Fan News

Heading into the 2013 season, Orioles first baseman Chris Davis wasn't a well-known star in the Baltimore lineup.

Within four games, that's changed.

By its very definition, the word "superstar" denotes a position of power and strength. In fact, Merriam-Webster.com defines the word as "a star (as in sports or the movies) who is considered extremely talented, has great public appeal and can usually command a high salary."

MLB pitchers who fit that description would include Justin Verlander, Felix Hernandez and Clayton Kershaw, just to name a few.

Friday night was the much-anticipated debut of Zack Greinke in Dodger blue, and it went very well.  He pitched 6.1 strong innings, striking out six and allowing just two hits without conceding any walks.

The first trade of a major league player in the 2012 regular season didn’t take place until April 21 when the Cubs traded Marlon Byrd to the Red Sox for reliever Michael Bowden and a player to be named later.

The Astros got the ball rolling earlier in 2013 by acquiring Travis Blackley from the A’s for Triple-A outfielder Jake Goebbert on April 4. Exciting, right?

With the Minor League Baseball season now underway, prospect hounds will finally have a chance to observe the game’s top pitching prospects on a regular basis.

At the top of everyone’s “get” list is Dylan Bundy, and with good reason. After opening the 2013 season at Low-A Delmarva, the now-20-year-old right-hander enjoyed a meteoric rise through the Orioles’ system, which concluded with two appearances out of the major league bullpen in September.

The Chicago White Sox are not averse to a little turnover on the 25-man roster. It actually seems to be an annual occurrence that the White Sox part ways with at least one veteran who was a long-time fan favorite.

In 2011, it was Mark Buehrle. Last year, A.J. Pierzynski bid the White Sox a fond farewell.

Will longtime captain Paul Konerko be this offseason’s veteran departure?

What about the rest of the active roster?

Mike Minor carried the Atlanta Braves to a 4-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Friday night.  Justin Upton hit another home run, and Evan Gattis had three hits in the victory.

The Cincinnati Reds clobbered the Washington Nationals 15-0 Friday night to take home their third win of the young MLB season.

With the regular season underway, the free-agent market has understandably cooled down and is not something that will be talked about much over the next several months.

That said, last season saw veterans Johnny Damon, Bobby Abreu and Roy Oswalt all find homes after Opening Day.

Here are my rankings of the top 15 MLB free agents still up for grabs.

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Once the Cardinals finish up their West Coast swing through Arizona and San Francisco, they'll find themselves smack-dab in the middle of a duel against their fiercest competition for the NL Central crown, the Cincinnati Reds.