I will be doing a team by team breakdown by division. Tonight I start with the National League West.

Arizona Diamondbacks: they are currently in first place in the division. While Dan Haren has made the adjustment from Oakland to Arizona, and Brandon Webb has been stellar, the rest of the team has struggled, particularly away from home. Haren was named NL Pitcher of the Month for June. So far, the D-backs have played a home-friendly schedule. After the All-Star break, it gets tougher, particularly in September with visits to St. Louis, L.A., Colorado, and San Francisco. The series at St. Louis is a four game series in the final week of the season.  

What they must do: be more consistent on the road, particularly against NL Central teams. Another arm besides Haren and Webb needs to step up. They also need a consistent run producer. In my opinion, they sorely miss their former closer Jose Valverde, who was lights out last season.

Prognosis: they will be in contention, but will fall short. A second-place finish is likely.

Current record (as of July 3): 43-43, 1st place.

Los Angeles Dodgers: they have been decimated with injuries since the start of spring training. Jason Schmidt. Rafael Furcal. Nomar Garciaparra. Hiroki Kuroda. Juan Pierre. Andruw Jones. Scott Proctor. Gary Bennett. Tony Abreu. Brad Penny. These are some of the players that have spent time on the DL this season. You play the hand you're dealt with, and frankly, the Dodgers have been dealt a crappy hand. Joe Torre has done a great job with this crappy hand, guiding the youngsters as they get more playing time. Takashi Saito has been stellar again this season, aside from a couple of outings. The bullpen, when healthy, is among the best in baseball. The starting pitching is in flux. The youngsters need as much playing time as possible. Blake DeWitt has been a revelation at 3B, winning Rookie of the Month honors twice this season. It's going to be very hard to take playing time away from him once the veterans return. One possibility is playing Garciaparra at SS, a position he hasn't played full-time since 2005.

What they must do: get healthy, and quick. The All-Star break couldn't have come at a better time. Fortunately, Arizona has fallen back to the pack after their hot start. The starting rotation must stabilize. They may not need to make a blockbuster deal. They could use someone with pop, like an Adam Dunn.

Prognosis: the Dodgers stand pat, perhaps making a minor deal. They get healthy and go on a tear at some point in the year. That will be enough to win the division.

Current record (as of July 3): 41-44, 1 1/2 games back.

 San Francisco Giants: Bruce Bochy is doing perhaps his best managing job of his career. This team was expected to lose around 100 games. There's no Barry Bonds to provide offensive firepower. Tim Lincecum has become a bonafide Cy Young contender, leading the majors in ERA at 2.38 with a 9-1 record. Bengie Molina is hitting above .300 and is a legit All-Star candidate. Brian Wilson has come out of nowhere to lead the NL in saves with 23.

What they must do: Zito needs to step his game up and be at least a .500 pitcher in the second half, and they need another power bat in the lineup. Could Adam Dunn help? Sure he can. What would they give up to get him? Do they have the prospects to give to the Reds? If they want Dunn bad enough, they'll find the prospects.

Prognosis: while this team is better than I thought at the start of the season, it's still a below .500 team. A 72-90 record is realistic as they continue to struggle in the second half.

Current record (as of July 3): 38-48, 5 GB.

 Colorado Rockies: this team is one year removed from an amazing run to the World Series. What could go so wrong in that span? For one, they overachieved. They went on a once in a lifetime winning streak. They came back down to earth big time. Todd Helton is mired in the midst of a horrific slump. While Matt Holliday is having a superb year, it's not like it was last year. Now there is talk of the Rocks trading both Holliday and Garrett Atkins. Jeff Francis, a 17-game winner last year, went on the DL. 

What they must do: find the magic that propelled them to winning 21 of 22 leading into the World Series. Fortunately, this division is weak, and if they get on that type of run where they win games in bunches, they could very easily get back into contention. Helton must break out of his slump and drive in runs consistently. The front office must NOT panic and trade Holliday and Atkins in a knee-jerk move.

Prognosis: I expect Helton to break out of his slump and start driving in runs consistently. That in turn will help Holliday and Atkins. However, the pitching must come around. While I think the Rockies will be a better team in the second half, I think it will be too little, too late. They will leapfrog the Giants and finish third.

Current record (as of July 3): 35-51, 8 GB.

 San Diego Padres: how far the Pads have fallen! It wasn't that long ago they were a consistent playoff contender. Now they have become one of the worst teams in baseball. The starting rotation is in shambles, apart from Jake Peavy. Trevor Hoffman clearly isn't the closer he used to be. He's lost zip on his fastball. There is absolutely NO pop in the lineup, apart from Adrian Gonzalez. 

What they must do: become sellers in a big way. Apart from Gonzalez and Peavy, everyone else is tradeable. It's better to bite the bullet now and ensure long-term success by acquiring prospects this season. Trade Greg Maddux to the Cubs. 

Prognosis: very poor, at least for this year. It depends on what moves the front office makes for the next couple of seasons. Do they let go of Bud Black? I say give him one more season. While they may not lose 100 games this season, they'll come close. A 64-98 record is realistic.

Current record (as of July 3): 33-53, 10 GB.

Standings at the end of the season:

1. Dodgers
2. Diamondbacks, 4 GB
3. Rockies, 7 GB
4. Giants, 11 GB
5. Padres, 22 GB

What say you? Tell me what you think.

Information courtesy of www.mlb.com, www.foxsports.com, and www.sports-logos-screensavers.com.