NL West

1. Jake Peavy

Miraculously, the Padres did not trade Jake Peavy this offseason. A Peavy trade seemed inevitable, but thankfully, GM Kevin Towers came to his senses. Or better yet, Towers did not find an offer good enough for Peavy.

From the AP:

Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon compared former teammate Manny Ramirez to cancer, saying Boston made the right decision when it traded the slugging left fielder to the Los Angeles Dodgers last summer.

When Bill Reynolds of the Providence Journal learned that Manny Ramirez was traded to the Dodgers and that he was leaving his beloved Red Sox, his very next article began with the words, “The Circus Has Left Town.”

Last season, the Detroit Tigers finished 74-88, last in the AL Central, in large part due to their disastrous pitching. The Tigers' 4.90 team ERA in '08 was the fourth worst in the major leagues.

Detroit's hyped lineup was good, but it didn’t produce the galactic numbers that a lot of people expected. The Tigers may be facing some difficult financial decisions if their disappointing play continues. 

The Tigers were top three in player spending in 2008, along with the Yankees and Mets. They spent about $138 million. 

[Today marks yet another first here at JoeSportsFan.com, as we introduce to you the Jackie Robinson of female writers at JSF. That's right, the latest writer to make it past Joe Mustache's rigorous screening process is the first of the female variety. Her name is Julie Adelsberger, and every Wednesday she will nominate a special someone from the sports world and grant them entry into the prestigious JSF Tool Shed. Because frankly, some people deserve to be mocked.]