👋 GOOD MORNING - Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend, and that your Mother’s Day went off without a hitch! Today’s newsletter takes a look at the D-backs’ current stretch of NL West games, but before I get to that, I hope you like the new format of the newsletter!

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Let's run it back next week. On to the show!

These next 13 games are going to reveal a lot about the trajectory of the Diamondbacks’ season.

No, it’s not a do-or-die set of games. But Arizona just wrapped up a four-game set against the Dodgers — in which the two teams each won two games — and still has nine consecutive games remaining against divisional opponents: three each against the third place Giants (May 12-14 at San Francisco), last place Rockies (May 16-18 at Chase Field) and first place Dodgers (May 19-21 at L.A.).

Sure, no rest for the weary, but the current schedule also offers quite an opportunity. The D-backs are six games out of first, five behind San Diego for second, and three away from the Giants’ third place position.

Plenty of time, and lots of divisional games to go.

The National League West is already making noise in Major League Baseball, and if the Diamondbacks aren’t careful, they may be left behind. As of right now Arizona has a leg up on only the lowly 7-33 Rockies in the division.

One positive note — the West has potential to produce four (!!!) playoff teams this season, as the Padres and the Giants both occupy the first and third Wild Card positions, respectively, with the Phillies sandwiched in between.

The NL West is one of just two divisions in baseball that features four teams with 21-or-more wins, alongside the AL Central. The Diamondbacks’ current stretch marks the only time all season in which they play more than six straight against divisional opponents.

For the current stretch:

For what it’s worth, the D-backs have 48 games remaining against NL West opponents following this stretch. This past weekend’s four-game set against the Dodgers marked Arizona’s first divisional games of the 2025 season.

My Take: I’ve got to say, I’m mildly impressed with Arizona’s split against the Dodgers, though there was a clear difference in the wins compared to the losses. The D-backs scored a combined eight runs in their two wins over L.A., and though they did score 12 in their two losses, the pitching staff allowed 22 runs over the same span — not exactly playoff caliber, but that’s looking too far ahead.

Even so, D-backs fans may look back to this stretch in October when reflecting on what went right — or what went wrong.

So Close: The Arizona softball team came up just short in the Big 12 championship game, falling 4-0 to Texas Tech. The Wildcats qualified for the NCAA Tournament, hosting Ole Miss, Grand Canyon and Santa Clara in the Tucson Regional.

Shall We Dance?: Not to be outdone, the ASU softball team also qualified for the NCAA Tournament after falling to the Red Raiders in the Big 12 semifinals. The Sun Devils head to California for the Los Angeles Regional, which features San Diego State, UCLA and UC Santa Barbara.

On to the Show: The Mercury wrapped up their preseason slate with an 84-79 loss to Golden State, and will now open the season at home on Saturday against Seattle. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 pm AZ time, and it will be broadcast on Arizona’s Family Sports / CBS 5.

Big Dub: Rising FC held off New Mexico United to come away with a 2-1 victory, capping off a busy week with a much-needed win. Our very own Owain Evans takes a look at that very win, as well as the week that was.

To be fair, the Mercury lost both preseason games by a combined six points!