MLB Trade Rumors

Let's get something clear right off the bat—I'm not advocating that the San Francisco Giants trade Matt Cain in the 2010-11 MLB offseason. I'm not even suggesting they should consider doing so.

The Kid has been the Giants' most consistent pitcher for years, and he's been one of the best starting pitchers in baseball for the same duration. Though Tim Lincecum is unquestionably the staff ace and justifiably dominates the limelight, his right-handed stablemate is only a nose behind him.

Yahoo Sports is reporting that the Kansas City Royals may be putting their ace pitcher on the market this off-season in hopes of getting a large return.

Among the teams that have been interested in Zach Greinke's services are the New York Yankees. 

The Red Sox are kicking the proverbial tires on veteran backstop Rod Barajas, according to FoxSports.com's Jon Paul Morosi and MLBTradeRumors.com.

While the Red Sox reportedly made a bid to retain Victor Martinez behind the dish for at least the next couple seasons, they lost him to a more aggressive Detroit Tigers' organization early last Wednesday.

With the Major League Baseball Hot Stove season almost at its boiling point, many fans across Dodgertown can't help but recollect the most notable trades in the history of the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise.

Since officially moving to Los Angeles in 1958, many player trades occurred that were instrumental in winning nine National League pennants and five World Series championships. However, along with the deals that were beneficial came the deals that were dreadful, and people wonder what may have transpired if a number of these trades could have been undone.

As baseball's offseason heats up, one of the more intriguing names on the market is former No. 1 overall pick and current Arizona Diamondback outfielder, Justin Upton.

Numerous teams are interested in the very young and talented outfielder and, as usual, one of the teams to make an inquiry is the New York Yankees. Although the Yankees do not have Upton at the top of their wish list, he could certainly become an option.

The 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants.

Such a nice ring to it, wouldn't you agree?

The Major League Baseball title drought is over in The City, and the champagne showers that quenched the thirst have passed—but the euphoria is still thick. So thick, in fact, that the reality of the Commissioner's Trophy hasn't set in for many who joined the roller-coaster bandwagon in time to ride out a few of its many valleys.

As for yours truly, I strapped in sometime during the 1988 season.

One of the few bright spots of the Red Sox' 2010 season was Adrian Beltre's triumphant return to stardom.

In 154 games with Boston, Beltre hit .321 with 28 homers, 102 RBI and a .919 OPS. He combined his newly rediscovered offensive prowess with his Gold Glove defense for a whopping 7.1 Wins Above Replacement. It's not an exaggeration to say that the Red Sox might have finished below .500 without him.

Cliff Lee is a phenom on the mound.  With the ball in hand and the crowd going bananas, Lee oftentimes shines.  His prowess as a big-game pitcher is no longer questioned, despite another World Series loss for his team, this time the Texas Rangers.  

The one team that has long coveted this stud lefty is the money-powered New York Yankees.  Why not? Unlike most teams, they can afford Lee's services, and they're looking for another arm in their rotation right now—or at least they should be.  

Not repeating and no longer reigning as champions was not the game plan the New York Yankees had at the start of the 2010 season.

Losing the ALCS to the Texas Rangers was heartbreaking. The Bombers elimination seemed almost unreal, as the Yankees were the stronger ball-club all season long.

The blame-game is in full swing in New York, pointing fingers at Skipper Joe Girardi for his managerial calls and GM Brian Cashman not facing a team of over-the-hill players in time.

When the Atlanta Braves 2010 came to a close a couple weeks back at the hands of the eventual National League Champion San Francisco Giants, there was a lot of mourning at the Britt (that's me) household.

I was resigned to filling out college applications and (gasp) putting school over baseball for a couple of weeks as I bitterly refused to watch the LCS's for the thought of what might of been had Chipper Jones, Martin Prado, Billy Wagner and Kris Medlen been good-to-go for the first round of the playoffs.

What's that?