Preview/Prediction

The start of the baseball season is always highly anticipated.

Not only does it signal the end of winter, but fans can finally watch the game they love.

The shout of “Play Ball” is even more sought after in Cleveland this year.  Fans no longer want to hear about the doldrums of the NFL lockout, and the only thing worse than the Cavs' record is their effort. 

The San Francisco Giants have this division in the bag.

Or at least they should.

The Giants won the World Series on the strength of their pitching and timely hitting. With the players still on roster and some other additions, San Francisco should be able to reproduce most of its success from 2010.

The Yankees usually get who they want during the offseason, but this past offseason, they missed out on the Cliff Lee sweepstakes.  They threw more money at him than Philadelphia, but Lee said no thanks.

So, instead of going after a starting pitcher, the Yanks went out and acquired Rafael Soriano. In many ways, the signing is better than any starter they would've acquired.  With Soriano and Mariano Rivera now anchoring the eighth and ninth innings, it takes pressure off the starting rotation.

The Seattle Mariner's chronically underachieve, and last year was certianly no different.

However, when you look at back at their lineup on Opening Day and see Casey Kotchman, Jack Wilson, Rob Johnson and Jose Lopez pencilied in, you can realize why this team failed in historic fashion. The 2010 Mariners scored the fewest runs in the American League since the designated hitter was introduced.

On Friday, the Oakland Athletics optioned Chris Carter to Triple-A Sacramento, ending his quest to break camp part of the A's opening day roster.

Carter was a long shot to make the team after the offseason acquisitions of Josh Willingham, David DeJesus and Hideki Matsui. Although Carter expected the move, he entered camp determined to make it a difficult decision for the Athletics management.

COLORADO ROCKIES

Last Year: 83-79, 3rd in NL West

Manager: Jim Tracy

PROJECTED LINEUP

C—Chris Iannetta (R)

1B—Todd Helton (L)

2B—Jose Lopez (R) 

3B—Ian Stewart (L)

SS—Troy Tulowtizki (L)

LF—Carlos Gonzalez (L)

CF—Dexter Fowler (S)

RF—Seth Smith (L)

LOS ANGELES ANGELS 

Last Year: 80-82, 3rd in AL West  

Manager: Mike Scioscia 

PROJECTED LINEUP 

C- Jeff Mathis (R) 

1B- Kendry Morales (S) (Will start season on DL)

2B- Howie Kendrick (R)

3B- Maicer Izturis (S) or Alberto Callaspo (S)

SS- Erick Aybar (S)

LF- Vernon Wells (R)

CF- Peter Bourjos (R)

RF- Torii Hunter (R)

DH- Bobby Abreu (L)

Matt Garza's a Cub. Ditto for Carlos Pena. Jason Bartlett is a Padre. Rafael Soriano now calls the Bronx home. Grant Balfour's in Oakland. Carl Crawford is, of course, now a Boston Red Sox, as is Dan Wheeler. Dioner Navarro? He's a Dodger.

After a winter heavy on exits and light on entrances, Tampa Bay entered camp this spring with prognostications of hopeless mediocrity.

The contending team of the past three seasons? Lost to the winds of financial reality, which has never been a happy reality for the Rays.

Middle relievers don’t get the glory that starters or closers do, especially in fantasy baseball, but they can lower your ERA and WHIP while adding to your strikeouts without taxing your maximum innings pitched too heavily. Plus, if their closer gets hurt or is ineffective, you suddenly have a cheap closer.

Texas Rangers (2010 record: 90-72)

The Texas Rangers won their first American League pennant, but eventually lost the World Series to the San Francisco Giants. Their drive to the Fall Classic was spurred by an MVP season from LF Josh Hamilton, a Rookie of the Year campaign from closer Neftali Feliz, and all-star efforts from five players.