14th showed how great he can be, and was last season. Bumgarner struck out ten over seven innings against the Braves and allowed just two hits and no runs. In that one start, Bumgarner lowered his season ERA from 3.58 to 3.30.

OVERALL TEAM OF THE WEEK GOES TO:

The Padres. San Diego was 4-2 this week, which includes a three game sweep of Arizona at home. The Padres also won this award last week and deserved it again this week. The balance between their pitching and hitting was key to their success. San Diego scored on average 3.8 runs per game while allowing just 3 runs on average.

WORST INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK GOES TO:

Rockies' pitcher Jeff Francis:

The lefty had a horrendous start against the Blue Jays on Tuesday. Francis gave up eight runs on 10 hits over six innings. The veteran only struck out two while giving up three home runs. The worst part of this week for Francis occurred on Wednesday when he was demoted in order to make room on the roster for Roy Oswalt