Fan News

Pitching:

Detroit: A-

Detroit Tigers ace Justin Verlander will start Game 1 of the American League Division Series against the Oakland Athletics and that leaves no hope the A's will take the first game of this series.

Verlander had another sensational year for Detroit in 2012. The right-hander was 17-8 with a 2.64 ERA and 239 strikeouts.

With Game 1 of their National League Division Series matchup against the Cincinnati Reds coming on Saturday, the NL West champion San Francisco Giants have announced their 25-man roster, according to the San Jose Mercury News' Alex Pavlovic. 

The Cleveland Indians will reportedly hire Terry Francona as the team’s manager after finishing a disappointing 68-94 in 2012.

UPDATE: Saturday, Oct. 6, at 7:20 p.m. ET

The Cleveland Indians have named Terry Francona the team's new manager via the team's official Twitter account:

Technically, open season on MLB free agents does not begin until the sixth day after the World Series concludes.

But you could forgive most fans for feeling like free agent season really began Friday night, with Josh Hamilton being booed off the field in his last two at-bats as the Texas Rangers bowed quietly to the Baltimore Orioles in the one-game playoff between the two American League wild cards.

Just in time for Game 1 of their National League Division Series matchup against the San Francisco Giants, the NL Central champion Cincinnati Reds have set their 25-man roster for the series, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.

The MLB is in postseason mode, but the league is not far away from being in offseason mode, which means some big-name outfielders will likely be on the move. There will be plenty of talent available in this position's free agent pool in 2013, and here are the top guys your team should be aiming for in the outfield.

How fitting that the the battle between the two teams in the A.L. East would carry over into the postseason.

The Baltimore Orioles disposed of the Texas Rangers 5-1 in the one-game wild card Friday night, which will allow them to advance to the American League Division Series and take on the New York Yankees.

The Texas Rangers completed their late-season collapse by losing 5-1 to the Baltimore Orioles in the AL Wild-Card Game Friday night.  They now have a decision to make that will alter the course of the franchise.

Are they better off with or without Josh Hamilton?

The tone of this article would've taken on a whole new meaning had one of the umpires at the Atlanta Braves vs. St. Louis Cardinals game been injured because of the controversial infield fly rule. Look, I get that the call was an emotional one for Braves fans. But if something flying out of the stands had seriously injured one of the umps, America's Favorite Pastime would have suffered another black eye.