Preview/Prediction

Since Jason Heyward has been anointed the opening day starter in right field, he is omitted from this list. Heyward is without a doubt the Braves' top prospect, but this list is compiled of players that Braves fans should keep their eye on for the next few years.

The amount of pitching depth in the Braves' system will be evident in this list, as seven of the 10 are mound dwellers.

With the division previews wrapped up, I'm now going to make some predictions regarding the major awards.

I'm also making a few misc. predictions, taking a look at potential cinderella teams, vulnerable managers, the All-Star Game, and trades that may happen.

I did not pick any of last year's award winners to repeat; if you want to read that Joe Mauer and Albert Pujols will repeat as MVPs, you can read ESPN or SI's season preview. I've decided to go a little off-the-wall and pick some dark-horses.

Enjoy!

This article is part two of a series of articles breaking down the Cubs' roster. You can view part one, which covers the bullpen, here.

On Monday, the Chicago Cubs will open up their highly anticipated season against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field, while thousands of the Wrigley faithful pray that this is the year. And we're ready. 

Though both are often overlooked in post-season predictions, Braves fans and Cubs fans alike may see the beginning of a heated wild card race. 

Each club has a very daunting task ahead of them in 2010, with two of the most competitive divisions in Major League Baseball. 

In a flurry of last minute roster moves, the A's set their Opening Day roster after the Giants-A's Spring exhibition finale.

Despite a reportedly healthy camp, several players will start the year on the DL. But thanks to all the depth the A's stockpiled over the offseason, the stand-ins stand to fill in admirably.

Over the next few slides, I will break down the A's roster by position and offer a few predictions at the end.

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Give FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal credit—before reaching for the Chicago White Sox as his prediction to win the 2010 World Series, he prefaced it with (probably real) editor guidelines.

The first two essentially prohibited him from tabbing either the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox.

Fine, the powers-that-be wanted him to zig when everyone else zagged.

1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: (92-70)

The Los Angeles Angels lost several major contributors this past offseason and their streak of three consecutive division titles is clearly at stake.

Plenty of talent remains in Los Angeles, though, and some acquisitions of their own will certainly keep the Angeles in the running in the AL West.

Losing John Lackey was inevitable—the Angels didn’t want him—but also removes a clear ace from Los Angeles’ rotation.

Now that the rosters are set, we’ll take a look at what should be a very prolific Rays offense in 2010.

Manager Joe Maddon likes to shift his lineup around more than most, but this is a good guess as to what the typical batting order will look like. The first six spots are more sure-things, while the bottom three will be moved around more as everyone in those bench spots should see significant time.

1. Jason Bartlett – SS

2. Carl Crawford – LF

A few years ago, the Red Sox front office decided to experiment with Bill James’ closer-by-committee theory, and we all know how THAT worked out for them.

This season, Theo & Company have decided to pursue the concept of run prevention as opposed to run production — and over the course of the next several months we will learn how THAT will all learn how THAT will work out for them.

It says here that it will work out just fine.

After winning their first World Series in nearly a decade, the Yankees refused to stand pat and spent the off-season making wholesale changes to an increasingly-aging roster. As a result, they re-tooled for another AL East title and put themselves in position to challenge for back-to-back championships.