Opinion

The Philadelphia Phillies may have stolen the show from the Boston Red Sox this offseason with the reacquisition of left-handed pitcher Cliff Lee—giving them what many think could be the best starting rotation in Major League history.

While that will have to be seen, some people are overlooking the fact that the Phillies lost their best right-handed power hitter in Jayson Werth.

The loss hurts because of what he brings all around on the field, but also gives the Phillies a weakness—power from the right side.

Carmelo Anthony has been one of the most talked-about figures in sports in 2011. The saga that led to his eventual departure from Denver was incredible. As was the New York Knicks' pursuit of him and the package they surrendered to the Nuggets in the resultant 13-piece, three-team trade.

So, could the story repeat itself in the upcoming baseball season? Here, we take a quick look at five candidates for the role of Anthony—players who could give up on their team, demand a trade, or both, before the July 31st trading deadline.

The New York Mets had a very disappointing 2010 season due to all of the injuries they suffered, with Jason Bay, Carlos Beltran, Johan Santana and Jose Reyes all missing significant time last year.  The Mets do have talent and the ability to make a playoff run.  The projected 2011 lineup looks like this:

1. SS Jose Reyes

2. CF Angel Pagan

3. 3B David Wright

4. RF Carlos Beltran

Let me introduce you to two players:

There are some ball teams that are genuinely strong. There are others that only look like they may be strong.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are beginning to fall into the latter category. That's already a good bit better than where they have been.

Spring training games offer much for the baseball world.  They offer knowledge; they offer glimpses of the upcoming season; they offer looks at minor league up-and-comers; and they offer first looks at those recovering from injury.  

After last year's disappointing finish, Doug Melvin's plan was clear.. Milwaukee needed more pitching in order to compete in the NL Central. The Cardinals had a formidable rotation and the Reds were returning a strong club.

He first traded for Toronto Blue Jays ace Shaun Marcum. A proven innings eater, Marcum can keep hitters off balance and still pitch effectively with a fastball in the high 80's.

Next came the trade for Zack Greinke. The Brewers gave up four top prospects for Greinke and Yuni Betancourt, but Melvin wanted to win now.

It's been a big offseason for starting pitchers on the move.

After months of speculation, Cliff Lee signed a five-year, $120 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies in the free-agent frenzy of the winter. The Milwaukee Brewers emptied their farm system for trade-market equivalent Zack Greinke and the Chicago Cubs then gave up an arguably better package of prospects for the good-not-great Matt Garza.

Towards the end of this offseason, there were a lot of rumblings about Albert Pujols and his need for a contract extension. 

Pujols has said throughout that he wants to remain with the St. Louis Cardinals and that he would not deal with the contract once spring training had started. Although Pujols took the noble path of not allowing the contract to interfere with the current season, there was no agreement met between the two parties.

Baseball season is finally here!

With the first spring training games played this past weekend, fans got to see the first look at what their 2011 team will look like. From getting to see their team's big-time prospects to the veterans, everyone is starting to make their predictions on everything from how a particular player will perform in 2011 to the which team will in the World Series this season. 

Although not all teams played this past weekend, most did, and thus, we can start to get an idea of who we should keep an eye on this spring.