Only because we feel obligated here at the Beat will we give you a preview of the 2011 Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s hard not to feel sorry for Pirates fans, as this once-proud franchise hasn’t had a record above .500. Will that happen this year? Absolutely no chance. But at least the team has one of [...]

The Houston Astros essentially gave up on 2010 and at least this season when they traded former franchise stalwarts Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman to begin a full-fledged rebuilding process. So really Houston’s success in 2011 won’t be so much determined on wins and losses as much as the progress of some of the team’s [...]

Normally when a pro athlete is arrested on a DUI charge, the first thing you ask is why would a multimillionaire need to be driving himself if he’s had a few drinks – get a cab or limo or something. And I don’t want to say DUIs aren’t a huge deal because obviously people can [...]

The worst fears of St. Louis Cardinals fans could come to fruition on Wednesday as noon that is the deadline that star Albert Pujols and the team have agreed upon for the sides to agree to a contract extension for one of baseball’s best-ever hitters. Nothing by that deadline, which is when the slugger reports [...]

With pitchers and catchers starting to report to Florida and Arizona this weekend, let’s take a look at some key questions for Major League Baseball’s lovable losers, the Chicago Cubs, heading into 2011.
Key offseason additions: Matt Garza, Carlos Pena, Kerry Wood, Reed Johnson, Fernando Perez, Max Ramirez, manager Mike Quade.
Key offseason losses: Tom Gorzelanny, Xavier [...]

For years, Michael Young has been one of the most popular Texas Rangers and one of the team’s leaders. In fact, Young switched positions twice with Texas without much fuss and was preparing for a move to first base/designated hitter this year once Texas signed free agent third baseman Adrian Beltre. But now the Young-Rangers [...]

If you’ve seen the baseball movie “The Natural,” then you certainly remember the scene when Roy Hobbs, played by Robert Redford, literally knocks the cover off the baseball in his first game as a major leaguer. Apparently that’s not as far-fetched as one would think.
Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones did a similar thing on [...]

The American  League champion Texas Rangers added big-ticket third baseman Adrian Beltre this offseason (largely because they weren’t able to re-sign Cliff Lee), which means that former third baseman Michael Young was expected to take over at designated hitter in place of the departed Vladimir Guerrero. So why is Texas now pursuing free agent Manny [...]

Perpetual problem child Milton Bradley, currently an outfielder for the Seattle Mariners, was arrested on Tuesday in Los Angeles on suspicion of making terrorist threats against a woman. He was released on $50,000 bail late Tuesday afternoon and will have to appear in court on Feb. 8.
So now the question is whether the Mariners can [...]

Maybe the Chicago Cubs won’t be also-rans in the suddenly potent National League Central Division after all as Chicago reportedly has made one of the big trades of this offseason in acquiring Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Matt Garza for a slew of minor-leaguers.
The deal has been agreed to pending physicals, sending right-handed pitcher Chris [...]