Around the League in 30 Days - The Kings of KC

The Royals, no longer royalty in the AL have one household name in Cy Young winner Zack Greinke who is poised to prove that 2009 was no fluke. Greinke is easily one of the top 5 pitchers in baseball and at 26 years old, he'll surely hold that title for a number of years to come. Joakim Soria gives the Royals a top-notch closer. Brian Bannister is ready for a rebound year and he should provide solid depth in the starting rotation. The time is now for Luke Hochevar to become the top-flight starter he is expected to be. The offense leaves a lot to be desired aside from Jose Guillen, David DeJesus, and Billy Butler. The jury is still out on Alex Gordon.

Additions - The Royals made a number of signings, some good - like Cuban starter Noel Arguelles (5 yrs, under $7mil), Rick Ankiel (1 yr/$3.75mil), Scott Podsednik (1yr, $1.75 mil), and a host of minor league signings that could fill out the roster (Wilson Betemit) and staff (Philip Humber, Matt Herges, John Parrish, Brian Bullington, and Bruce Chen) respectively. Not all the moves made sense as the Royals overpaid for Jason Kendall (2 yrs, $6mil). Kendall brings nearly no value at the plate and having a veteran backup to Brayan Pena could have been solved w/minor league signing of Vance Wilson. Kendall is right there w/the horrible signing of Jose Guillen a few years ago. They also acquired Chris Getz and Josh Fields via trade.

Subtractions - Mark Teahan is gone (traded for Fields and Getz) as is Mike Jacobs, Tony Pena Jr., Miguel Olivo, Coco Crisp, John Buck, and Sidney Ponson. Of that group, Teahan will be missed but the deal should net positive for KC. Jacobs provided power but the low AVG/OBP/SP line won't be missed. Of the rest of the bunch, only Ponson had some value but his off-the-field shenanigans are likely his demise.

Outlook - There's not much reason to believe the 2010 Royals will fair much better than the '09 variation. Of the team's 65 wins in 2009, 16 belonged to Greinke and I'm sure he could have easily pitched his way to 20 on a team with some offense. Bump them up to 70 wins because of offensive improvement and save the cellar for the Tribe.

Around the League in 30 Days - How 'bout them O's?

The least of the AL East, the Baltimore Orioles are slowly but surely turning a page in Charm City. The franchise that has not seen a winning season since Mike Mussina left town is starting to come together. After many years of tumultuous front office/ownership issues, there's a game plan in place and it started with stud-C Matt Wieters. The former Georgia Tech standout posted a line of .351/6/33 in post All-Star play and looks to pick up where things left off. Hitting is not the question in B'more, with a lineup that already boasted doubles machine Brian Roberts (149 over the last 3 seasons), Nick Markakis (roughly 40 2Bs and 20HR per year to go w/a 300 average and the best RF arm in baseball), Luke Scott (24 HR/year since joining the O's), and Adam Jones (slowly turning into the player he was expected to be and not even 25!)

Additions - Not resting on their laurels, the O's enhanced their offense by adding former SS Miguel Tejada to play 3B. Garret Atkins has also been recruited to play 1B and the move may be his last shot at everyday playing time in the MLB. The question has never been hitting, not ever. They can out-hit many teams but the reason the O's notched only 70 W's in 2009 is the pitching. Concerns have been addressed by adding a true front-line starter in Kevin Millwood. Millwood will not only gobble up 200+ solid innings this season, he'll also anchor a staff that is ripe with young talent, namely Brian Matusz.

Subtractions - Fan favorite Melvin Mora is no longer patrolling 3B, as he left the O's after 9 great seasons, ironically replacing Atkins in Colorado. Chris Ray is now gone from the pen as the once promising closer was dealt to the Rangers for the aforementioned Millwood.

Outlook - Young pitching needs to continue to develop, and FAST! The offense will keep the team in enough games. Millwood should win 15 games which is a feat for an O's pitcher. Matusz needs to provide the quality starts he's expected to throw. After that it's anybody's guess. I am going on a limb and projecting the O's to NOT finish in last place. Bump them up to 76 wins and get them O's out the cellar.