Superb pitching and some phenomenal performances from sluggers, brought the Red Sox at the top of the food chain with 18 victories in 25 games. They are also the holders of the best away record in Major League Baseball, and lost just twice on the road which would make them more than a match for the struggling Blue Jays. David Ortiz is not only one of the most prolific players for the visitors, but quite surprising one of the most constant players, scoring run after run.

Nothing can be achieved at least not at the same scale as what Boston has accomplished without formidable pitching and that’s exactly what Jon Lester stands for. The veteran starting pitcher is undefeated this season, and with four winning decisions in as many games his earned run average of 2.27 is reassuring. The last time he pitched against Oakland he gave his team a scare early on, but fortunately for him the offensive rebounded quickly and provided him with the necessary runs of support.

This time he should have a much easier mission against the Blue Jays, despite the fact that the match is played in Toronto as the opener in a three-game series. His counterpart is Brenden Morrow who has an abysmal record against the Red Sox and an equally disappointing season start. He is still searching for the first victory in 2013 after losing both decisions and compiling an ERA of 5.27, simply too high to make any runs of support matter.

Against Boston he never found a way of shutting down the sluggers and he conceded an average of nine runs per match. The visitors will reactivate Hanrahan who was sidelined with an injury but trained with the team and appears to be fit to face Toronto. Punters shouldn’t have any second thoughts about backing the visitors tonight especially with the odds offered by bookmakers being unreasonably high when the best and the worst teams in the East division go head to head.

Every year when Jackie Robinson Day is celebrated, the Dodgers play a significant part, as this is the team for which Jackie broke the baseball color line. Before that, black athletes competed in the Negro league and it was Jackie who changed all that in 1947 making him the first black player to start for a Major League Baseball team. From that point onward, more black athletes were allowed to play in MLB ending decades of discrimination and greatly enhancing the quality of the sport.

Jackie Robinson was widely regarded as a tremendous talent and an extraordinary character, which explains why the league honored him by retiring his number. The first ever Jackie Robinson Day was held on April 15, 2004 and the event proved to be a huge success and it draw huge crowds at stadiums year after year. This season there was a dire need for a special moment that would end the violence on the pitch, particularly between Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres.

In the first game of the series the two teams were at each other’s throats and some players were even engaging in plain violence. Some were suspended, some left the pitch injured and it looked like things will turn from bad to worse with more players to be ejected from the game. Fortunately both teams understood the significance of the moment and put aside their petty rivalries to celebrate Jackie Robinson as he deserved. His surviving family was on the pitch, and players were wise enough not to ruin the show by turning a beautiful sport into a brutal fight.

Jackie Robinson, remains one of the most iconic figures in baseball history, with his achievements both on and off the field being remarkable. He was not only the first black player to compete in major league baseball, but also the first vice president of an American Corporation. Back then, there were no other black television analyst in MLB and once again Robinson was the first to break the color line.

He remains one of the few professional athletes to be awarded the Congressional Gold medal and the Presidential Medal of freedom. His contribution to the sport is widely regarded as most significant, and his place in baseball’s Hall of Fame is well deserved. Alongside Stan Musial about who readers can learn more by visiting http://www.baseballdaily.com/stan-musial-dies-at-92-years-old Jackie Robinson, is an iconic baseball player was legacy into it and was figure serves as an example for young players.

He’s been amazing during spring training and his recent performance buoyed the Giants confidence ahead of the highly anticipated season start. Barry Zito has only good words to say about his younger colleague and this means a lot coming from a highly respected pitcher. Posey will make increasingly more money in the upcoming years, with a bit over $10 million to be earned in 2014, $16.5 million the next year, 20 in 2016 and for the remaining years he will earn $21.5 million. This is not an amount to frown upon and it is only fair to say that Buster has to be pleasantly surprised by how much the Giants value him.

On the other hand, the catcher needs to prove his worth and a nine-year commitment is intimidating even for a very talented player. The Giants will pay for him more than they did for Matt Cain, and for a player who has joined the Major League Baseball only three years ago the performance is remarkable. General manager Brian Sabean hopes that Posey will become the face of the franchise. So far he is definitely right on track with a major contribution to the recently conquered World Series.

Both Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy are staunch supporters and there are many reasons to link their contract extensions to the signing of Posey. The numbers he posed speak for themselves, as he batted .336, scored 24 home runs and 103 RBIs in less than 150 games. While his talent and commitment are beyond doubt, one thing that should worry the Giants is his fitness as Posey suffered an injury in his left ankle two years ago. Although he has completely recovered now, there is always the risk for him to suffer a new injury that will keep him on the bench for a long period of time.

On the bright side, the club plays the long game and accepts the possibility of having Posey indisposed for a while because they regard him as an invaluable player. Some go a step further and say that they see no reason for why Buster wouldn’t extend his contract after this long one will eventually expire. It is a bit excessive to think a decade in advance but at the same time it is refreshing to see how much optimism this young player can produce. http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/buster-posey-167m-year-deal-giants-18841919#.UVcg51dj–Z claims that there is more than meets the eye about his contract, citing bonuses.

If you become the National League’s MVP he will receive an additional $100,000 and the same amount for winning the World Series MVP. He will get 25,000 less for a National League series award and there are several prizes worth $50,000 in store for him if he wins the Gold Glove, an All-Star game election or a Silver Slugger one. The future looks bright for Buster Posey and despite the significant investment, the Giants have no reasons to regret their generosity because it would eventually pay off.

The pitching has improved dramatically and even though the total earned run average was 3.86, it is still progress compared to previous years. Veteran players turned many games around but in the end it was an unfortunate combination of insecure bullpens and poor offensive players that led to their demise. In 2013, this book can put a young group of features to the test with names such as Jameson Taillon and Gerrit Cole on the list. It’s been a while since the Pirates had such good prospects, and although this is no guarantee for a successful season it is still much more than what they had one year ago.

The hitting unit is not the best in Major League Baseball, but with players such as Andrew McCutchen and Pedro Alvarez coming seemingly out of nowhere, Pittsburgh has something to build on. Two players are not enough to propel them to a World Series, but if Starling Marte, Gaby Sanchez and Garrett Jones play their best, things are bound to take a turn for the better. The best thing about the Pirates is that although the fans are frustrated with their results, they don’t have unreasonably high expectations.

This means that the players will have to cope with less pressure and can focus their undivided attention on one game at the time. PNC Park still gathers a surprisingly high number of spectators despite the poor results, which proves that the interest is still intact. Even more surprising is the fact that the number of spectators increased despite the ticket price hike, but both the management and the players owe a great deal to these committed supporters. 2013 is the year when they have the chance to make things right.

While this might sound like a terrible scenario, it is not the worst case one, and the medics are reserved about his chances to recover. The pain didn’t diminish after various treatments and unless a miracle happens in the next couple of weeks, Furcal might be up for elbow surgery. The Cardinals missed out on numerous opportunities of improving their shortstop rotation, because they thought that Rafael will rebound in time. If that would’ve happened and St. Louis would have acquired new players for the same position, that would’ve led to a jam and the recently acquired shortstop would’ve been kept on the bench.

Now that the prospect of having him fit to play is fading, the manager has to consider three infielders and shortstops from Cleveland and Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki. He is not only the best player, but also the most expensive one and with the Rockies trying to alleviate the financial pressure Troy might be traded. As for Cleveland’s Asdrubal Cabrera, many consider that purchasing him would not be a good idea as he gained weight and underperformed.

St Louis is running out of choices and although none of the alternatives are extraordinary, they simply can’t afford to postpone the acquisition indefinitely. Cleveland is not going to settle for an average season in 2013 and as they try to secure a playoffs berth, they will have to pay extra attention to free agents. Some assume that the Cardinals might get their shortstop from the Rangers, but the Texans have repeatedly dismissed rumors about their intention of selling top prospects Andrus and Jurickson Profar.

Even if the Cardinals find a couple of players that meet their expectations and would fit nicely in their rotation, they would still have to trade some players. Right now there are very few who hold any appeal and one of them is Matt Carpenter, who would easily find a place in Colorado. St Louis can’t afford to trade their own prospects and jeopardize future seasons, although there is a pressing matter that needs to be resolved. Filling critical defensive positions is the number one priority, but they can’t lose focus of the bigger picture and patch things up no matter the costs.

The next nice thing that his former team intends to do is to induct him in the Hall of Fame in the final days of June. It is a worthy way of acknowledging his merit and it will all culminate with a ceremony and banquet that are aimed at making sure that their retirement is not a reason for sadness. By then the team will be in full swing and hoping to make another playoffs appearance, with the ceremony planned to take place a couple of days before their confrontation with Arizona Diamondbacks.

For Chipper Jones, baseball has been more than a job and this explains why it was possible for him to achieve such spectacular results. He won the MLB betting title five years ago and she was named the National League MVP backing 1999. He also played for eight times in the all-star teams and these remarkable achievements explain why he joins a collection of stars such as Aaron Hank, Eddie Mathews, Dale Murphy, Warren Spahn or Tom Glavine who also had their numbers retired by Atlanta Braves.

He was a batting champion 47 times and although he lacked the same achievements as his famous counterparts Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle or Willy Mays, is just as important as any of them. Those who knew him and saw him play, said that this was one of the few players who didn’t let people down both on and off the pitch. The area where the funeral was held was full of modern baseball celebrities, with Tony La Russa, Joe Torre, Albert Pujols, baseball Commissioner Bud Selig or Whitey Herzog being just a few of those who attended.

They all appreciate Stan Musial, and if it is one quality that the baseball player is still remembered for then this has to be his common sense and decency. He was one of the first players to embrace the idea of having African American players on the pitch and didn’t frown upon the concept even in the early stages when it was very unpopular. While not necessarily an achievement that is frequently talked about when discussing stats and personal records, it is nothing short of amazing that Musial was never ejected from a baseball game over his lengthy career.

While the funeral brought together people who love Stan Musial and various celebrities, it was consistent with Stan’s way of living. People recounted memorable or funny things from Stan’s life and the audience got the chance to remember the deceased for his best moments. Two statues depicting him exist outside Busch Stadium and these were covered in flowers, teddy bears, helmets, and balloons. Stan the Man might be gone, but the things he stood for linger on and he remains one of the few ballplayers who can inspire the young generation.

O’Flaherty was the one who got the best deal as he will receive $4.32 this season, almost 2 millions more than what he got last year. The fact that he went 3-0 with an earned run average of 1.73 definitely helped his cause and convinced the Braves that he is a worthy addition. Jason can’t be too upset about the fact that he will receive $3.65 million in 2013 which is an increase of more than half a million. He was hardly an indispensable player for the Braves in 2012, but his decently high number of homers and the numerous stolen bases must have tipped the scale in his favor.

Medlen can’t brag about winning as much as the aforementioned players, but given the fact that he now makes $2.6 million is truly remarkable. He was paid less than $500,000 in 2012 but since he became the best starting pitcher in their rotation explains why his salary was increased more than five times. Two more players signed a one-year deal and both of them were relievers, with Jonny Venters and Cristhian Martinez expected to keep the Braves alive in the final innings. So far no agreement has been reached with Martin Prado who asks for more than $7 million, while Atlanta is only willing to offer $6.65 million.

The outfielder played for both Chicago teams and Cleveland, but his best results came in his rookie’s season with the White Sox. Back then, it appeared like the Cubs have achieved something remarkable by snatching this player from their archrivals, but Kosuke didn’t rise up to the expectations. He played for 3 1/2 years for the columns and at the end of his stint, his new team was no longer willing to extend his contract. For the Japanese player, the prospect of playing for New York Yankees’ Triple-A team Wilkes-Barre was good enough, but recently even this contract came to an end.

Fukudome has no intention of lingering any further with teams from lower echelons, and plans to return home where he is going to be a key player for the Hanshin Tigers. Before leaving Japan he played for Chunichi Dragons and in 2006 he won the MVP title which acted as a springboard for his brief MLB career. His new team also acquired Tsuyoshi Nishioka who played for Minnesota Twins for two years, but failed to meet their expectations.

His new team is looking forward to see him in action, after they saw their hopes crushed time after time when Hanrahan was on the mound. The pitcher shut down Gonzales each time he was presented with the opportunity, and the Red Sox lost valuable points against the Pirates. While Joel is the player that they were aiming, the six players trade also brought them infielder Brock Holt, but the Red Sox had to give up a couple of players. Mark Melancon, Ivan DeJesus, Stolmy Pimentel and Jerry Sands will play for Pittsburgh in 2013, and the Pirates hope that they will do better than they did for their former team.

The Red Sox are on a signing spree and they also acquired shortstop Stephen Drew who will play for them throughout 2013. After what can be regarded as a terrible season, Boston is spending lavishly hoping that the next year will see them playing baseball in October. A playoff berth is essential for the Red Sox, and if they fail to make it this far in 2013, we should expect a full-blown revolution in Boston.