Dan Uggla

The 2010-2011 MLB off season was one for the books. Whether it was news regarding Carl Crawford's free agency or whether or not Zach Greinke would be traded, there was never a dull moment this winter for baseball fans. Very few teams remain in the same position as they were in November.

Dan Uggla tends to be a rather polarizing player.  The people who like him really, really like him. 

The people who are not as high on him may not “hate” him, per se, but they devalue him based on the potential for a low average. 

The question is: are some people underappreciating the skill set that Uggla brings to the table?

Before we can fully answer that question, let’s take a look at what he accomplished in 2010:

If you had to name the three players in Major League Baseball who have been associated with the term “contract extension” over the past three or four seasons, who would you name?

Since 2006, second baseman Dan Uggla has hit 154 home runs. The only person to hit more over that time is Albert Pujols.

Now the Atlanta Braves are hoping for more of the same from the 30-year-old right-handed hitter.

Uggla and the Braves agreed officially today on a five-year, $62 million extension, which will keep the second baseman through the rest of his prime years as a major leaguer.

This past year presented Atlanta Braves fans with plenty of moments to relish.

This was the first time the Braves had reached the playoffs since 2005 and was the final season for venerable manager Bobby Cox.

But, I'm staying away from those topics for this slideshow.

Instead, I'm focusing on singular moments over the course of the calendar year that Braves fans will be talking about for years to come rather than events that involved a culmination of years/months of dedicated work to draw their fanfare.

The five teams in the National League East, the Phillies, Braves,  Marlins, Mets and Nationals, have all had busy off-seasons trying to improve their clubs. Some have been more successful than others. And some, like the Phillies and Mets, are moving very slowly through the free agent and trade possibilities.

Here is a countdown of the top 10 moves so far within the division and a breakdown of potential future moves for each team.

In recent years, the Philadelphia Phillies have made most of their offseason noise in big trades and free agent signings, bringing names like Roy Halladay, Placido Polanco, Raul Ibanez and Brad Lidge to the City of Brotherly Love. However, in the past, the Phillies structured their roster in different ways, including a plethora of minor league deals, trading big names for young potential, spending heavily on the first year player draft and taking a gamble in the Rule 5 Draft. Which, in recent years, has landed All-Star outfielder Shane Victorino and long-relief man David Herndon.

Note: I wrote this article on my old blog (11/17/10). Any time-sensitive material should be disregarded.

As a fan of the Atlanta Braves, we have had much to complain about for the past few years.  However, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I believe we should also consider a few things that we can give thanks for as fans of this great franchise.

The fact is that 2010 was just a starting point for what should be a nice few years of success in Atlanta.  I do predict the Braves should be very competitive in 2011 and battle the Phillies again for the NL East title.  I honestly think this year the Braves should win the division as long as there are no major injuries.

Mike Napoli struck out in Monday's 2-1 victory over the Oakland A's. It was the final game at Angels Stadium in 2010.

And it might have been Napoli's final strikeout as an Angel.

Last month, Napoli was among a flock of Angels to be placed on waivers and was one of the few to be claimed. The Boston Red Sox were ultimately unable to win their claim, but the fact remains: Napoli is wanted, just not by the Angels.