New York Yankees

Today, baseball fans view the American League as the tougher league, due to its usage of the designated hitter.  Within the American League, the Eastern division is regarded as the most talented and toughest division to play in.  It has been this way for a long time.  

So, when you have a division with such a notoriety, there had to have been a plethora of amazing players to give it that notoriety.  That is what I will be examining today; the greatest of those amazing players that gave (or are still giving) the AL East the reputation it has today.  

One of the latest rumors coming out of New York Yankees spring training is who will be the leadoff hitter in the batting order. Will it be veteran shortstop and captain Derek Jeter or up-and-coming outfielder Brett Gardner? 

At the beginning of spring training, Yankees manager Joe Girardi maintained that the No. 1 spot is Jeter’s.

Our 2011 fantasy baseball projections will be released one-by-one until the top 100 players have been revealed. These rankings consider past achievements, current performance and expected future results based on standard 5×5 H2H settings.

Closers are the most overrated players in fantasy baseball.

Asked for the millionth time about his decision to take less money and fewer years to pitch in Philadelphia instead of New York, Lee said that the age of the Yankees players was a factor.

"They're getting old," Lee said.

Andrew Brackman is one of the biggest Yankees prospects in the system, both in talent and physical stature. He stands an enormous 6'10" and is listed at 240 pounds.

A product of North Carolina State University, Brackman played basketball and baseball for the Wolfpack before giving up hoops to further his dream of playing major-league baseball.

The NFL took a firm shake of the magic eight ball on Friday and gave just about every waiting fan a valid answer after tossing it aside: There will be no season in 2011.

What a shock, what a surprise.  

Not really.

We expected it to happen, that picture was painted long ago.  From the undetermined outcome of last week, to the past 24 hours of humming and haring, an answer was coming, one way or another.

The Yankees farm system has been thrust into the limelight in 2011. 

This spring has been an opportunity for some of their up-and-coming stars to showcase their talents in front of their major league counterparts. 

While Yankee fans would love to see them crack the Opening Day roster, some time marinating in the minors would only benefit their development. Rushing a player to the next level can sometimes set them back physically or even mentally. 

The start of the 2011 MLB season is fast approaching, but instead of a loaded roster, the Yankees have some glaring weaknesses, especially in the pitching rotation.

Andy Pettitte has retired, which is a major blow to the pitching rotation. He was consistent in the regular season, and won more playoff games than any other pitcher in history.

Starting pitcher A.J. Burnett had a horrid 2010 season, and Javier Vasquez is now with the Florida Marlins.

Tommy John’s hopes of a bust in Cooperstown have long since died. In 2009, the BBWAA unceremoniously snuffed out his candle and sent him into MLB Purgatory with only 31 percent of the ballots. If the Veterans’ Committee does not act upon him within 15 years, he will be resigned to MLB Hell.

It is a shame too, because John is one of baseball’s nice guys. Hell, he even has a medical procedure named after him, shouldn’t that count for something?

In 2007, Russell Martin won a silver slugger and was generally considered one of the best catchers in the game. Since then, it has been a long steady fall from grace. Martin was plagued with MCL injuries last season, only playing in 97 games, which helped continue his streak of declining production: