Rankings/List

The 2013 MLB All-Star Game rosters have been announced, with the game set to be played on July 16 at Citi Field in New York.

There will no doubt be some tinkering with the rosters in the days ahead, as starting pitchers may need to be replaced depending on when their final first-half start will be and injuries could force players out of action in the Midsummer Classic.

As it stands, there will be at least one more player joining each roster, with the finalists for the Final Vote roster spot announced.

The 2013 MLB All-Star roster was revealed on Saturday night, and the Midsummer Classic in New York's Citi Field promises to be yet another tremendous showcase of premier professional baseball talent.

Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis leads all of baseball with 33 home runs and has already driven in 85 runs. Thus, it's no surprise that he's the leading vote-getter overall.

More than any other time in recent memory, Major League Baseball is inundated with young budding superstars. Mike Trout has established himself as the best of these young studs, but Manny Machado and Bryce Harper aren't far behind.

Homer Bailey just threw the first no-hitter of the 2013 MLB season, sailing through the San Francisco Giants lineup as his Cincinnati Reds won the game, 3-0.

This was Bailey's second no-hitter, with the last one coming on September 28, 2012 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The St. Louis Cardinals will spend Independence Day in 2013 remembering the day Albert Pujols became independent from their team.

Elevating one's game is one of the toughest things to do in Major League Baseball.

Hitting a slump can really impact a player’s confidence at the plate and on the mound, especially if it’s over an extended period of time. We’re not talking about going 0-for-7 through two games. We’re talking about weeks of striking out and giving up home runs.

I'll take a wild guess and say that about 98.32 percent of rumored trades between now and July 31 won't happen. In fact, a large percentage of those probably weren't even seriously discussed by the teams mentioned.

So while we were all seriously discussing how those players would fit on their new teams and speculating on which prospects were going to be part of the trade package, the general managers involved in the rumored deal were probably working on a deal that was completely under wraps and then surprised the heck out of everybody once it was announced. 

On the MLB schedule for Friday, a veritable who's who of young pitching stars were scheduled to start.

Matt Harvey and Shelby Miller were just two of the bright young arms in the game slated to work—Gerrit Cole, Julio Teheran, Miller, Harvey, Allen Webster, Alex Colome and Trevor Bauer all took the mound on Friday.

Each one of them were highly touted prospects who have made their way to the majors—all with thoughts of achieving greatness at the highest level.

Having reached the halfway point of the 2013 minor league season, it’s not surprising that many of the game’s top young hitters have recently received a promotion to a more advanced level.

As teams have started to realize, Major League Baseball rewards the thrifty and well-researched. The following free agents and team-controlled players signed modest contracts this past winter, but they have been dramatically outperforming them in 2013.

This list includes several unheralded veterans who were available, including James Loney and Marlon Byrd, as well as long-term building blocks like Allen Craig and Chris Sale.

Just as you would expect, the front offices who complete more team-friendly deals and spend wisely elsewhere generally find themselves in contention.