NL East

The Cincinnati Reds have been a dark-horse pick by a lot of fans for a few years and the team put it all together in 2010. Dusty Baker is now taking his third National League team into the playoffs.

Will this be the year he gets that ring?

The Reds offense, led by slugger Joey Votto and lead-off hitter Brandon Phillips, gets to face the toughest staff in the postseason in the Philadelphia Phillies.

Owners of professional sports teams are a fascinating set.  Usually wealthy, some charismatic, some stoic, others intensely private.  Only a select few people accumulate enough wealth to own a professional sports team, so naturally they draw a fair amount of interest.

Whatifsports.com presents Bobby Cox and the Braves. From a World Series title to holding the record for most ejections, Atlanta Braves skipper Bobby Cox has blessed Braves nation with memories to last a lifetime. To celebrate his impending retirement, we have created this 16-team tournament of Bobby's best Braves ballclubs.

Let me be straight right off the bat.

Edwin Rodriguez should not have left Sun Life Stadium in Miami last Sunday without word as to whether he will remain at the helm of the Florida Marlins next season.

The former major leaguer that played once for the New York Yankees deserves the opportunity to be back. Period.

The New York Mets cleaned house Monday, officially parting ways with manager Jerry Manuel and general manager Omar Minaya.

After finishing the season with a disappointing 79-83 record, a whopping 18 games behind the first-place Phillies in the National League East, the writing was on the wall for both men.

Now, in need of new leadership at the top, the Mets suddenly face the prospect of rebuilding from the farm system all the way up to the major league level.

Heading into the 2010 season, this is a team that many had pegged to compete with the Philadelphia Phillies for the division title.

It's safe to say that a few things went wrong.

After finishing 79-83, the Mets are now coming off their second straight disappointing season and are a team in crisis. Sure, the dismissals of General Manager Omar Minaya and Manager Jerry Manuel will appease some fans, but it certainly won't solve any of the team's woes.

Two years and a day after Jerry Manuel agreed to terms with the New York Mets to replace Willie Randolph as full-time manager, he finds himself out of a job.

After a successful stint as interim manager in 2008 with a 55-38 record, Manuel really struggled as full-time manager, leading the Mets to two consecutive losing seasons with a cumulative record of 149-175.

Just a day after the New York Mets' season ended, the team has already begun to make some major changes.

It was announced today that Jerry Manuel will not have his contract renewed for next season.

Manuel never managed to have much success in New York. Over two-and-a-half years, he had a record of 204-213. This gave him a .489 winning percentage.

The 2010 Phillies beat out the 2010 Atlanta Braves for the NL East title. But in the postseason, Philly will have to beat the ghosts of the 1991-2005 Atlanta Braves. What? Well, hopefully it’ll make more sense by the end of this slideshow.

Right now, the Phillies have their own “Big Three,” and with it, a great chance to win their second World Series in three years.

In the parlance of that iconic psychedelic rock band, The Grateful Dead, the 2010 Philadelphia Phillies went on a long strange trip that was marred by a slew of injuries.  Of course, GM Ruben Amaro, skipper Charlie Manuel, and the rest of the team kept on Truckin', and they somehow enter this week's playoffs with the best record in baseball.