Preview/Prediction

Friday night's game between the Boston Red Sox and the Houston Astros showed us just why Boston has the potential to take the American League pennant: timely hitting and clutch performances from their big men, Dustin Pedroia and Adrian Gonzalez. 

With the trade deadline only a few weeks away, there are rumors flying left and right, some of which involve all of the Oakland Athletics and Kansas City Royals being traded to other teams.  And there is one team that needs to make a move right now.

That team is the Detroit Tigers.

The risk of any trade is that the player leaving your team will wind up having the more productive future than the player that you received.

Major League Baseball is full of these stories.

Remember when the San Francisco Giants traded Francisco Liriano, Joe Nathan and Boof Bonser for A.J. Pierzynski? I'm sure the Giants regretted moving those three.

David Price is going to have to win 20 games if the Tampa Bay Rays have any aspirations to repeat as AL East Champions.

In Friday night’s 8-5 loss to the Los Angeles Angels, he got put to the test and fell short...very short. It brought his record to 3-3.

Major League Baseball released its ballot for the 2011 All-Star game this past week. It may be a little early to label a player's 2011 season as All-Star caliber, but nevertheless votes casted today are worth just as much as those in late June. 

The Yankees' rotation has been on fire of late, turning in seven straight quality starts and allowing just eight earned runs over the past 50 innings for a 1.44 ERA.

That streak should be tested this weekend as the first-place Bombers battle the Blue Jays, one of the better offensive teams in baseball.

Let's take a look at the pitching matchups for this three-game series.

Through Fausto Carmona’s career, he has pitched a few great games, but he’s pitched a lot more ugly ones. The fact is that his team can’t rely on his inconsistency. Carmona needs to realize he has a strong defense backing him up. If he can’t get the strikeout, he needs to let the batter make contact and know that his defense can make the play. He is only one of nine players on the diamond, yet he plays like he’s the only out there.

As the Detroit Tigers continue to climb the standings in the AL Central, they are doing it with some unexpected contributions from players forcing their way into the everyday lineup.

After a brutal opening series against the New York Yankees, Alex Avila has rebounded to be the biggest early surprise this season for the Tigers. 

In baseball, working your way out of the minors can take anywhere from several months to many years. Only the truly elite prospects enjoy limited time in an organization's farm system. The rest, even those who are very talented, go through the critical and necessary building process in the minor leagues before getting a crack at The Show.

After locking up Ryan Braun through 2020, can the Brewers actually compete for Prince Fielder's services next season?

With each passing day, the demeanor of most Brewers fans begins to fade ever so slightly regarding the status of their beloved first-baseman, Prince Fielder.