Andre Ethier

With spring training now at its peak and Cactus League play in full gear, the Los Angeles Dodgers find themselves in the national spotlight of the sports media in regards to a number of popular storylines.

Team ownership is obviously at the forefront, as Frank McCourt was anticipating a $200 million cash advance from Fox until the transaction was blocked by MLB commissioner Bud Selig late last week. It's unclear exactly where the overall finances of the club lie, but the fact that McCourt was involved in plotting such a deal doesn't sound encouraging.

As we know, the injury of Adam Wainwright has put the St. Louis Cardinals in a really tough position. What was looking to be a promising 2011 season is now looking to be one of disappointment. Adam Wainwright has been the Cy Young runner-up in the National League the past two seasons. According to the Wins Above Replacement statistic, Wainwright was worth 5.7 and 6.1 wins in 2009 and 2010 respectively.

Following in the footsteps of his father, Tom Gordon, 22-year-old Dee Gordon is currently on the fast track to play in the major leagues for one of baseball's highest profile teams, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Gordon is currently ranked first on Baseball America as the Dodger's top prospect.

Widely considered as a tremendous hitter and fielder, Gordon may also be the best all-around athlete in the highly talented farm system.

With Spring Training rapidly approaching, the 2011 Los Angeles Dodgers' roster is nearly finalized. First-year manager, Don Mattingly, hopes to improve the team from the 2010 edition that was two games under .500.

The way the Los Angeles Dodgers finished the 2010 season, you would think that there's no right for someone to be thinking about a World Series Championship this year. 

The team looked like a complete mess during the second half of the season.  Manny Ramirez was given away, Jonathon Broxton was giving games away, and then there's the lingering threat that the McCourts may have to give the whole team away.

Some might say it's baseball blasphemy for a die-hard San Francisco Giants fanatic to give opinions about our hated enemies to the south, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

In fact, I know quite a few who will say that.

But bear with me for a second.

The blood rivalry—that is unfortunately a literal term when it comes to this particular pairing—between the Gents and Bums is an example of major-league contempt in its purest form.

With their most recent acquisition of outfielder Marcus Thames, the Los Angeles Dodgers not only achieved an addition of power to the roster, but they also balanced the bats in the process. Thames will join a solid corps of outfielders who individually feature power, speed, and reliable defense.

With spring training quickly approaching, several questions continue to linger in terms of how the Los Angeles Dodgers' 25-man roster will shape up once the players arrive at Camelback Ranch to prepare themselves for the long journey ahead.

Although general manager Ned Colletti has been very active this winter with numerous new additions to the club, there are still players on the free agent market available who may have the skills or abilities to complete a roster with a few holes.

After exploding in 2009 with 31 HR and 106 RBI, fantasy owners were clamoring about what Andre Ethier could be in 2010.  Could he emerge as one of the elite outfielders in the game?  Forget about just outfielders, could he emerge as one of the elite hitters in the game?  The fact is that the question owners should have been asking was if he could even repeat that success.  The answer would have been no (though there’s an asterisk), as Ethier posted the following line:

Recently, The Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo entertained the idea that Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka could generate some serious trade interest if the Sox chose to put him on the block.

He cited an informal poll of baseball execs as the basis of his claims that moving Daisuke could generate a lot of interest among the baseball community

This is certainly not a new idea, as his inconsistency on the mound and unwillingness to adapt to a more aggressive style of pitching has frustrated many Red Sox fans.