Baseball

On the heels of a recent story in the North Bergen Record by Steve Popper and Bob Klapisch, New York Mets fans are ready to pack it in already.

Let's face it though: Most Mets fans have already packed it in, but there were a few still hanging on.

The article published yesterday cites unnamed members (as usual) of the Mets organization. It claimed that they're ready to shut Johan Santana down completely because he has not been progressing as he continues to rehab his surgically repaired shoulder.

With less than three weeks till Opening Day (I don't count the night game before), Major League Baseball is almost here. So is your fantasy baseball draft. No better time than now to start preparing for it.

Here are my mid-spring training rankings for the closer position.

Please Note: Stats are listed as: Wins, ERA, Saves/Opportunities, Strikeouts, WHIP and IP for the 2010 season. The player’s age at the start of the 2011 season is next to his team’s name.

It was no secret that Zack Greinke wanted out of Kansas City. Speculation arose of where he'd be traded to, if traded at all.

Would it be the New York Yankees?

Would it be the Philadelphia Phillies?

Or would he just be forced to stay put in Kansas City?

In the end he ended up in Milwaukee and is now a Brewer.

The Kansas City Royals went 67-95 last season. Greinke went 10-14 and at 4.17, he had his third highest ERA in his seven years in the big leagues.

Greinke was outstanding 2008 and 2009 season, winning the AL Cy Young in 2009. 

Many fans of America’s pastime believe that “money buys championships.”

Whether or not you're a subscriber to the theory, the amount of cash thrown around in the offseason has sparked considerable debate.

Last fall, the San Francisco Giants captured the World Series title with top-tier pitching, not an abundance of multimillion-dollar outfield players. Some might say, “Pitching trumps hitting, each and every time.”

As sure as the ivy grows in Wrigley Field every summer, so do the Chicago Cubs in finding themselves the odd men out in October.

With more than 100 years of misplayed balls and missed home runs, this should be the year it changes. This should be the year they break the "Cubbie" curse and learn the magic of October glory—but they won't.

In 2008, the Baltimore Orioles banked on the University of San Diego's stand out pitcher Brian Matusz becoming the future ace of their starting rotation and in 2011 there's a very good chance that future is now.

Baltimore would select Matusz with their first round pick of the 2008 Major League Baseball draft. This lead to extensive and exhausting contract negotiations that would ultimately end with Matusz and his agent finally agreeing to terms with the O's on the last possible day for MLB teams to sign their drafted rookies.

The Mets have a the fifth largest payroll in baseball. They have a shiny new stadium, they play in the largest market in America and have a roster loaded with talent.

For all this, the Mets are terrible. In every way imaginable.

Here’s a look at the 2011 A.L. Only closer rankings.

1. Neftali Feliz, Texas Rangers

Our 2011 fantasy baseball projections will be released one-by-one until the top 100 players have been revealed. These rankings consider past achievements, current performance and expected future results based on standard 5×5 H2H settings.

Our 2011 fantasy baseball projections will be released one-by-one until the top 100 players have been revealed. These rankings consider past achievements, current performance and expected future results based on standard 5×5 H2H settings.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve announced the top 80 players on our 2011 big board. Click on each player’s name for a more in-depth analysis, including 2011 projections!