Preview/Prediction

Just two days ago, Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty announced that Billy Hamilton would be the team's starting center fielder for the 2014 season.

With less than a week remaining in the 2013 calendar year, spring training is already on the horizon for baseball fans itching to see their favorite teams in action once again.

There is certainly some unfinished business on the free agent and trade markets, but it's never too early to start looking ahead to the 2014 season. Baseball is a team game, and players' goals tend to reflect that, but the focus of the following article will be on individual goals.

With the calendar set to flip from 2013 to 2014, there is still a good deal of MLB offseason left between now and the start of spring training, but already it has started to become clear who will and will not contend in the season ahead.

There are always surprises, as the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles in 2012 and Cleveland Indians this past year can attest to, but it's still fun to predict how things will play out.

For Cubs fans, the last few years have been rough. Well, let's be honest, the past century has been pretty tough for the Cubby faithful. 2013 was another season that saw the team lose more than 90 games, but hope is on the horizon. 

This year's winter meetings were relatively quiet, at least compared to the last few years. Still, they were not without a handful of moves that could have a significant impact on the 2014 standings.

The Diamondbacks got the power bat they were after when they landed Mark Trumbo in a three-team deal, the Mariners continued to add pieces with the signing of Corey Hart and acquisition of Logan Morrison, and the Mets shelled out a two-year, $20 million deal to sign Bartolo Colon.

It's time to put your general manager hat on and make a very important decision. Your team is in position to add one impact player prior to the 2014 season. You can either trade for Tampa Bay Rays ace David Price or sign free-agent outfielder Shin-Soo Choo. Which would be the better choice?

I'm one of the guys who confidently went down this road last year. In the end, the result was me kicking myself for daring to be so confident.

I'm ready to try it again anyway. I'm ready to say it: The Washington Nationals once again look like World Series favorites. They were already good, and they've made themselves better.

This coming Monday ought to be a day for rejoicing around Major League Baseball, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the revised posting system for international players will be ratified.

Day two of the winter meeting got off to a bang as the rumored three-team deal between the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels came together rather quickly and was a reality by early afternoon.

With one more day before the focus turns to the Rule 5 draft on Thursday, expect at least a few more big free agent signings and/or trades to happen over the next 24-30 hours or so.