NL West

For years Major League pitchers have been cringing about taking the mound at Coors Field.

So far this spring the Yankees have not had to deal with major injuries to their pitching staff and while that is fantastic, it’s bad for Chad Gaudin and Sergio Mitre, if they want to stay in the Bronx.

I never really thought Mark Reynolds strikeouts were an issue and apparently the Arizona Diamondbacks don’t think so either. Yesterday, the Diamondbacks officially signed the slugging third baseman to a new deal.

The Diamondbacks signed Reynolds to a three-year contract worth $14.5 million. The deal also includes an $11 million club option for 2013. Here is the breakdown of the contract:

2010: $500,000

2011: $5 million

2012: $7.5 million

On the heels of demotions to minor league camp, the Dodgers are slimming their prospective pitchers for the major league roster.

After all the hype about the return of Eric Gagne, the rebounding pitcher was sent to minor league camp and accepted the assignment.

There is no doubt that Gagne would have been welcomed in Hollywood and given a hero's welcome jogging from the bullpen to the mound, but he has been less than impressive, and the team had to pull the string.

Spring Training injuries are as common as the morning sunrise. Everyday there is a new one.

With Spring Training beginning it's third week of play, a lot of interesting questions have sprung up around Giants' camp in Scottsdale.

1.) Is Madison Bumgarner going to start the year in San Francisco or Fresno?
2.) Is Fred Lewis going to be traded or released considering he has no minor league options left on his contract?
3.) When will Buster Posey supplant Bengie Molina in the starting lineup next season?

It's spring and no time to complain about anything that might or might not happen this summer.

The San Francisco Giants are favored by many to win the NL West. So, let's celebrate on day we enjoy our first extra hour of daylight.

OK. Celebration's over. A couple of things caught my on Saturday and, well, I'm concerned about what the summer will bring.

Giants fans who feel like playing right field at AT&T Park requires an advanced degree of some sort might be alarmed to hear that Aubrey Huff is talking about potentially seeing some action in right field.

Ever since he announced his retirement last year, there's been an ongoing debate about whether Curt Schilling belongs in the hall of fame. I haven't quite made up my mind on that yet, but I'm leaning toward saying he should get in.

But what I'm absolutely sure of is the cap he should have on his plaque if he does get in. The three teams that have a shot are the Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Boston Red Sox. So which logo should be on his plaque, the Phils, Snakes, or Sox?

The fact of the matter is this for Giants fans: Aaron Rowand is going to be the Giants center fielder on Opening Day, and he most likely is going to bat leadoff unless one of three things happen:

1. Mark DeRosa gets hurt again this Spring Training and is unable to play on Opening Day, which forces manager Bruce Bochy to play either Eugenio Velez or Andres Torres in left field (who would be slotted in at leadoff because of their speed).

There are five tools to baseball:

Hitting for average, hitting for power, speed, arm strength, and fielding ability.

In the history of baseball there has only been one man to posses all five tools at an elite level.

His name was Willie Mays.

How many baseball players can you name with 12 gold gloves, 660 career home runs, a .303 career batting average, 338 steals, 3,283 career hits, and 24 All-Star selections?

If you can find me another man with accolades greater than that, I will sell you my soul.