AL West

All in all 2010 was a great season—historic you could say! 

Pitchers were once again in control.  The average runs per game for each team in 2010 was nearly a run lower than in 2000 (5.39 compared to 4.44), and an enhanced drug policy enforcing a more regulated testing system has shown the fans that the game can be played clean.  

Life is pretty funny sometimes. I was sitting in my office late in the afternoon thinking about what I was going to write about tonight.

Let me start by saying that, while it's non-zero, the chances of Felix Hernandez being traded this winter are pretty small.

Felix has stated many times that he loves Seattle. He has a no-trade clause that we know includes the Yankees. We don't know the other teams, but the team that may be the most willing to give up a huge package is probably out of the running.

Josh Hamilton had a monster 2010 campaign. 

No one can take that away from him, but should fantasy owners base an early round selection on that success? Many people actually believe that he is good enough to select in the first round of 2011 drafts. 

Is it justified? Let’s take a look:

2010 Stat Line:

It has been reported that Brandon Webb has reached a one-year agreement with the Texas Rangers.

The contract has a $3 million base salary, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney.

The Rangers were in the running for the great Cliff Lee, but he ultimately shunned them for the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Rangers had a lot to offer Lee, who just missed out once again on a World Series ring.

The Rangers played fantastic throughout 2010 and should field the top team in the AL West in 2011.

On paper, Rafael Palmeiro is a sure-fire Hall of Famer. Unfortunately, in the real world he is not. He is the poster boy for the steroid era, and he in turn sullied the game the same way others like Rose and the Black Sox did.

Despite vehemently denying the use of steroids, he failed a steroid test, was named by Jose Canseco as a user and he was also named in the Mitchell Report. The amount of evidence against him is staggering, and because of that evidence, Palmeiro must be kept out of the Hall of Fame.

Right now the Oakland athletics are trying to establish a core of a winning team. They have already given two players multi-year contracts: Brett Anderson and Kurt Suzuki. Although they still have some cheap young players who haven't hit arbitration, I think they should continue to create a young core and give some players long contracts.

When searching for lefties for his bullpen, Texas Rangers’ GM Jon Daniels must believe in the phrase “Age is just a number.” He already has one 40-year-old in the pen, who has done pretty well in his stint in a Ranger uniform in Darren Oliver, so why not add another 40-year-old?

With Christmas approaching and Santa having decided that Carl Crawford was a better gift for the Boston Red Sox, where do the 2011 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim go from here?

Texas Rangers fans, get ready to hate me. The same goes for all you fans of the Astros, Angels and Mets!

I’ve had this opinion for a few years now and have no intention of changing it.

This opinion is a controversial one, but I have my reasons for it. Therefore, I’ll get right to it.