Execs weigh in on Giants, O's chances against division heavyweights

The Giants have been one of the season’s early surprises, but can San Francisco keep it up during the next four-plus months?

Last week, we ran Part 1 of our annual first-month executives poll in which the Giants were named by 40 percent of respondents as the biggest surprise through the opening weeks of 2025. San Francisco’s 25-18 record through Tuesday has them in the thick of a tight race in the National League West, one in which few expected the Giants to be involved.

In the same poll, we asked executives a number of other questions about what can be learned from the season’s opening month when it comes to a pair of clubs off to vastly different starts, two of the most intriguing divisions and which team is the one to beat in 2025.

Note: Executives were free to skip any questions they chose not to answer, while some also provided multiple answers to some questions.

Where will the Giants finish in the NL West?

Second (3 votes)
Third (9 votes)
Fourth (5 votes)

San Francisco’s hot start may have caught the eyes of many, but it hasn’t convinced anybody that the club would find its way to the top of the division.

None of the 17 execs who answered this question believe the Giants will win the division, while only three picked them to finish in second place.

“I still believe the Dodgers will win the division and the D-backs, Giants and Padres will fight it out for second,” an NL executive said. “I think San Francisco has good enough starting pitching depth to get them through the year, and [Willy] Adames will carry them at some point to go along with [Matt] Chapman and [Jung Hoo] Lee.”

An AL executive who picked the Giants to finish second also believes San Francisco will have to fight off both San Diego and Arizona to accomplish that.

“The Giants’ pitching staff and key lineup members look ready to contend at the highest levels,” the AL exec said. “Jung Hoo Lee has been exciting and they have a fairly competitive starting lineup. I do expect them to taper off some due to limited lineup depth and they'll be in a battle for second with San Diego. The Dodgers are going through it with injuries and they're still a strong team; once they're healthy they should end up in first.”

More than half of the execs predicted a third-place finish for the Giants, many of them citing the quality of the division as the primary reason.

“Over the course of six months, I think the depth of the Dodgers and Padres will win out and will allow them to pull away from the rest of the NL West,” an NL executive said. “The Giants and Diamondbacks will still be in the mix for playoff spots, but I don’t think they can keep up with the other two at the top of the division.”

“The Dodgers remain the favorite,” an AL executive said. “San Francisco and San Diego are close, but the Padres may have more runway for internal improvement as they get healthier.”

Of the executives who picked the Giants to finish fourth, the belief in the Padres and Diamondbacks over the long season seemed to be higher than the idea of the Giants keeping up their hot start.

“Walk-off Little League home runs aren’t sustainable,” an AL executive said, citing the Giants’ late-April win over the Rangers. “Are they?”

Who is the best team in the National League West?

Dodgers (16 votes)
Padres (1 vote)

As mentioned above, executives are nearly unanimous in their belief that the Dodgers will emerge as the class of the NL West.

“It’s still the Dodgers,” an NL executive said. “They have the deepest and best lineup in baseball. The only question is whether they can withstand all of these injuries to their pitching, but they’ve had pitching injuries in past years and have gotten through them.”

“Too much firepower and depth offensively and in the pen; I believe they’ll overpower the division and league, in the regular season,” an AL executive said. “[Yoshinobu] Yamamoto is on a Cy Young trajectory, and I could see [Roki] Sasaki figuring things out as he establishes himself, and run away with the ROY, while Shohei [Ohtani] makes it a clean sweep with another MVP.”

Even with early-season injuries to Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, Teoscar Hernández, Tommy Edman and multiple relievers, the Dodgers enter Wednesday at 27-15, hanging on to the division lead as they patch things together.

“Despite a slower start by their own standard, their talent level and organizational depth stand out,” an AL executive said. “They’re still well-positioned to take control of the division as the season progresses.”

“They’ve got that Shohei guy,” said another AL exec. “And Mookie. And Freddie. And Yamamoto. And Sasaki. And…”

Only one of our 17 respondents picked another club – the Padres – to put an end to Los Angeles’ three-year streak of division titles.

“The length of their lineup is impressive and their bullpen is about as deep as any in the game,” said the NL executive. “They have solid starting pitching and a very engaged [Fernando] Tatis [Jr.] and [Manny] Machado, which is dangerous.”

Where will the Orioles finish in the AL East?

Third (7 votes)
Fourth (5 votes)
Fifth (4 votes)
Second (1 vote)

Baltimore, which was named overwhelmingly as the biggest disappointment in Part 1 of the poll, enters Wednesday with a 15-24 record, leaving it in last place in the AL East.

The Orioles’ start may have been a stunning disappointment given their expectations, but roughly half of those polled believe better days lie ahead for Baltimore.

“They will play better, there’s no doubt about that,” said an NL executive who picked the O’s to finish second. “But it’s going to be difficult for them to catch the Yankees and overtake them. This is a talented team and that talent should win out over the course of six months, but they have made things difficult for themselves out of the gate.”

Baltimore’s starting pitching woes have been well-documented: The staff ranks last in the AL with a 5.31 ERA, including a league-worst 5.55 rotation ERA. But the offensive struggles – the club ranks 13th in runs scored out of 15 AL teams – have been something of a surprise to execs around the league.

“I do think the offense will get hot at some point but they’ve already dug themselves a hole,” said an NL executive who picked them to finish fourth. “And it’s hard to see how they stabilize the starting pitching situation anytime soon.”

“Their position player group is too good for the results they’ve had so far,” said another AL exec with a fourth-place prediction. “But they won’t have enough pitching to get things back on track.”

• Holliday seeing improvement after taking dad's advice

Four executives believe this early start will be too much to overcome, forecasting a last-place finish for the Orioles.

“There’s a lack of rotation depth, and I don’t expect them to make significant additions at the deadline,” said an AL executive who picked them to finish last. “Feels like a reset year.”

“The division is deep,” another AL exec said. “While Baltimore has the talent to push, rotation health and lack of consistency early could hold them back.”

Who is the best team in the American League East?

Yankees (13 votes)
Red Sox (4 votes)

While many believed the AL East might be a four- or five-team battle, only two of those clubs were named as the division’s best.

The Yankees received the vast majority of the votes, with one player in particular receiving several mentions as the difference-maker for New York.

“They have the most well-rounded group,” an AL executive said. “Never mind the fact that they still have Aaron Judge.”

“They've got the best player on the planet,” an AL exec said.

New York leads the AL in both runs scored (247) and OPS (.829), and while Judge is having another MVP-caliber season, the rest of the lineup has been deeper and more productive than it was a year ago.

“They’re the deepest and most productive offense so far,” an AL executive said. “Judge remains the anchor, but [Trent] Grisham, [Ben] Rice, [Paul] Goldschmidt, [Anthony] Volpe, [Jasson] Domínguez and others are all contributing to lengthen the lineup.”

Some executives that chose the Bronx Bombers, however, believe the spread between New York and Boston is quite narrow.

“Both teams could use some rotation help and I see both going out to get it at some point during the year,” an NL executive said. “Judge is the separator.”

The Red Sox were picked by four voters, citing some of Boston’s key offseason additions and a strong farm system that should allow Craig Breslow to add at the Trade Deadline if necessary.

“Despite some injuries, their rotation has weathered it well with the impact performances from [Garrett] Crochet,” an AL executive said. “Their young lineup with some key veteran additions like [Alex] Bregman is as strong and deep as it has been in a decade.”

• Bregman: Signing with Sox 'was not a diss of Detroit'

“They have the deepest position-player group,” an NL executive said. “And the ammo to go get more pitching if they need it.”

Who is the best team in baseball?

Dodgers (16 votes)
Padres (1 vote)

No, you’re not reading the NL West question again, though this produced the exact same result. The Dodgers remain the cream of the crop in the eyes of executives around the Majors.

“It's cliché, but it's the truth,” said an AL executive. “Their depth is constantly being tested, but their lineup and rotation are the best in baseball when healthy. Their Triple-A team has up and comers that can impact the game this year – and they have not nearly exhausted that pipeline of talent yet.”

“I will continue to think it’s the Dodgers until someone proves otherwise,” an NL executive said. “I believe the offense will carry enough while they get the pitching health situation sorted out. They’re very smart about how to creatively use their staff and they’ll be aggressive going to get help from the outside.”

Unsurprisingly, the lone executive to choose a team other than Los Angeles cast a vote for the Padres, who he previously picked as the best in the NL West.

“I love the depth of their lineup and their bullpen,” said the NL executive. “They can score runs and shorten a game, and they have a number of top-end players who are all playing great baseball and appear to be fully engaged in the mission to overcome the Dodgers. I don’t think it’ll be easy, but I really like the way their roster is shaped and believe they have enough – if they can stay healthy – to play with anyone.”