St Louis

Have you ever wondered what goes through your girlfriend's mind when she stops dead in her tracks, her eyes glaze over and she goes into a trance while looking at that ring in the window?

That's what this is for men. Players like this only become freely available once a generation, and we too have paused and slipped into an alternative universe where this shiny jewel could be ours.

In articles like this, many websites give readers a list of the best overall prospects at any given position, but the intention here is to focus on those prospects that are most likely to provide a significant fantasy impact in the 2011 season. Thus, a guy like White Sox prospect Dayan Viciedo—who should be beaten out by fellow prospect Brent Morel—is not on my list.

Ditto for Josh Bell in Baltimore, who has been blocked by the recent acquisition of Mark Reynolds.

It’s true: The Cardinals without Albert Pujols is like Corn Flakes without the milk. It’s like the Colts without Peyton Manning. It’s like Oney Guillen without his Twitter account. 

But it could happen. Pujols has set a February 19 deadline to strike an extension deal with the Cardinals, and reports say the two sides will need a lot of steam to iron out these differences.

Major League Baseball features some of the most talented athletes in the entire nation, and it has done so for over a century.  Over the years, stories are told about Major Leaguers having dominant seasons and becoming champions, but being a winner does not make a player unique.

If anybody has got it made in the game of baseball today, it's Albert Pujols.  He is currently the hot topic of debate in the newspapers, on websites, on television, and even in conversation.  He's currently entering the final year of his current contra - as if you all didn't already know that - and he's contemplating on taking his unmatched skill elsewhere.

In professional baseball, unlike the other major professional sports, twenty years is a benchmark of sorts for a career. 

Sure, a player can go to the Hall of Fame having played 18, 15, or even 10 seasons, but 20 seasons is generally held out as the symbol of full career as a major league baseball player.

First base is a funny position.  

Often, the first baseman is the team's best hitter, but one of its worst fielders.  Many first baseman are both indispensable (to the batting order) and replaceable (in the field).  

There are some athletes in today’s world of sports that will seemingly never play for a team other than their current club.

Certain players are synonymous with their teams, and wrapping one’s head around the notion that they may play for a different team is just not plausible.

The likes of Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant, Derek Jeter, Peyton Manning and Albert Pujols could each be placed in this category.  

However, there was once a time when seeing Brett Favre, Michael Jordan, or Joe Montana in a different uniform was thought to be ludicrous.

Albert Pujols has won the National League Most Valuable Player Award three times, the Silver Slugger Award six times and the first base Gold Glove Award twice. He has a .331 career batting average along with 408 big league home runs.

You would think that the Cardinals would pay the man his dues, wouldn't you?

There has been speculation over the past few weeks that the Cardinals may not end up re-signing Pujols, thus potentially making Pujols a free agent next winter. What an event that would be.

The St. Louis Cardinals made what might likely be their last addition of the offseason on Friday, signing infielder Nick Punto to a one-year deal. It will be worth $750K.

Punto is a switch-hitter, who had strong seasons in 2006 and 2008, but has been disappointing since. He batted .238 with a .313 on-base percentage and a .302 slugging percentage in 2010.