MLB

The Yankees are reportedly planning on letting Brett Gardner be the regular center fielder this year, at least until he demonstrates that he can't handle the load. In my mind, his four seasons of fairly lackluster performances in the minor leagues have already demonstrated that.

I miss Bill Veeck...from Larry Doby, to Satchel Paige, to Max Patkin, the shorts, exploding scoreboards, adding the surnames to jerseys, to having Harry Caray sing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame", to "Disco Demolition Night"...MLB stole his ideas...but lost sight of the fun that was supposed to accompany it.

With Chicago Cubs future closer Carlos losing the job to Kevin Gregg, I thought I would make a list of nine MLB Relievers who have thrived throughout their career as a setup man, boasting the kind of stuff that make managers drool.

When they get opportunities in the ninth though, their stuff is nowhere to be found.

Here are nine closers I never want to see in the ninth inning again.

1. LaTroy Hawkins, Houston Astros

My 2009 predictions based on the 2008 season article unleashed a plethora of insults (some community....).

Basically, 2008 was a wild season because of the Rays going from the worst record in baseball in 2007 to the World Series in 2008.

And because the Washington Nationals had the worst record in 2008, the system had them going to the World Series in 2009.

Going into Spring Training, only three pitchers were guaranteed spots in the rotation: Roy Halladay, Jesse Litsch, and David Purcey.

Many candidates were brought into camp to complete for the last two spots, including Matt Clement, Mike Maroth, Casey Janssen, Brad Mills, Brett Cecil, Ricky Romero, and Canadian Scott Richmond.

Now with just a week left to go until the season begins, just three players remain in the battle for the last two spots.

by Derek of The Sportmeisters

The Sportmeisters Fantasy Guru, Derek, reveals his updated Relief Pitcher rankings, with auction values and new projections.

by Derek of The Sportmeisters

The Sportmeisters Fantasy Guru, Derek, reveals his updated Starter Pitcher rankings, with auction values and new projections.

Who strikes terror in the hearts of the Minnesota Twins?

Is it David Ortiz? Travis Hafner? Jermaine Dye? Alex Rodriguez? Or maybe Gary Sheffield?

Surprisingly enough, these feared sluggers don't qualify for the current list of "Twin Killers," those who cause Minnesota boosters to mutter under their collective breath and force Twins' manager Ron Gardenhire to count to 10.

10. Kevin Youkilis, Red Sox

Youkilis enjoyed a breakout season in 2008, batting .312 with 29 home runs and 115 RBI.

While the New York Yankees have an All-Star laden roster, there was still a roster competition taking place in Tampa. The center field job was a wide open race between Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner.

Both players were pretty hungry, too, posting outstanding spring numbers. They definitely made it hard on manager Joe Girardi to choose one over the other. With the season less than a week away, Girardi made the announcement today. The NEW Yankees starting centerfielder is Brett Gardner.

Cleveland Indians

Baseball Musings Team Offense
Baseball America Top 10 Prospects

Lineup
Grady Sizemore CF
Mark DeRosa 3B
Travis Hafner DH
Victor Martinez C