Preview/Prediction

So far this MLB off-season, the teams in New York have been very busy.  The Yankees' move this week may have been the biggest.

Every Braves fan is aware of the overload of starting pitching the Atlanta Braves have.

Having an extra pitcher is quite a luxury, however.

As of right now, the Braves have six capable starters:

This is the second time I've tried to ponder up how the Red Sox roster will look come opening day 2010. This is Part One of the updated Two Part series I wrote back in August (you can find the original slideshows here: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/236857-the-potential-2010-boston-red-... http://bleacherreport.com/articles/240492-the-potential-2010-boston-red-...) about how the Red Sox roster might look in April of 2010.

This article does include speculation about (potential) future Red Sox players.

The 2010 Baseball Hall of Fame election is coming up and there is a lot of buzz surrounding this one.

There are a few first year players on the ballot that will surely cause some commotion.

And of course there are players that have been on the ballot forever.

Hello once again!

Well, the hot stove fire really sparked and crackled for the Yanks during the General Managers' Winter Meetings this past week, so let's do a quick recap of the biggest deal made, so far, in this offseason.

Three Team Trade between the Yanks, D'Backs, and Tigers

Here is how it broke down for the Yanks: New York received OF Curtis Granderson from the Tigers, while shipping out Ian Kennedy to the D'Backs, and trading prospect Austin Jackson, and LHP Phil Coke, to the Tigers.

It has been quiet at the winter baseball meetings for the defending National League champion Philadelphia Phillies.

They shored up their bench with the additions of left-handed hitting Ross Gload this week, to go along with previous signings of catcher Brian Schneider and utility man Juan Castro.

Their biggest signing has been third baseman Placido Polanco.

They are even waiting to see what to do with capable incumbent relievers Chan Ho Park and Scott Eyre.

The Philadelphia Phillies have been getting it done so far this off-season. They've accomplished one of their main goals so far and have made a lot of small pickups along the way.

So far, the Phillies have done a great job, though they can do better.

They replaced defensive master Pedro Feliz with Placido Polanco, who is just as good with the glove. Polanco, who played with the Phillies from 2002-2005, is a great contact hitter and has a .303 career average. He isn't much for power, but will definitely be an improvement at third base.

The Mariners are fast. T3 fast.

Team officials announced that they had come to terms with free agent Chone Figgins.

With the announcement, the Mariners have added a dangerous one-two at the top of their lineup with Ichiro and Figgins.

In addition to obtaining Franklin Gutierrez last year and bringing up Michael Saunders, the Mariners have speed.

Throw Ichiro into the mix, and you have four guys who will burn up the base-paths.

Throw in some power and the awesomeness of Ken Griffey, Jr., and you've got yourself a contending ball club.

So far this offseason, no team has been the subject of more attention than the Boston Red Sox.

Will they re-sign Bay or go after Holliday? Was signing Scutaro inevitable or should Dustin Pedroia have been pushed to shortstop? Will Adrian Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera, or Roy Halladay be playing at Fenway on Opening Day 2010?

These questions have been posed and answered by countless analysts, writers, and idiots with keyboards since the Red Sox’s season ended two months ago.

Alfonso Soriano has seen most of his stats diminish every year since his career season with the Nationals in 2006. Because he had a decent 2007, his first season as a Northsider, some have argued that his Cubs career, thus far, could be described as a wash or even a mild success.

His statistical trends, however, show that his Cub career has been poor, and is getting worse.