For over three months the National League West was controlled by the San Francisco Giants, but the month of June wasn’t kind to them and now in early July the Dodgers have caught them and taken over first place in the West.  At this same time last season the Dodgers sat one and a half game behind the Arizona Diamondbacks in the division and went on a run away with the division.  In 2014 can the Los Angeles Dodgers really pull it off again?

The way the rest of the division is playing right now, and the way the Dodgers are set up, the answer is clearly yes.  Their starting rotation is set up better than anyone in the division, maybe even the entire National League, they have the hottest pitcher in all of baseball, Clayton Kershaw, to lead that starting rotation and with an injury to the starting rotation they have the ability to go out and get the best pitcher available.  On top of all of that they have a high end lineup that got hot in the second half of last season and there is no reason to believe they cannot do it again.

They are already in the better position than they were last year and with the Giants struggling on offense and with injuries.  They may have lost Josh Beckett and the Giants may be getting Marco Scutaro, but the loss of Angel Pagan was a key factor into the derailing of the Giants season in 2013.  It is highly possible Scutaro might be the spark that reignites the Giants, but the next closest team to the two is the San Diego Padres who have been just plain pitiful.  There is no team that will challenge the two of them at the top.  The Dodgers may not be ready to run away with the division, but there is absolutely no reason to believe they cannot hold off the Giants down the stretch.