Catching up on the AL East

Gordon Edes put together a summary of what has happened around baseball this offseason. Here are the snipets that pertain to our favorite division:

1. Who's the funky guy in the oversized, black Elvis Costello glasses?
   Gordo lets us know that there are two new managers in the AL East. He is referencing Joe Maddon with the Elvis Costello joke, new manager of the Tamba Bay Devil Rays. The other is the Oriole's Sam Perlozzo.
   
   Both of these teams can brag about new general managers as well, with Jim Duquette taking over in Baltimore and Andy Friedman taking over in Tampa Bay, where I hear this will be the last year we are calling that team the Devil Rays.


2. Why is my accountant telling me to buy stock in Starbucks?
   Let's not be caught by surprise when player production drops way off late in the season this year. During this offseason, MLB and the MLBPA enacted a ban on greenies (amphetamines, a stimulant used by as many as 85% of baseball players, according to former Yankee and Ranger Chad Curtis).


3. Who's going to play in the World Baseball Classic, and should I care?
   Gordo's spin on this piece is "It may be easier to tell you who won't be playing." So far, his short list included only a few names from the AL East, Yankees Mariano Rivera and Hideki Matsui.


4. Since not everyone is as classy as Johnny Damon and buys a full-page ad to remind me, can you tell me some of the other changes of address I need to know about this winter?
   This is a collection of players who switched teams during the offseason. Kevin Millar is an Oriole. So is Jeff Conine, again, with Kris Benson and Corey Patterson. He leaves out the new acquisitions made by the Blue Jays in lieu of the next piece.


5. I've never had money to spend, and now I've got millions in spare cash. Will that make a difference in my life?
   This is a bit dedicated solely to the myriad changes the Blue jays made with their new-found riches. In case you missed my post from last week on this, here it is. J.P Ricciardi invested a total of $107 million signing free agent starter A.J. Burnett, closer B.J. Ryan, and catcher Bengie Molina. Ricciardi also picked up Troy Glaus and Lyle Overbay in trades.


6. Give me the names of some kids I should watch this spring.
   WHAT??!! The Yankees don't have any young talent we should keep an eye on? The only current AL East player (the Sox traded two young infielders the offseason) mentioned is the Sox Jonathan (DON'T CALL ME JON!) Papelbon.