Preview/Prediction

As the calendar turns to March, we are approaching the one-year anniversary of a pretty monumental day in the history of American professional sports.

The third edition of the World Baseball Classic is officially under way, as the best in the game will compete for national pride in what's become the most highly anticipated international baseball event in the world. 

As the two-time defending champions, the Japanese squad is obviously the team to beat, but given how spread out the talent is between the top tier of teams, it wouldn't be surprising to see Japan fail to make it back to the finals. 

Every year since 1959, the Topps baseball card company has named an All-Star rookie team.

One player from each position is chosen to the team, and they have an All-Star Rookie trophy adorn their card in the upcoming set.

The 2012 All-Star rookie team was; C Wilin Rosario, 1B Anthony Rizzo, 2B Steve Lombardozzi, 3B Todd Frazier, SS Zack Cozart, OF Yoenis Cespedes, OF Bryce Harper, OF Mike Trout, RHP Yu Darvish, LHP Wade Miley and RP Addison Reed.

It took the 2004 Olympics to get big-name stars back in international basketball as representatives of the United States. After Team USA finished third and took home the Bronze medal, the prevailing embarrassment that followed has given us two (2008, 2012) of the most dominant Olympic basketball teams of the modern era.

The first game of the World Baseball Classic will be taking place in this pool on March 2. If you are not familiar with the setup of the World Baseball Classic, each pool consists of four teams. These four teams play a round-robin format, where the top two teams will advance into the next round. All games in the World Baseball Classic can be seen on MLB Network.

Major League Baseball has a lot to look forward to with Mike Trout and Bryce Harper's whole careers ahead of them, but who is going to have a better second chapter?

The Angels star largely overshadowed a fantastic campaign from the Nationals phenom, ending with a near MVP win over Miguel Cabrera.

Still, there is a ton to like about Harper who could very well usurp Trout in 2013 as the best young player in the game.   

Looking at the rosters for the World Baseball Classic, there are few squads with more talent than Team USA. However, that does not mean it will be an easy path to victory.

The United States has struggled in the past events due to various reasons, most notably a lack of interest in the event. It is hard to stay focused when there is an entire regular season still ahead.

Is it time to break up the Seattle Mariners?

So far this spring, after only five games, the M's are 4-1 while averaging nearly seven runs per game with power coming from several surprising sources with players such as Casper Wells and Jason Bay having already hit home runs. Meanwhile, pitchers Hector Noesi and Jeremy Bonderman have both struggled in brief stints on the mound.  

It's been a wild ride this winter with big-name free agents signing their typical lucrative contracts, and teams making trades to potentially better themselves for the upcoming season (and possibly beyond).

We now sit just a little more than a month away from Opening Day. So with that in mind, with the offseason dust just about settled, it's time to take a look at where each team sits with its roster.