NL West

The times are indeed changing for the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

After seeing the once-proud franchise rot under the ownership of Frank McCourt, the Dodgers find themselves in the enviable position of having a new pack of owners with deep pockets who are willing to spend at all costs to bring a championship back to Los Angeles. 

The Los Angeles Dodgers have one of Major League Baseball’s best five-tool players in center fielder Matt Kemp.

But what if we could make him even better? How good would Kemp be if we could borrow the best skills from his Dodgers teammates to create the perfect baseball player?

Given Kemp’s prodigious talents, it would not take much to make him the best player in the game.

This series will evaluate one team per day, starting on Jan. 23 and ending on Feb. 22 (the first game of spring training). It is based on last season's performance, the offseason changes since then and the author's outlook for the team in 2013. Please keep in mind that rosters can, and will, change before Opening Day. 

Baseball games aren't played on paper or inside those newer, fancier computer projection systems that are in vogue today. However, with another month and a half to go until opening day, projections are all fans have to go on right now.

Clayton Blackburn, Kyle Crick and Chris Stratton—the San Francisco Giants' top three prospects according to Marc Hulet of FanGraphs—won't be in big league camp this spring. None of those three pitching prospects have pitched above A-ball yet, so Giants fans will have to remain patient on that front.

For the second time in three years, the San Francisco Giants will enter spring training with the feeling of being World Series champions. 

However, there are still some questions that need to be answered and some concerns about the defending champions.

The San Diego Padres and GM Josh Byrnes have left much to be desired this offseason.

They have spent most of their assets on keeping their roster from last season and maintaining their farm system. This may be the best strategy for the Padres considering that they finished with a respectable 42-33 record after the All-Star break.

When Brian Wilson went down in the first week of the 2012 season, many Giants fans panicked. Some lost hope for the whole year. 

After all, the Giants didn't have any proven ninth inning options, and the last several World Series champions, including the 2010 Giants, had proven closers. 

Tim Lincecum met with the media Friday for the first time this offseason and he sounds like a man on a mission. Lincecum is going to bounce back in a big way for the San Francisco Giants in 2013. 

The San Francisco Giants' offseason tour down memory lane continued on Tuesday when the team reportedly re-acquired free agent reliever Ramon Ramirez on a minor league contract (h/t Andrew Baggarly).