Opinion

Trick or treat? How about trick or murder-clown.

That’s what Jose Canseco is dressing up as for Halloween this year, as evidenced by this insane outfit he wore to some spooky red carpet event where costumes of this nature are encouraged.

Brian McCann has spent his entire career with the Atlanta Braves and has been one of the best offensive catchers in baseball over that span. As he prepares to enter free agency this winter, the rumors and the speculation are already starting to heat up.

Hunter Pence is locked in.  Tim Lincecum will wear orange and black for the next two seasons.  

The San Francisco Giants have successfully inked one corner outfielder and have retained another starting pitcher.  However, there are still holes to fill in both areas: The team still needs a left fielder and another starting pitcher in order to compete for a playoff spot in 2014. 

The Los Angeles Angels were one of the most disappointing teams in baseball. After entering the 2013 season with a lot of hype, they never developed into a serious contender, finishing 18 games behind the Oakland Athletics in the AL West.

Now, the effort to fix the roster begins. The pitching staff is the main area of concern after the Angels finished with a 4.23 team ERA, which ranked 24th in the majors. They are apparently seeking ways to add some pitching by moving a couple hitters. 

With four World Series appearances in the last 10 years, the St. Louis Cardinals are baseball’s closest thing to a dynasty. 

However, rather than procure talent during the offseason like most large-market franchises, the Cardinals continue to produce winning teams the old-fashioned way: by developing players.

This winter, Robinson Cano will be the biggest, most expensive name on the free-agent market, which is just the sort of player the big-market, deep-pocketed New York Yankees have been known to land.

But will they? And more importantly, should they?

Cano, of course, actually is a Yankee. At least, technically speaking. For now.

Allen Craig was one of the most prolific hitters for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2013.  His production at the plate, specifically with runners in scoring position, was a key component in the successful season for the team.  An injury in early September sidelined the first baseman, forcing the Cardinals to rely on young power hitter Matt Adams.

The 2013 World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Boston Red Sox has started off with two excellent games—each team has stolen a victory—and the rest of the series should prove to be just as intense.

Here are the keys for each team to bring home the championship hardware for their respective city.

All stats via MLB.com.

The Boston Red Sox stormed out of the gates in Game 1, taking advantage of some mistakes to grab an early World Series lead. The St. Louis Cardinals fought back to win Game 2 at Fenway Park, which sends the Fall Classic to St. Louis all square at one.

It doesn't come as a surprise that the two evenly matched teams are deadlocked after two games. In fact, it wouldn't be a shock to see them tied after six games as well. They were the best teams in their respective leagues this season and are now battling for the ultimate prize.

The Boston Red Sox took Game 1 in dominant fashion, and the St. Louis Cardinals used opportunistic base-running to win Game 2.

Now, the 2013 World Series is tied at 1-1.

A pair of dramatic games has put the series in toss-up position, as neither team has a true advantage.

The question is, what adjustments much each team make to earn the advantage in the World Series?