Fan News

The Atlanta Braves continue to keep things close to the vest in regards to their offseason plans.

The Braves have some holes to fill, but if the season started today, they could field a competitive 25-man roster.

This makes the Braves relatively quiet players this offseason.

With that said, general manager Frank Wren will not pass up an opportunity to improve the club.

With four World Series appearances in the last decade, the St. Louis Cardinals are baseball’s closest thing to a dynasty. 

However, rather than procuring talent during the offseason like most large-market franchises, the Cardinals continue to produce winning teams the old-fashioned way: by developing players.

That being said, a strong case can be made that the Cardinals would not have reached the postseason—let alone the World Series—if not for their impressive young arms.

As the 2014 year begins, we are just a couple months from the start of spring training. There is still a good deal to be done this offseason, but team rosters have already started to take shape for the upcoming season.

Every team enters the year with different expectations, looking to accomplish different things on an individual player and team level. Obviously, the ultimate goal for everyone is to win the World Series, but that is not necessarily the only goal—or even a realistic goal—for each team.

The lifestyle of an MLB player seems like a blast, right?

Yes, unless you're an impending free agent, highly touted young player, oft-injured veteran or something in between. Then there's pressure.

That's what all professional athletes sign up for. Along with copious amounts of money and fame, you're burdened with responsibilities to your teammates, fans and front-office executives.

The following 25 guys are either justifying an existing contract or proving themselves worthy of a new one while eyeing the 2014 World Series.

Sandy Alderson has retooled the New York Mets’ outfield for the 2014 season with the acquisitions of Curtis Granderson and Chris Young. These look to be improvements from 2013, but he’ll have to once again revisit that part of the roster next winter.

The Los Angeles Dodgers system took a hit last season with the graduation of top prospect Yasiel Puig to the major leagues. However, the organization had a slew of other promising young players step up in his place.

The New York Yankees were decimated by injuries this year, though it did allow them to set a new franchise record by using 56 different players.

Things went just as poorly for the Yankees' top prospects down on the farm. Two of the organization’s more promising young arms, Manny Banuelos and Ty Hensley, didn’t throw a pitch and missed the entire year with respective injuries.

The San Francisco Giants won the 2012 World Series, their second title in three years. Expectations were very high as they entered the 2013 season, but a myriad of injuries and a few mediocre performances by key players derailed their hopes.

The Giants finished the 2013 season with a disappointing 76-86 record, a distant third behind the NL West-winning Los Angeles Dodgers.

The New York Yankees' whirlwind 2013 may not have culminated with a playoff berth, but that's not to say there weren't some unforgettable moments for the Bronx Bombers during the season.

While there have been plenty of MLB trade rumors this offseason involving top prospects Archie Bradley and Taijuan Walker, there's just one big problem: Neither pitcher is actually available.