Baseball

If Alex Rodriguez ends up missing all of the 2013 season following hip surgery, it might end up being a fortunate development for him. That is, in terms of avoiding the media. 

It's amazing how Alex Rodriguez finds himself in the news all the time.

And unfortunately for the New York Yankees, it's potentially another embarrassing situation.

The San Francisco Giants’ Cinderella-like postseason run that was capped by their second World Series championship in three seasons will forever be cemented in franchise history.

The Giants proved they could compete and be successful with far inferior talent than their opposition. The Giants were the best team during the 2012 playoffs for one reason; they had a solid nucleus of veteran leadership that never weakened.

Whether or not you like the moves that the Seattle Mariners made this offseason, you must applaud the effort that the front office put into making the M's a better team.

When signing Josh Hamilton didn't happen, GM Jack Zduriencik turned to the trade market to acquire the necessary hitters to improve the Mariners lineup in Kendrys Morales and Michael Morse.

Yadier Molina has become the current face of the St. Louis Cardinals organization.  After Albert Pujols packed up last offseason and headed west, Cardinal fans turned their focus to hoping Yadier wouldn't follow Albert out of town.

A repeat as AL West champions for the Oakland Athletics starts with manager Bob Melvin. Without him at the helm, it's not happening this year and it wouldn't have occurred last season either.

The team is talented, but Melvin pulled the right strings at the right times throughout the 2012 season. With the first base platoon returning and five outfielders for four spots, he'll have to hope his magic touch hasn't waned.

Take comfort, A's fans.

The Oakland A's shocked the baseball world last year by winning 94 games and sweeping the Texas Rangers during the final weekend of the season to win the AL West. Have they done enough this winter to give themselves a legitimate shot to repeat as division champs in 2013?

This offseason, general manager Billy Beane traded for outfielder Chris Young, catcher John Jaso and reliever Chris Resop. He also signed shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima and re-signed starting pitcher Bartolo Colon.

When composing this lineup, there were some selections that caused some second-guessing and hesitation before the final decisions were made—not just whom to include, but where to place them in the field for those who played multiple positions.

There was some internal debate on where to play Ernie Banks on the Chicago Cubs’ All-Time Team.  He played parts of nine seasons at shortstop and 11 at first base, with some time at third base and in the outfield sprinkled in.

This series will evaluate one team per day, starting on January 23, 2013 and ending on February 22, 2013 (the first game of spring training). It is based on last season's performance, offseason changes since and the author's outlook for the team in 2013. Please keep in mind that rosters can, and will, change before Opening Day. We start in the AL East and go in ABC order; next up, the Tampa Bay Rays.