NL East

Day two of the pitchers and catchers portion of Spring Training saw the arrival of Francisco Rodriguez, or K-Rod, as he is commonly known. The first thing on K-Rod's agenda was to express his remorse over his assault incident last August.

It may come as a bit of shock, but the Florida Marlins aren't done with their offseason shopping. Foxsports.com is reporting that the Marlins are interested in Texas Rangers third baseman Michael Young who recently demanded a trade. 

Entering Spring Training, the Atlanta Braves only have a few questions surrounding the depth of their team, something manager Fredi Gonzalez will surely keep an eye on throughout February and March.

Over the course of the next month, Gonzalez will decide on the club's fifth starter — likely Mike Minor — and also evaluate the team's relievers, as they are looking for someone to occupy the final bullpen spot.

When the New York Yankees signed pitcher CC Sabathia to a seven-year, $161 million contract, they included opt-out clauses in each of the first three years of the deal. Why? Because Sabathia wasn't sure he wanted to pitch in New York, so to lure the hefty left-hander into pinstripes, the Yankees gave him an out.

Yesterday, when asked whether he would opt out and become a free agent at the end of the upcoming season, Sabathia said, "I have no idea. [The opt-out clause] is still in my contract. Anything is possible."

Several reports have surfaced that the Wilpon's have reached out to Donald Trump in regards to purchasing a minority share of the New York Mets.

As pitchers and catchers report to their respective Spring Training sites, optimism reigns supreme, from Florida to Arizona.

Every team believes, with just a few breaks, it can make a run at the playoffs. The harsh realities of June and July, and the dog days of August are inconsequential this time of year.

Of course, with hopeless optimism comes the inevitable whisper of doubt. Each National League organization, from the pitching rich Phillies, to the perennially hopeless Pirates, has its share of question marks. 

Although they have always been overshadowed by the Bronx Bombers, the Mets have possessed their fair share of baseball's greatest, especially in recent time. The Mets offense struggled during most of the 1960s until it all of a sudden became clutch in 1969 when they won their first World Series. The offense was better, but still inconsistent during the 1970s. When the Mets won, they were hitting, but during the latter years in which they were a losing team, the hitting was not the same. In the 1980s, the Mets were consistently hitting well, probably their best offensive decade.

Now that the previews for the American League is complete, it's time to start breaking down the National League. We'll start off with the NL East, which on paper, looks over before it even begins.

It may be a silly statement to make, as there are other teams that can play well in the division, but who really thinks the team with four aces won't run away with things?

It'll be an interesting season for this division as it appears the team that's always been on the bottom is making some nice improvements.

There is a media circus brewing in baseball. It has just begun and will continue to build and grow into an unstoppable force in the months of the season to come. I am not talking about the Mets finances. Not immediately anyway.

For what it's worth, the Philadelphia Phillies made their fair share of noise this off-season. Even when lurking in the shadows, the Phillies would eventually come out on top, signing free agent left handed starter and prize of the 2011 off-season, Cliff Lee. Soon after the five year, $125 million deal became official, realizing that the Phillies had very little resources remaining was not exactly rocket science.