Dallas Braden

By all reports, Dallas Braden truly made the most of the amenities at Chase Field during Monday night's game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and St. Louis Cardinals.

More specifically, the former MLB pitcher turned ESPN analyst was all about that pool past the Diamondbacks' outfield wall.

In 2010, the Oakland Athletics took strides in the right direction, posting an 81-81 record to snap a streak of three consecutive losing seasons.  Though Oakland's pitching kept them competitive, lack of offensive production counteracted a solid rotation and kept the A's out of the playoffs for the fourth year in a row.

Everybody knows two things about Dallas Braden. He threw a Perfect Game last year, and he is not intimidated by anyone. Bravado aside, the question remains whether or not he should be part of your fantasy team. A look at his career record of 25-35 would suggest not, but we know how wins can be a tricky measure to gauge a pitcher.

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.  

With a large part of the 2011 offseason over, teams' rosters are becoming more and more clear.

Which starting rotations are the best in baseball for the 2011 season?

In this article, I will list the top 10 starting rotations in Major League Baseball.

Let me know if you agree/disagree with any of my picks in the comments section.

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Prior to making the offseason moves for Rich Harden and Brandon McCarthy, the Oakland Athletics already had the best pitching staff in the American League.  Their 3.56 team ERA ranked first in the AL last year and fourth in the big leagues behind San Francisco, San Diego and Atlanta.  The starting rotation stands to get better with another year of experience for young twenty-somethings Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson and Gio Gonzalez.

In the 'Year of the Pitcher,' the batters never stood a chance.

There were five no-hitters thrown (but really six), including two perfect games. There were also nine one-hitters, and a major-league debut that featured 14 strikeouts by a certain Stephen Strasburg.

Several pitchers, among them Felix Hernandez, Roy Halladay, and Ubaldo Jiminez, have had so many jaw-dropping performances this year that they could populate this top 10 list all by themselves.

But 2010 was no ordinary year. It was the pitcher's year.

Let’s take a look at who had a big day and who didn’t yesterday:

Three Hot:

This day came a little earlier than I supposed it would. Ben Sheets' season is now officially over. Possibly his career. Twice at the quarter season and half way points, I have given Sheets an overall grade. Now, instead of having two more reviews, I am forced to give my final one with his season ending surgery.

Sheets plans on having flexor-tendon surgery, mostly so that he can pitch again if he would like to; but he stated: "If I came back, I would have to feel a lot better." (San Francisco Chronicle).

Now that Matt Garza has provided us with the fifth no-hitter of the season we might as well rank the great performances we have seen. It is apparent that the steroids-era in baseball is over.

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