With shocking free agent signings, blockbuster deals, and no shortage of clear-cut winners and losers, the 2010 off-season certainly hasn’t lacked intrigue.

With most of the big-name free agents off the board and the trade market slowing down, now is a good time to take a look at the best moves of the off season up to this point.

In evaluating these moves, I gave as much consideration to the impact of the move on the team’s chances as I did that player’s cost in either dollars or players.

In other words, I won’t dwell on a team overpaying for a player if it greatly improves their chances next season. Likewise, I’ll be sure to recognize bargain signings even by teams that figure to have a hard time competing next season.

As Jayson Werth’s deal with Washington does not put the Nationals over the top and was a severe overpay, that is one move you won’t find on this list.

Please leave me some feedback and check out my other articles if you like this piece. Enjoy!

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I would be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t think Adrian Gonzalez landed in the perfect place for the 2011 season.  He moves out of spacious PETCO Park to the friendly confines of Fenway, a ballpark perfectly suited to his inside-out swing.

He also will hit in the middle of a stacked lineup, surrounded by Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Carl Crawford, Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz. He’s a lock to hit 40 home runs and drive in 120 runs, right?

Wrong.

I’m not as bullish as most people are on Gonzalez and I expect him to struggle a little bit out of the gate. Hitters typically struggle when they switch leagues, needing to adapt to a whole new set of pitchers. Being in the National League for five seasons meant that Gonzalez rarely faced a pitcher he hadn’t faced before.

He was familiar with pitchers’ tendencies and had a good idea of what a pitcher would throw him in a certain situation. In the American League, Gonzalez no longer has that advantage. Sure, he’ll have scouting reports on AL pitchers,  but he won’t have as in-depth a knowledge on them as he did for NL pitchers. It will be take time for him to get a feel as to how they are going to pitch to him.

A great comparison to Gonzalez’s situation is Miguel Cabrera.  Cabrera was traded from the Florida Marlins to the Detroit Tigers prior to the 2008 season. Cabrera was moving from a weak lineup to a much stronger one much like Gonzalez and everyone assumed his numbers would improve drastically.

However, that was not the case. It took Cabrera some time to adapt to AL pitching. Entering July of 2008, roughly halfway through the season, Cabrera was batting only .280 with 11 home runs and 48 runs batted in.

Certainly more was expected from him. He finally delivered, batting .304 the rest of the way with 26 home runs and 79 runs batted in. Gonzalez’s owners should take note.

What leads me further to believe that Gonzalez will struggle initially is that he’s coming off of right shoulder surgery in October. Although he’s expected to recover fully from the surgery, he still won’t be able to swing a bat until Spring Training.

I give these warnings not because I think Gonzalez will have a bad year, but because I don’t think he’ll put up monster numbers right away. Don’t be surprised if it takes him awhile to get locked in but know that his early season struggles won’t last long.

Fearless Forecast

.307 BA | 108 R | 34 HR | 112 RBI | 1 SB

For the original article check out Baseball Professor.

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The world series was won.  The parade is over.  Now it’s time to look at the division as a whole and really ponder about who is going to come out on top in 2011.  Many changes have been made to all teams in the division and fans from Los Angeles, San Diego, Arizona, Colorado and especially San Fransisco all know that their team has a chance to compete.  Let’s go down the list of teams in the division and see who has the best shot of coming out on top in the NL West.

As a Dodger fan, I’ve been waiting way too long for another world series to land in Los Angeles.  The last world series the Dodgers competed in was in 1988 when they won.  The cheers can still be heard in Dodger Stadium from Gibson’s walk off.  Since then, the Boys In Blue have yet to make it past the National Championship Series while loosing it recently, two years in a row to the Philadelphia Phillies in ’08 and ’09.  

2010 was a bust for the Dodgers while they struggled to win towards the end of the season.  Disappointed fans erupted up all over the city while their team subsequently imploded.  It was a sad and wasted last season for manager Joe Torre as he left with an under .500 record for the first time in over 10 years.  The departed Manny Ramirez was good and bad news for some fans, however his short reign of Mannywood will always be remembered in Chavez Ravine.  

This year the Dodgers added some new acquisitions such as Jon Garland, Matt Guerrier and Blake Hawksworth to shore up the pitching in both the rotation and the bullpen. Russel Martin decided his time with the Dodgers was over and in came Dioner Navarro and a starting job for Rod Barajas.  Navarro was with the Dodgers in 2005 and half of 2006 before being traded to Tampa Bay.  

Overall, the Dodgers really didn’t make any key moves this offseason to show that they really want to compete in the season ahead.  Although they added Juan Uribe and Tony Gwynn Jr., it doesn’t look like 2011 will be any different from 2010.  However, if key players such as Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, James Loney, Chad Billingsley, Clayton Kershaw and Jonathon Broxton continue to evolve into their own and reach their full potential this season without injury, then the Dodgers will be an unstoppable force that will easily be able to compete for a title.

The San Diego Padres were left upset by the events towards the end of the 2010 season when all they had to do was win a couple of games and they would have been set to compete in the playoffs.  You could hear the cries of agony from Padre fans all across the California coast.  

The age of Adrian Gonzalez is over and in come the new look Padres. Their phenomenal pitching got them as far as they did last season winning 90 games however it wasn’t enough to win the division.  With Gonzo gone, short stop Jason Bartlett, first baseman Brad Hawpe and comical second baseman Orlando Hudson have found their way into the Padres starting line up.  

Also, with Chase Headley still at third, the infield is looking good for 2011.  The Padres’ rotation hasn’t changed much except with the addition of Aaron Harang who should eat up some innings to relieve the bullpen of the long gap to Heath Bell.  Other than that, the Padres have relatively the same bullpen and outfield as last season with the addition of young Cameron Maybin in center field.  

Even without the presence of Gonzalez, the Padres are looking like a young team that is ready to compete and maybe even win more games than last season.  Look for them to be a competitor in the hunt for their first world series.

The Colorado Rockies look to throw their hat in the mix as they resigned Carlos Gonzalez to a hefty deal reassuring fans that they are ready to play ball.  Todd Helton hasn’t aged a bit and Troy Tulowitzki is as productive as ever as long as he can stay healthy.  The Rockies have a bunch of guys who can put the bat on the ball and rack up a lot of hits.  

They also have a decent rotation with young phenom Ubaldo Jimenez as the ace.  Young Jhoulys Chacin looks like his days in the big leagues may be in stone for 2011 as long as he keeps his swagger.  Last year he came up and did very well for the Rockies as a 22-year-old rookie.  

This year the Rockies rotation should be pretty decent as long as they all can stay healthy. With the addition of Jose Lopez, they should have even more power in the infield.  The outfield is looking pretty good as well with Cargo, Dexter Fowler and Seth Smith.  Overall, the Rockies should be putting up numbers on the scoreboard and as long as they don’t get hurt, they shouldn’t have a problem fighting for first in the west.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have a lot of issues to deal with as we move into the 2011 season.  With the loss of the two main power producers in Mark Reynolds and Adam LaRoche, the D-Backs will be looking to their youth as the power supply.  Justin Upton and Chris Young look to keep the team in contention although it is going to be very hard to do considering the team is in a rebuilding stage.  

New additions such as Xavier Nady, Melvin Mora and Juan Miranda hope to help the team win more than just 65 games.  First base should be interesting as youngsters Juan Miranda and Brandon Allen share the duties.  Kelly Johnson and Stephen Drew have stayed put in the middle infield and hope to contribute some “pop” as well to the lineup.  

The rotation for the D-Backs is very young and the only notable veterans were recently added either last season or this offseason such as Zach Duke, the former Pirate, and Joe Saunders, who they received in turn for Dan Haren during the 2010 season.  Daniel Hudson, Ian Kennedy and Barry Enright all show promise as they made their way to the show last season.  

The bullpen was also revamped, which was definitely needed, with closer JJ Putz.  For 2011, the D-Backs are going to need a positive direction under new manager Kirk Gibson and maybe with some luck, they’ll be able to compete with other teams in the league.  If any team would be considered a “sleeper” team in 2011, this would be the team.

Last but certainly not least, the World Champion San Fransisco Giants.  They are going to have a hard time protecting their title with all the moves that other teams have made this offseason.  The Giants rotation should stack up as still one of the best in baseball.  The only question in the rotation remains with Barry Zito.  He hasn’t had a winning record since he joined the Giants in 2007.  

Although no rotation can match up to the Phillies on paper, the Giants still have an arsenal that will definitely strikeout a ton of helpless batters.  With new addition Miguel Tejada at short and the rest of the infield staying the same as 2010, it should be interesting to watch the team bond as they’ve basically kept the same team.  It will be interesting to see Buster Posey’s first full season in the big leagues.  

In the end, Cody Ross was added to right field, but other than that, there haven’t been any real impacting transactions that stand out.  Nonetheless, the Giants have the best shot at winning the division and possibly making it past that in the post season.

Like every season in every sport, the team that can stay healthy and win games will be the victor.  It should be an interesting 2011 season.  Will there be a version 2.0 to “season of the pitcher”, or will there be home runs left and right?  With spring training just around the corner, only time will tell what new and exciting adventures await baseball fans.

The National League West will without a doubt be the toughest division in the league with multiple teams that have shots at being very successful in the near future.  You never know what team might come out of no where and sweep everyone off their feet.

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Since the recent acquisitions of studs Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford, there has been much chatter regarding which batting order would best suit the 2011 Boston Red Sox.  If the season started today, the Sox boast arguably the deepest lineup in the A.L., maybe even the majors.  At the very least it should have very little trouble competing with a Yankee lineup that has earned the same accolade numerous times. 

This collection of talent is arguably the greatest that most Sox fans have seen in their lifetimes, but if not used the right way it very well may not bring the best possible results.  Sox fans shouldn’t have too much to worry about though; manager Terry Francona is extremely adept at putting the best nine on the score card every night. 

While the hitters we currently have in Boston can be strung together in a variety of ways (each as imposing as the next), it is important to maximize talent.  It should also be noted that Francona will likely throw out multiple lineups with some movement depending on who is on the bump against the Sox, as he does every season.  But there will be a base lineup, likely the one we will see in Texas to start the season on April 1st. 

The following lineup provides the most bang for the proverbial (and literal) buck, and it benefits everybody in the starting nine:

1. LF Carl Crawford
2. 2B Dustin Pedroia
3. 1B Adrian Gonzalez
4. DH David Ortiz
5. 3B Kevin Youkilis
6. RF J.D. Drew
7. C Jarrod Saltalamacchia
8. SS Marco Scutaro
9. CF Jacoby Ellsbury 

Many fans have suggested clustering Crawford with fellow speedster Jacoby Ellsbury at the top of the Sox lineup to provide a potent top three that also includes 2B Dustin Pedroia.  However, the popular phrase “quality over quantity” applies here.  It would behoove the Sox to spread this speed out and put Jacoby at the bottom of the lineup where he will see better pitches to hit.  This will allow him to get on base in front of Crawford, Pedroia and Gonzalez.

It has also been stated that placing Ellsbury in the No. 9-hole would be a waste of his speed.  Quite the contrary, in fact.  All Ellsbury should be expected to do is either hit a single or take a walk.  Anything extra like a double or triple is gravy.  If he can simply manage to get on base, we all know how he can turn a single into a double with a stolen base.  He’ll be encouraged to steal, in fact.  Doing so will set the table for the boppers that follow. 

Crawford has no qualms about batting leadoff.  He said so in his press conference.  Whether or not that was truthful, of course, can’t be known.  But he doesn’t lose anything by hitting there.  Yes, he did bat third in Tampa, but that also resulted in a rise in his strikeout numbers. 

Boston doesn’t need his power in the No. 3-hole, the rest of the lineup can provide that.  It is important for Crawford, like Ellsbury, to get on base so that his speed can be utilized.  Striking out doesn’t allow for that.  He will see better pitches to hit at the top of the lineup than he would batting third; he can leave the RBI to A-Gon, Ortiz and Youk.  Tampa may have needed Carl to hit third, but the lineup that Boston currently boasts does not.

Common knowledge among those who have grown up playing baseball is that the team’s best all-around hitter bats third.  This lineup has just that, with Adrian Gonzalez in this slot.  The trade to Boston immediately makes him the Sox’ best hitter, although the same argument could be made for Youkilis.  But for the purpose of serving the all-around team needs, the lineup is better with Gonzalez here.  

The numbers A-Gon could produce playing at Fenway 81 times a year are jaw-dropping.  Much like Ortiz has learned to do, Gonzalez will be able to use the Monster as a safety blanket, as he is the league’s most feared opposite field hitter.  He could seemingly put one off the wall for a double at will.  His ability to get on base on top of hitting 30 jacks and driving in 100 is what makes him the perfect No. 3 hitter.  He has the ability to create runs almost at will, and the skills to set up runs just as easily.

Many have also stated that they wish to see the same duo I have listed at No. 4 and No. 5, only flip flopped.  However I still think it makes sense to leave Ortiz as the cleanup hitter because of the power he demonstrated that he still has last year. 

Again, most who have played the game know that the No. 4-hole is reserved for the player with the rawest power and who serves as the team’s bopper.  He doesn’t necessarily need to hit for average or have a high OBP.  Ortiz can still be that, if only for one more year. 

The new additions allow Ortiz to focus more on driving in runs and less on getting base hits to set up the offense.  As he has declined in age and somewhat in skills, his ability to get on base at will has diminished.  If he is able to hit doubles and homers, and can take the walks he is given, he should be fine as the cleanup hitter.

Kevin Youkilis is another man who should be drooling just thinking about the opportunities he will get this year.  With Crawford, Pedroia, Gonzalez, Ortiz and possibly Ellsbury on base in front of him, Youk very well may lead the team in RBI.  His annual .300 average only insinuates that Youk will be the beneficiary of such great talent in front of him. 

If he can continue to get on base at such a clip, with the possibility of who will be on base ahead of him, he may have an RBI opportunity a majority of his ABs.  And if not, Youk has shown that he has enough power to create runs on his own.  When a player as talented as Youkilis is on a team that can afford to slot him in the No. 5 spot, it is nothing but scary.  In fact the thought is almost terrorizing and I don’t have the duty of trying to shut this lineup down.

The bottom of the lineup isn’t as talented, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t important.  J.D. Drew should hold down the No. 6 spot, and it may just result in an increase in his RBI as well.  If he can stay healthy, he won’t be asked to do too much, and that may just be exactly what he needs. 

Drew is in a contract year and if he can produce in this lineup, his stock in the free-agent market should rise.  If he can get the average up past .250 and provide some pop, he could also be dangerous.  Many pitchers will certainly overlook him after having to deal with the onslaught at the top of the lineup.

Although it doesn’t really matter which order Saltalamacchia (and Varitek for that matter) and Scutaro bat, I prefer Salty to hit after Drew with Scutaro batting ahead of Ellsbury.  Saltalamacchia should be put in the best situation of his career to fulfill his oft mentioned potential.  Who wouldn’t be benefited by hitting in such a lineup?  But if Salty can get his average and slugging up, he should have some RBI opportunities as well. 

In what might be his first full year as the Sox starter, what better way to take the pressure off of him than putting him in a position to succeed hitting after talented hitters like Youkilis and Drew who can get on base and set the table for him?  Salty has a career slugging percentage of .386.  An increase in this number would go a long way helping the bottom of the order produce runs.  While this is not vital, you can never score enough runs.

Scutaro, along with Ellsbury, just needs to worry about getting on base to set up the top of the lineup.  Walks are fine, but Scutaro should get his fair share of fastballs to hit.  His .333 OBP in 2010 was great, and if he can repeat that he should see a steady increase in the amount of runs he scores in 2011.   

Thinking about the possibilities this Red Sox lineup could create in 2011 is a tremendous thought for a Sox fan.  While there are already talks of this team advancing to the World Series and facing the super rotation of the Philadelphia Phillies, this is of course annoyingly premature.  But it is admittedly fun to think about.  Hell, the season can’t come fast enough.  Pitchers and catchers report February 14th.          

This article can also be seen on SportsHaze.com.  

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As the Patriots and Celtics roll, the snow piles on and the Gonzalez/Crawford acquisitions finally begin to set in as reality, baseball seems a long way away.

But, in just 49 more days, pitchers and catchers report to spring training!

The Sox seemed to have slowed down their offseason moves. While they might be in the mix for some more relief help and/or another right-handed bat, the Sox should be pretty content in the fact that they’ve addressed their offseason needs while the New York Yankees have not.

This seems as good a time as any to publish a complete early season preview, projecting what the opening day roster would look like if the season started tomorrow.

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The Boston Red Sox have been linked with Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder for several seasons now, but with Boston’s recent acquisition of Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego, are they finished with their pursuit of Fielder?

Gonzalez is a first baseman too, and has a better glove than Fielder. With Kevin Youkilis likely to begin the 2011 season at third base, there is no room for Fielder at Fenway Park.

Fielder is a free agent after next season, and its almost certain that the Brewers will not be able to afford the rich contract he’s seeking. He has already turned down a multi year offer believed to be around $100 million, so the Brewers have been fielding offers for years but haven’t found a package of prospects they like.

Prince Fielder is a very good offensive player, and if his weight becomes a real problem he could always be a designated hitter for an American League team, so he is valuable player to many teams.

The New York Yankees do not have a need for a first baseman or third baseman, and most teams won’t pay over $100 for a designated hitter, even the Yankees.

Milwaukee needs to trade Fielder to replenish their farm system. They just gave up some solid young talent with the trade for Zach Greinke from Kansas City, who might not even be of much help in the future. Greinke had a great 2009, which was capped of with a Cy Young award, but he struggled mightily last season, and has struggled most of his career.

His troubles with anxiety problems limited his possible trade suitors to small market teams only, so Milwaukee was a good place for him because they have passionate fans but the city and media is not as demanding as major markets.

Some American League teams that should pursue Fielder are the Los Angeles Angels, the Minnesota Twins, and the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Angels could use a first baseman with power, even though Kendry Morales has shown offensive talent, he is coming off a serious injury.

The Twins have seen 2006 AL MVP Justin Morneau go through a rough battle with season ending injuries the past few seasons, and acquiring Fielder would assure them first base production for an entire year.

The Rays just lost Carlos Pena and Carl Crawford to free agency, and acquiring Fielder would help keep their lineup somewhat dangerous in a very competitive American League East division. Tampa also has the prospects to make a deal with Fielder happen.

Prince Fielder is a very good player, and will gain a lot of interest in free agency next winter, but it would suit him better to find his future home before the 2011 season, not after.

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When 2008 AL Cy Young winner Cliff Lee signed with the Phillies to boost an already stacked starting rotation, many people started handing them the 2011 World Series championship.

Not so fast though. Another very good team has also made some huge moves this offseason. Of course, I am speaking of the Boston Red Sox, who traded for All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and signed All-Star outfielder Carl Crawford.

Keep in mind that despite having a very banged up team all year and missing the postseason, Boston still won 89 games. With these additions they are going to be much, much better in 2011. In fact, I think they’re going to be so good that they should easily be the favorites in the MLB.

For starters, they still have a great pitching rotation. Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz were both great last year, anchoring the staff. Josh Beckett, John Lackey, and Daisuke Matsuzaka all had their struggles last year, though.

I can almost guarantee that Beckett and Lackey will bounce back next year, and put up very good numbers. You never know what to expect from Daisuke, but he could also deliver a great year.

You could make a very convincing argument that Boston’s rotation is better than Philly’s, and quite frankly, I think it is.

Sure, Halladay and Lee are a better 1-2 punch than Buchholz and Lester, but not by a lot. I do believe that Beckett, Lackey, and Matsuzaka is a better 3-5 part of the rotation than Oswalt, Hamels, and Blanton.

This is partially because I look at Oswalt as a great National League pitcher, but if you put him in a big game against a great American League lineup, I don’t like his chances. After that, Hamels is good, but I think both Beckett and Lackey are better. I also like Matsuzaka over Blanton in the 5 spot, which could be very important.

As far as the bullpen goes, this is obviously in Boston’s favor. The Phillies’ entire pen is shaky. The only guy you can count on to deliver solid numbers is set-up man Ryan Madson. Brad Lidge is one of the most inconsistent closers there is, and the rest of their bullpen is really just a mess.

Boston’s bullpen is anchored of course by Jonathan Papelbon. Sure, Lidge had a better ERA last year, but Papelbon had 37 saves, 10 more than Lidge. I’d much rather hand the ball over to Papelbon in a one run game. Daniel Bard is also an excellent set-up man, posting an ERA under 2 last year, with 32 holds.

Now, to the lineups of these two elite teams. As far as the Phillies lineup goes, I really think they lost a huge piece of the puzzle when Jayson Werth decided to sign with the Nationals.

Sure, they still have Utley and Howard as power presences in their lineup, but they no longer have a big power threat right handed bat. This means they’ll either have to slide Polanco up to fifth or will be forced to bat three consecutive left handed hitters in the middle of the order, which will be much easier for a bullpen to manage.

The Phillies still have Rollins, Victorino, Howard, and Utley, but I think the loss of Werth could be very costly.

The Red Sox lineup, however, is very balanced.

They now have great speed in their order with Crawford and Ellsbury, and will be running all over teams next year. The middle of their lineup is also going to be stacked, with power threats Adrian Gonzalez, Kevin Youikilis, J.D. Drew, and David Ortiz.

You also can’t forget about possibly the best all around player on the team in second basemen Dustin Pedroia, who should be able to hit well over .300 and drive in a good amount of runs.

All this comes from a Yankees fan. While most people will consider Philadelphia favorites, I think it will be Boston holding the trophy come next early November.

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2011 predictions are on every sports fan’s mind as the holidays near. Here are predictions for 2011 in the sports world:

MLB:

Adrian Gonzalez wins the American League MVP award after taking advantage of friendly confines of Friendly Fenway Park.

The Philadelphia Phillies defeat the Boston Red Sox in Game 7 of the World Series behind a masterful four-hit shutout by…Pedro Martinez.

Derek Jeter hits the midway point of the season with a sub .700 fielding percentage. He’s still the most liked man in New York.

Zack Greinke wins the National League Cy Young Award and helps the Milwaukee Brewers to the National League Championship Series.

Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer combine for the best offensive duo in Major League Baseball, leading the Minnesota Twins to the American League Championship Series.

Carl Crawford finishes second behind Adrian Gonzalez in American League MVP award voting.

After missing out on signing Cliff Lee, Nolan Ryan comes out of retirement to sure up the Texas Rangers bullpen.

The Baltimore Orioles win the American League Wild Card before falling to Minnesota in the Divisional Series.

San Francisco’s Brian Wilson signs a sponsorship deal with Armani and cleans up his act. He mentions Major League 2 as his favorite movie.

The New York Yankees trade the naming rights to the new Yankee Stadium to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for Felix Hernandez.

Albert Pujols signs a 10-year, $300 million extension with the St. Louis Cardinals.

White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen says something politically incorrect to a group of reporters, but none of them hear him clearly because of his thick accent.

Cleveland catcher Carlos Santana hits .320 with 28 home runs and 110 RBI to lead the Cleveland Indians back into relevance.

NBA:

LeBron James and the Miami Heat fall to the Boston Celtics in a heart-wrenching Game 7 after being up 3-0 in the series.

The New Jersey Nets select Duke’s Kyrie Irving with the first pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

Carmelo Anthony leads the New York Knicks to the Eastern Conference semifinals where they lose to the Miami Heat.

Dirk Nowitzki earns his second NBA MVP award while leading the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals.

Shaquille O’Neal assumes the name of The Big International and becomes the biggest—figuratively and literally—star in Turkey.

Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder knock off the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals before falling to the Mavs in the Conference finals.

Joakim Noah returns to the Chicago Bulls, who go on to win 16 straight games from February to March and clinch the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Blake Griffin holds his Rookie of the Year trophy up proudly.

Antoine Walker averages 12 points, four rebounds and seven missed three-pointers in four games with the Memphis Grizzlies in March.

Glen Davis of the Boston Celtics wins the NBA’s Sixth Man award.

NFL:

Brett Favre retires, maybe. Well, I’m not sure. But he might. Or he might not.

Sal Alosi goes 2-1 in a “celebrity” boxing circuit. His lone loss was a disqualification and came after tripping his opponent.

After undoubted success with its first outdoor home game in 30 years, the Vikings tear the rest of the Metrodome’s roof off and play under the cold Minnesota sky.

Versus announces the launch of a new reality show called Straight Cash, Ocho, starting Randy Moss and Chad Ochocinco.

Tom Brady cuts his hair after being asked to play George Harrison in a Beatles reunion.

Donovan McNabb runs windsprints throughout the offseason while Mike Shanahan watches silently.

Alex Smith, Tim Tebow, Sam Bradford and Matt Flynn become the next batch of great NFL quarterbacks.

The Dallas Cowboys become the first team to host a Super Bowl party next to where the Super Bowl is being played.

The NFL Players Union and its owners will agree on a new collective bargaining agreement in April, days before the NFL Draft.

The Minnesota Vikings sign free agent quarterback Michael Vick to a four-year deal.

The New England Patriots defeat the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl, pushing Tom Brady and Bill Belichick up another level among the greats.

The Cincinnati Bengals acquire free agent wide receiver Randy Moss and go winless in their first eight games of the 2011 season.

Jenn Sterger is hired by ESPN as an NFL analyst.

Tom Brady is named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player.

Back to full strength, the Indianapolis Colts finish the regular season 16-0.

College Basketball:

The UConn women win another NCAA championship with an undefeated record.

Duke finishes with a 32-1 record, erasing a February loss to Temple with a win in the National Championship game.

College Football:

Jim Harbaugh takes over at the helm for the Denver Broncos.

Iowa lands itself in a BCS Bowl, despite offseason investigations into drug use.

Syracuse knocks off UConn for the Big East championship, clinching a BCS bid.

Mark Cuban loses $500 million in a failed effort to develop a College Football playoff.

Boise State goes 11-0 and fails to make the National Championship game.

Cam Newton is the first pick in April’s NFL Draft and becomes one of Jimmy Clausen’s go-to weapons in Carolina.

Golf:

Tiger Woods wins the Masters, U.S. Open and British Open in his best season ever on the PGA Tour.

Sergio Garcia finally wins a major, taking home the PGA Championship.

Hockey:

The Pittsburgh Penguins win the Stanley Cup over the Dallas Stars.

Tim Thomas helps lead the Boston Bruins to the Eastern Conference finals.

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What do Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford have in common? 

Their prior teams couldn’t afford to keep them. 

Boston’s general manager, Theo Epstein, stepped in with gold-lined pockets and pocketed them all.

Everything Epstein touches, however, does not turn to gold.  Hanley Ramirez and Anibal Sanchez were traded by Epstein for Beckett and Lowell in 2005.  Ramirez has MVP talent at shortstop.  With the exception of 2004, the Sox have struggled at shortstop forever it seems. 

Epstein helped the Sox to sign Crawford on Dec. 8 for forever (seven years) and $142 million.  It was the ninth largest contract in baseball history. 

A talented young man still on the major leagues upswing, Crawford is 29-years-old.  At 6’2,” 215 pounds, he’s in his prime.  Last season, he won his first Gold Glove, stole 47 bases, slugged 19 home runs and batted .307.

He could bat leadoff, and give the Red Sox the second coming of Ricky Henderson.  I believe Crawford is capable of winning an MVP in 2011.  He’s just now entering his prime.

“One thing I believe about Carl is he’s not yet fully developed.  There is still room for improvement,” his former Tampa Bay Rays coach, Joe Maddon, said. 

Other teams know it.  The Angles reportedly offered Crawford $108 million.  Recruiting Crawford for his team, Torii Hunter must’ve been listening to Soulja Boy songs upon hearing the news. 

“I’m sitting here in a daze right now, like, what the heck just happened? I’m crushed, man.  I could have sworn he was coming here,” Hunter said.  Here, would be the Los Angeles Angels.  What  happened was who but Epstein?

He is the executive vice president and general manager of the Red Sox. 

Hired in November 2002 at 28-years-old, he was the youngest general manager in MLB history.  He won the first World Series in 86 years by the Red Sox in 2004.

He resigned in October 2005, but was rehired in January 2006 and won a second World Series in 2007.  In 2008, Epstein traded Manny Ramirez to the Dodgers for Jason Bay, who became an American League All-Star in 2009.

His management style is to provide the club’s manager with certainty at almost every position for several years.  He wants to give the Sox the best chance to consistently make the playoffs.   

In his shot-calling duties, he considers as many alternatives and opinions as possible.  More so to consider the ramifications of every single deal rather than trying to win now, he’s rarely hasty. 

Epstein showed steely confidence by allowing Orlando Cabrera, Pedro Martinez and Derek Lowe to become free agents.  He wanted to stock the farm system with draft picks. 

In MLB, organizations get draft picks as compensation for losing their free agents.  Boston lost free agent Victor Martinez to the Detroit Tigers.  Declining salary arbitration, Adrian Beltre and Felipe Lopez became free agents on Nov. 30. 

Boston could still sign Beltre and Lopez.  Through compensation, however, the Red Sox stand to own five of the first 50 draft picks in 2011.

Born in New York City—once the writing and publishing Mecca—Epstein is now 36-years-old.  He grew up, just a few miles from Fenway Park, wanting to be a Red Sox executive.  His family consists of several famous writers.   

His screenwriting grandfather and great uncle won Academy Awards for a certain screenplay called “Casablanca.”  His father, Leslie Epstein, heads the Creative Writing Program at Boston University and has for over 20 years. 

Theo’s sister is a successful writer for television.  He’s a talented writer in his own right.  He was the sports editor for the “Yale Daily News.” 

He was named Major League Executive of the Year by “Baseball America” in 2008.  “Sporting News” named him their Executive of the Decade.  “Sports Illustrated” placed him No. 3 on its list of top GMs/Executives of the Decade (in all sports).

Boston should be at or near the top of the standings until at least 2015, but one never knows.  Most of Boston’s key players are signed through at least the 2014 season. 

Jarrod Saltamacchia could prove to be a worthy replacement for Victor Martinez.  At $418, 580, he’ll be a bargain if he turns out to be.  The Red Sox pitching staff is still superb.  Gonzalez could become the best slugging first baseman the Red Sox have ever had. 

Although he went from sports editor to general manager, Epstein is not the best general manager ever, in my view.  Hanley Ramirez would’ve possibly set all kinds of records for shortstops with the Red Sox.

Respectful challenges to opinions and assumptions via vigorous debate are known to be constant for many professional sports operations staffs.  Under Epstein, the Boston Red Sox are no exception to the corporate American rule.

He could have to make some more exceptional moves for the 2011 season, but he’s not a freewheeling fool.  He’s made few glaring mistakes, but he’s strengthened weaknesses on the Red Sox roster as a rule. 

Former Los Angeles Lakers general manager, Jerry West, and R.C. Buford of the San Antonio Spurs own more championships than Epstein.  Mitch Kupchak of the Lakers and Joe Dumars of the Detroit Pistons are tied with him.

Brian Cashman of the New York Yankees has won four World Series.  Epstein has at least two more World Series to win before he can claim to be better than Cashman.  He appears to be well on his way in building a team to help him catch Brian. 

I’d give Epstein a solid B+ for helping to build a perennial championship contender in Boston.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

MLB Rumors: Russell Martin is done in Los Angeles, but he appears to have plenty of options on the open market.

Marc Carig of the Star Ledger tweeted that Martin has received offers from four teams, three of which are in baseball’s power division, the AL East.

The New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox have reportedly offered Martin a one-year contract while an unidentified fourth team has offered a multi-year deal.

According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, the favorites right now are…the Red Sox.

Yep, with Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez already in Boston, the team is the frontrunner for Martin’s services.

The fourt team in the mix is reportedly the Colorado Rockies, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse.

Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com also notes that Martin would serve as a catcher for the Red Sox rather than as a utility player.

It does appear, however, that Martin would prefer to go to an East Coast team.