Diamondbacks could be Dodgers' worst enemy at 2025 trade deadline

If you take the Rockies out of the equation as an outlier, the NL West is (as expected) the strongest division in the National League, with a combined winning percentage of .571 through May 22. The .620 Dodgers are leading the Giants by two games at .580, then the slipping Padres who have lost eight of their last 10 games, and then the Diamondbacks, who are shaping up to be a pretty middling team, are .520.

If the postseason started tomorrow, the Diamondbacks wouldn't make the cut. They're two games back of the last Wild Card spot, one behind the Cardinals, while the Mets, Giants, and Padres would move into October. They're not playing terrible baseball, but they're not wowing anyone either.

The postseason picture will clarify significantly around the trade deadline on July 31 this year, but the Diamondbacks might be on the outside looking in. In the event they do end up selling, that could be bad news for the Dodgers. Arizona would likely be loathe to help their division rival by trading promising pieces to them, but if those pieces go to other contenders the Dodgers very well may see in the postseason, they could have a problem.

Diamondbacks selling at deadline would be bad news for Dodgers

There are a few things that haven't gone right for the Dbacks this year. Zac Gallen and Eduardo Rodriguez have been pretty consistently bad, and Rodriguez just went onto the IL. Bullpen pieces like Ryne Nelson, Ryan Thompson, Juan Morillo, and Joe Mantiply have been just okay to downright bad. The offense has scored the fifth-most runs in baseball, but their pitching staff has also given up the seventh-most earned runs, and they currently have a run differential of just +4.

If Arizona sells, they could give up starter Merrill Kelly, who's had a strong 2025 so far (3.26 over 10 starts) and is in a walk year. Suaréz is also set to become a free agent at the end of the season, and although he and Carroll have been putting the offense on their backs, the Dbacks could just call it a day if they're not in a position to contend by late July.

A solid middle of the rotation guy and a potentially huge bat are not players that the Dodgers would want to see move onto another contender. Of course, the alternative would be seeing the Dbacks in the postseason, but that historically hasn't gone all that great for LA.