My dear favorite team, the Atlanta Braves, made a few interesting deals to fill up holes and increase the chance of getting in the postseason for the first time in four years. When the Philadelphia Phillies traded for Cliff Lee instead of Roy Halladay at the trade deadline last year, the Philly faithful were disappointed that they weren’t able to get the best pitcher in baseball. After a spectacular postseason and a dominant World Series against the heavy-hitting Yankees, Phillies fans were disappointed the best pitcher in baseball was essentially traded away for Roy Halladay and top prospects from the Mariners. The outcry initially was, “Why couldn’t we have had both?” The Phillies fans were in an uproar about trading away Lee and not having what would have been the best one-two punch in all of baseball. At first, all the reasons made sense for the Phillies in the Halladay/Lee trade: They were getting new prospects to replace the ones that they had lost in the 2009 Lee trade, they had not been able to sign Lee for the long term once the 2010 season was over, and they were hoping that Cole Hamels would return to his World Series MVP form, allowing them to still have one of the best one-two punches in all of baseball. However, looking at the recent signings by the Phillies to avoid arbitration with some of their players, I can’t help but wonder if things really make sense all that much anymore. The Phillies traded away Cliff Lee who would have been making $9 million in the upcoming season and recently signed Joe Blanton to a three-year $24 million deal ($8 million per). That being said, something out of the ordinary could happen due to the importance of the game, however it is unlikely that the score will reach the sixties.Jordan Eglseder serves the second of three games, after his suspension for DWI. Now that’s impressive.For those of you that read my articles, I will try and bring you some insight as to what it feels like to be here and what is going on besides the sporting events. While I won’t be surprised to see them make some minor adjustments, I don’t anticipate them looking to change their team much at this point. Chances of making a move: Low Memphis Grizzlies After adding Zach Randolph, Jamal Tinsley, and several draft picks this year, the Grizzlies will probably only make minor, if any, adjustments at the trade deadline. He says himself that he goes into the right to please the fans, and, boy, does he ever.

The years and money were more than the Tigers willing to pay. While the Gators relied primarily on their shotgun offense, Tebow took more snaps under center then in any other year. This team is one of the best in the nation once March starts, led by the reliable junior point guard Kalin Lucas and outstanding coach Tom Izzo who never seems to let the Spartan Nation down when it matters most in the Big Dance. Not to mention, the team’s chemistry will also be back to the way it has been for many years.Although, Portland will still be lacking a center with Joel Pryzbilla and Greg Oden out for the remainder of the season, in my mind they can still contend in the Western Conference.Everyone will get plenty of playing time and the team will be rested up after the All-Star Break.

If there is a team that could be considered the polar opposite of the juggernaut-like Philadelphia Phillies that team would be the Washington Nationals. Louis.Theshortstop carousel never happens, as Orlando Cabrera and DavidEckstein stay with their respective teams.Because JD Drew is in the doghouse withTony LaRussa, the trade to the Braves of him and Eli Marrero forJason Marquis, Ray King and Adam Wainwright goes through thatoffseason.  However, because of Dan Haren’sexceptional work in the World Series and the fact that the team won aSeries, the demand for a top-of-the-rotation lefthander is lessenedand the team Is not inclined to bite on Oakland’s demand of Haren,Kiko Calero and Daric Barton for Mark Mulder.No one else takesBilly Beane’s bait and becomes unmovable when a physical reveals theextent of his injuries.Going into 2005, the Cardinals areagain stacked.The MV3 is still in top form and the rotation isimproved with additions of Marquis and the full-time use of Haren. There’s a lot of value in a guy like that, but to get there, he needs at least 450 PAs this year.I hate hate hate the idea of making Desmond a super-utility guy this year. There are only a handful of players who match great offensive production with impressive defense and 2 of them are serenaded with MVP chants everywhere they play.The solution: get some more offensive weapons to take some of the weight off of Lee’s shoulders. So this demand will be much tougher to resolve that the first two. Even so, the fact that the NFL players’ 59 percent take is the largest among the top professional sports in the United States makes this one very likely to argue against. But the union will try, and they are already asking the owners to open up the books to them to prove they are losing money. Houksaying? The Yankees were a terrible team with great weaknesses and adepletedfarm system. With that kind of skill bottled with his dedication, the sky is the limit for Tebow..