The Arizona Diamondbacks are currently the team to beat in the NL West, but only by virtue of their five-game lead. Otherwise, there really isn't a team to beat in the West. The Rockies are probably the most talented team, but they lost six in a row last week and have dug themselves a deep hole, nine games behind Arizona. The Dodgers have been beset by injuries. Despite Barry Bonds' penchant to dump one into McCovey Cove every other night, the Giants haven't been able to put a hot streak together.

	Randy Johnson's durablity will be a major factor in the second half.

The plight of the Diamondbacks is interesting. In 1999, the Giants were leading the NL West at the All-Star break, but the Diamondbacks won the division by 14 games. Last year, the Diamondbacks were leading at the break, but the Giants won the division by 11 games. Based on the last two seasons, the D-Backs' lead doesn't mean they should be printing playoff tickets just yet.

This is the first full year the Diamondbacks have had Curt Schilling and Randy Johnson together, and they are clearly the workhorses. But this team was old last year, and there was talk that they simply wore down in the second half of the season (Arizona was 34-40 after the All-Star break). They ain't gettin' any younger and they didn't acquire a young arm or bat in the offseason.

Like the Dodgers, the D-Backs have been clobbered with injuries. Because of his injury, Matt Williams hasn't made much of a contribution. Tony Womack's horrible on-base percentage has cost him his leadoff spot. Steve Finley's numbers are very sub-par. And they've lost Todd Stottlemyre, Brian Anderson, Mike Morgan, Bobby Witt, Matt Mantei and Armando Reynoso to the DL. Still, somehow they've managed to stay afloat.

They brought a bunch of pitchers nobody had ever heard of up from Triple-A who've been terrific, and so far, have been the difference. Bret Prinz has done a great job in the closer role, 30-year old journeyman Robert Ellis is 6-2, Miguel Batista has been serviceable filling in the starting rotation, and they've gotten a lot of mileage out of Erik Sabel and Troy Brohawn.

Anderson is supposed to be back by July 3, and he will give them a capable fifth starter. They can't rely on him too much, though. Anderson is a finesse pitcher that needs to hit his spots -- he won't overpower anybody. It may take him a while to find his groove after spending almost two months on the disabled list.

Of course, Luis Gonzalez has continued to get better and better. One of the feel-good stories in baseball, it's amazing Gonzalez had enough skill to stay in the major leagues for eight years before he showed he could put up anywhere near these kinds of numbers. He's a class act, but he was that before he became a star. If the season ended today, Gonzalez would be my MVP. His team is in first place, and his numbers have been incredible. Of course, Bonds' numbers haven't been too shabby, but his team isn't in first right now, so Gonzalez gets the nod.

Despite their problems, the Diamondbacks are 21-9 since May 25. With a lot of those victories coming against NL West opponents, they have been able to spread the field. If they can get to the playoffs without having to strain their rotation down the stretch, they'll be in a good spot. They'd be playing a five-game series with Johnson and Schilling getting at least three of the starts. But there are a lot of variables between now and the end of the roller coaster.

	Bob Wickman Relief Pitcher Cleveland Indians Profile
	2001 SEASON STATISTICS GM W-L IP Sv K-BB ERA 34 3-0 30.2 15 35-10 2.93

Indians scored, Braves still need help
Assuming he pitches like he did in Atlanta, John Rocker will give the Indians a power closer. Despite how well Bob Wickman pitched, most managers prefer a guy who can throw a ball through the side of a building, and Rocker is definitely that guy. He got off to a good start with his first save, and it will be really interesting to see how it shakes out. I'm sure the Indians would have loved to use him in Yankee Stadium Monday night, but Ricardo Rincon couldn't keep Tino Martinez in the park.

The Braves have been swinging the bat well of late. They went into New York and scored a ton of runs, and they got eight against the Phillies on Tuesday and 10 on Wednesday. But they had better not be deceived. They still need one more bat, preferably at first base. There has been some talk of re-acquiring Andres Galarraga, but he's only hitting .214 in Texas, which is a great hitter's park. That isn't going to get it done in Atlanta.

Dave Campbell, who played eight seasons in the major leagues, works as an analyst for Baseball Tonight and ESPN Radio.