MLB

Washington DC

By Patrick Read

The winter offseason is just about over. We're about to get back to baseball.

For those who haven't had much to watch since the Super Bowl, and aren't into college or pro basketball, you are about to get your baseball season going again.

This past November, the Yankees got back on top of the baseball world by winning the 2009 World Series over the Phillies, the previous champions, in a very competitive series.

We've seen some changes to the roster this past winter. There will be some new faces and even some old faces coming back to the team for the 2010 campaign.

Daisuke Matsuzaka is an early arrival to the Boston Red Sox spring training camp. However, he didn't appear on the practice field today, according to ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes. The answer as to why might come from several Japanese media outlets.

Starting Pitchers

Aaron Harang

Edison Volquez

Aroldis Chapman (my NL Rookie of the Year pick)

Bronson Arroyo

Johnny Cueto/Homer Bailey (until Chapman is ready)

The 2009 season saw many players break out of mediocrity in America's Pastime, but only a select few of them can be expected to continue their newfound success into 2010.

You can ask Ryan Ludwick or Geovany Soto: at any rate, players that put together a career year without any moderate success before hand can be expected to see a drop in their statistics.

In this article I have identified the top breakout players of 2009 and analyzed whether or not they can be expected to follow it up with a big season this year.

Mark Reynolds

The Colorado Rockies play in one of the most beautiful ballparks in all of baseball. Now their Double-A farm team will have their own beautiful park to call home.

Could Aroldis Chapman have as much talent as the Big Unit? It has been said, and not by me. Some of the other suitors who lost out in the bid to get Chapman, said that he has that kind of talent but needs to have it nurtured.

My speculation is that you will see him in a Cincinnati uniform between Memorial Day and the All-Star break. I am not saying he will stay for the duration, but I think he will be given a chance to show what he can do.

Just a few hours remain before San Francisco Giants pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The Giants enter 2010 with raised expectations after a 16-game improvement on their record. That was good enough to get GM Brian Sabean and manager Bruce Bochy sparkly two-year extensions.

Sabean stayed away from the big-name free agent hitters and instead decided to go with short-term solutions—something he has done time and time again in the past.

The Yankees have signed 28-year-old right handed pitcher Dustin Moseley to a minor league deal, and invited him to spring training as a non-roster invitee. The Yankees have also announced that they have invited four of their other minor leaguers to camp.

The other minor leaguers are infielders Brandon Laird and Jorge Vazquez, as well as right handed pitchers DJ Mitchell and Ryan Pope  That brings the amount of players in camp to 65 (the full squad won’t report until Feb. 24).

Young arms are becoming a more and more precious commodity in baseball, and the Yankees, with Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes, have two of the better ones in baseball.

Protecting those arms has become paramount. That’s why the Yankees enacted the “Joba Rules” last year, and in 2010 we may even see the Phil-osophy. It’s about keeping Joba and Hughes healthy and out on the mound.