Preview/Prediction

For a team with 70 or fewer wins in the last two seasons, the Arizona Diamondbacks actually have several useful fantasy players.  

The first of those players to come to mind for most people would be position players.  Guys like Justin Upton, Chris Young (still cannot believe he is useful again), Stephen Drew and Miguel Montero are all useful fantasy hitters.  

The Pittsburgh Pirates come into the 2011 MLB season riding that great losing seasons streak and do not seem to want to get off that horse this year or, for many fans anywhere, for some time.

The Pirates showed the fans and baseball some good young talent with Neil Walker, Pedro Alvarez and Jose Tabata.

These three young players, however, could do little to bring back the winning ways that have been lost in the pages of Pirates history.

The best part about the offseason is that even Chicago Cubs fans like this writer can find reasons for optimism when the games haven’t started yet. For some teams, it’s a big free-agent signing to overhaul the lineup (see Gonzalez, Adrian).  For others, though, it’s a hot prospect getting his chance to shine with the big club. Here are 10 youngsters (though, alas, no Cubs) who will likely be seeing major league action in 2011.

Closer

Alex Anthopoulos has stated that the closer role will be up for open competition come spring training, and he has acquired the arms to make it a very competitive battle. Octavio Dotel has the most closing experience of anyone on the Toronto Blue Jays' staff, with 105 saves over his career.  But Dotel has also been around a lot longer and is nearing the twilight of his career, so there is a good chance the role could go to someone younger.  

With only a couple of weeks until pitchers and catchers report, and only a month until Spring Training begins, teams are making the final modifications to their rosters and are getting ready to make an impact in 2011. Whether it's looking for a World Series ring or helping young players gain major league experience, each team has their eye set on something this season.

It’s September 17, 2011, the New York Yankees are playing a Saturday afternoon game up in Toronto, the second of a three game set against the Blue Jays.
 
Including this game, there are just 10 games left in the regular season.
 
The Yankees, who are leading 4-1 in the bottom of the eighth, are about to clinch the AL East.
 

As always, the Yankees have a chance to be really good this year.

Except for the minor problem that their No. 2 starter has only one year of starting experience in the majors, their No. 3 starter is probably the single most maddening starter in baseball, their No. 4 starter has seven major league starts to his credit and their No. 5 starter is either a guy who has never pitched in the majors or a guy who couldn’t hold the starting spot when it was handed to him last summer. 

The 2010 season abruptly ended for the San Diego Padres, who were hungry for a postseason berth. The Pads fell one game short of forcing a tie in the NL West, and needed to sweep the Giants or have the Braves be swept instead. Sadly, the Padres finished second in the West, and could not qualify for the wild card position. 

As the Minnesota Twins prepare to head down to Fort Myers for spring training, they'll be doing so without utility infielder Nick Punto for the first time in seven years. Last week Punto signed a one-year deal with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Punto was a favorite of much of the Twins Territory faithful, and while his productivity was never much to speak of (with the exception of 2008 when he batted near .300), he still managed to make a good living in Minnesota.

Still, Punto's productivity declined in 2009 and 2010 as he failed to reach a .240 average each season.

The Detroit Tigers begin the 2011 season with the goal to win a championship. However, if they want to be able to claim their first World Series title since 1984, they have some work to do.