Preview/Prediction

Currently four games into the season, the Philadelphia Phillies are looking good, very good.

Just about everything looks great. The starting rotation seems to really have been positively affected by the presence of stud Roy Halladay. Further, Cole Hamels looks like he may be back on track, Kyle Kendrick had a decent outing, and J.A. Happ has picked up right where he left off last season. The starting rotation will only be better when Joe Blanton returns.

Before the season began, Major League Baseball was already stirring about the possibility of a blockbuster trade that would send the St. Louis Cardinals' star first baseman to the Philadelphia Phillies for Ryan Howard.

The deal never materialized, leaving fans to wonder if a trade for Pujols was imminent.

There are several reasons why the Cardinals would be looking to deal the slugger and perennial All-Star.

After an Opening Day victory against the Florida Marlins, the Mets dropped the following two games to start the season 1-2.

With the exception of last night, the team showed that it is capable of scoring runs. The preseason idea that the Mets will remain in a lot of games if their pitching is at least serviceable appears to be holding true.

With that in mind, the Mets will turn to essentially their No. 2 and No. 3 starters Friday and Saturday for the first two games against the Washington Nationals.

So it wasn't his back, but it looks like Brian Roberts will be headed to the DL.

Roberts came up wincing and in noticeable pain after swiping his second base of the year in the first inning of the Orioles home opener against the Blue Jays. The diagnosis: an abdominal strain.

Roberts was a spring-training worry for the Orioles, missing almost all of the preseason schedule with back issues. He reportedly had them straightened out, and he looked to be rounding into regular season form with a two-hit performance last night in the O's victory over the Rays.

After a five-month wait, baseball is finally here. 

Actually, it was only four months that I longed for baseball, with March Madness really prolonging the desire for the seven-month marathon known as the MLB season.

However, baseball is here, my life is jam-packed with high school baseball season, fourth quarter projects, and studying for final exams.  When this arrives, I know it's time to record my predictions somewhere.

The Los Angeles Dodgers salvaged a win on Thursday in a 10-2 affair over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Ronnie Belliard had a big day, filling in at third base for Casey Blake. He collected four RBI's while falling a single short of the cycle.

Chad Billingsley looked sharped, going nearly six innings allowing just one run and striking out seven.

After seven innings of excellent pitching from Shaun Marcum, the 2010 Blue Jays turned to one of their strong points of seasons past: the bullpen.

However, the 2010 bullpen is not the bullpen of years past. It is decently strong, but it also is a mix of new and old faces, with players like Valdez in and Accardo and Janssen returning.

2009 fell short of the Milwaukee Brewers' goals, but thanks to added pitching depth and veteran hitting, the Brewers are poised for a great 2010. As with any season, the Brewers face many questions in 2010. Will Yovani Gallardo prove worthy of being a staff ace? Will Corey Hart break out like in 2007, and end his three-year decline? Will Braun and Fielder reign again as the top one-two punch in baseball? For the Brewers to get to the playoffs again, and make a deep run, 10 keys come into play.

David Ortiz went on a profanity-laced tirade against reporters who questioned his 0-for-7 start this season. Ortiz is the only Red Sox regular without a hit after two games. 

But that's just it; only two games have been played and perhaps it's premature to question Ortiz after just seven at-bats.

The arrival of Opening Day inevitably leads to speculation about which players will take home trophies at the end of the season.

In the MVP races, many have raised questions about Joe Mauer's ability to replicate his fantastic 2009 numbers and whether Albert Pujols can sustain his god-like pace for another year.

There is no consensus pick for the AL Cy Young, but in the NL it looks to be a showdown between incumbent Tim Lincecum and newcomer Roy Halladay.

As for Rookie of the Year—well, that's anyone's guess.

But the first round of individual recognitions—the All-Star Game&mdas