One of the biggest story-lines of the 2012 Major League Baseball offseason was Prince Fielder signing as a free agent with the Detroit Tigers.

The Tigers never seemed to be in the race for Fielder who was being sought after by the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and the Texas Rangers the hardest. After the injury to Victor Martinez however, General Manager Dave Dombrowski had to go out and acquire a bat as solid as Martinez so Fielder was the best option.

But the real storyline doesn’t truly end there because that isn’t the storyline at all.

The storyline is that Fielder is starting another chapter in his career where his father Cecil Fielder made his career.

Through the first part of Fielders career, his father was his advisor but things turned for the worst when Cecil began to have a gambling and domestic problem which resulted in a ugly divorce not only between Cecil and his wife but with his son, Prince, as well.

Cecil Fielder’s career didn’t begin as great in Toronto as Prince’s did in Milwaukee. It really took off when he joined the Tigers clubhouse in 1990 at the age of 26.

In his first full season with Detroit, Cecil hit a career high 51 homeruns and added 132 run’s batted in to that total. He was named to that year’s All-Star game as well as winning the Silver Slugger award. He also came second in the MVP voting. (Rickey Henderson)

In 982 career games with the Tigers, Cecil hit 245 home runs and batted in 758 RBI’s but was never able to help Detroit get into post-season play.

Prince’s career took flight the moment he touched the diamond.

In his first full season with the Brewers, Prince went deep 28 times while adding 81 RBI’s. He finished 7^th in the Rookie of the Year voting.

In his second season, at the age of 23, Prince totaled 50 home runs to go with 119 RBI’s. He finished 3^rd in the MVP voting but that wasn’t all he got tied to that year. Prince and his father would always be remembered as the only father/son to ever reach the milestone of hitting 50 homeruns.

Prince’s career has been stellar to this point at the age of 27. In 998 games, Prince has 230 home runs and 656 RBI’s.

Though he did help the Brewers to 2 postseasons during his time there, he was a nonfactor in the 3 series they played during that span.

Nonetheless, Prince Fielder is headed to Detroit where his father created a name for himself. Prince has already made his name a staple in the game but now, by signing with the Tigers, he adds a new light shining towards him. The attention he will receive as the days draw closer to the beginning of the season will test if he can wavier past that and help the Tigers win.

They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and though off the field Prince and his father aren’t the same, on the field they know exactly where to put the baseball; out of the ballpark.

Let’s open this story on the New York Mets with a merchandise idea to be sold at Citi Field:

Brown paper bags that say “The New York Mess.”

To be painfully honest, paper bags will probably be the only thing Mets fans buy this year with the way the team is slowly falling apart.

If I am a Mets fan, I am not outraged that the team didn’t sign Jose Reyes. In all fairness, Reyes alone wouldn’t do anything for this team that he hasn’t already done. He is a cornerstone to a contender, not your main guy. Had he stayed, the Mets would have just been a 75-80 win team and looking at the bottom of the N.L. East Division.

So no, Met fans, don’t be mad that the Mets didn’t sign Reyes, be mad that the Wilpons pretty much told everyone, “We don’t want to win. We'd rather conserve our money.”

The Wilpons don’t care to win baseball games. They care about their name and money.

Sandy Alderson was brought in to be the GM, yet he can’t do his job properly because he has no backup from the owners.

With the Phillies always contending, the Braves slowly putting together a strong young team and the Marlins becoming the New York Yankees and signing everyone, the Mets will be fighting with the Nationals for last place and in about two years, the Nationals will probably be ahead of the Mets with Bryce Harper and Stephen Strausburg being high valued young talent that can turn around a franchise.

The Mets will not win anything while the Wilpons hold the fort but then again, how do you get the owners to sell?

Not go to games? Don’t buy merchandise?

At this point, New York needs to move David Wright and Jason Bay, maybe even Ike Davis and start fresh.

They drafted Brandon Nimmo, who is projected to be their next big thing coming out of the farm league. Their Top 10 prospects according to the official team site are as follows:

1. Zack Wheeler SP (ETA: 2013)
2. Matt Harvey SP (ETA: 2013)
3. Jeurys Famila SP (ETA: 2012)
4. Wilmer Flores SS (ETA: 2013)
5. Kirk Nieuwenhuis OF (ETA: 2011)
6. Cory Vaughn OF (ETA: 2014)
7. Cesar Puello OF (ETA: 2013)
8. Jordany Valdespin SS (ETA: 2012)
9. Reese Heavens 2B (ETA: 2012)
10. Jefry Marte 3B (ETA: 2014)

Currently on the active 40-man roster is Jenrry Mejia, another starting pitcher and Ruben Tejada, who is projected to be the new shortstop now that Reyes is gone.

Wheeler and Harvey are major league level type players.

Wheeler posted up nine wins with a 3.52 era in 115 innings of work with 129 strikeouts, while Harvey had 13 wins with a 3.32 era in 135 innings pitched to go along with 156 strikeouts.

These two guys need to be groomed correctly if the Mets want aces out of the farm system.

So far, so good.

As for position players, Flores is about as good of a shortstop the Mets will produce now after Reyes. His bat is his best tool and he has a rocket arm. He does need to polish his offensive game but since being signed when he was 17, he has shown a lot of improvement.

After Flores, though, there isn’t a lot of ooohs and aahs in this Mets farm system again besides Nimmo.

The Mets have to rebuild their farm system like San Francisco and Tampa Bay did and slowly climb out of this “Dark Age” they have found themselves in.

Look to get rid of the three guys named on top and get back high level prospects, and then draft high talent players in the early rounds.

Met fans need to be ready for the next five years because unless there is a major turn of events, this team will not compete.

With four core prospects, the future looks decent for the Mets but unless there is a major personnel change, this team will be a mess.

An Amazin’ Mess.

With the baseball season officially done, it’s time to look at the players and teams to watch this offseason.

Players

Jose Reyes: Without a doubt Reyes will be one of the most coveted players in the free agent market.  The only questions are, where does he go and how much does he get paid.

Another year, another small-market World Series as St. Louis and Texas, returning for the second time in two straight years, battle it out.

With the season nearing its end, talk of MVP becomes a hot topic.

One person that needs to be discussed can not only capture the MVP but also the CY Young; that person is Justin Verlander.

In 2007, it probably was the most sensible move the New York Yankees could make. Sign Alex Rodriguez to the richest contract in baseball history because of the type of player he was, one of a kind.

4 years later, the decision looks shaky. 275 million dollars over 10 years for a guy who was 32 when he signed his contract and would be 42 by the time the contract ended. Can Rodriguez really hit 30+ homers at the age of 42? Not something that many would bet on but the Yankees did and now are dealing with the issues at hand.

Over the past couple years, Rodriguez has dealt with lingering hip injuries and is now having issues with his hip, which is definitely a cause for concern for the Yankees. As of late, Rodriguez has been dealing with a grade 1 thumb injury, which is keeping him limited--something the Yankees can’t really afford to do. With only a month left in the season and being behind a very deep Boston Red Sox team, the Yankees need their 30 million dollar man on the field.

There is no question: when Rodriguez is at full strength, he is a threat. Even at 80%, he is dangerous to any team he faces but he is no good to the team if he remains on the bench.

Rodriguez is, of course, chasing the home run record and currently sits at 626 total home runs. There are clauses in his contract which will pay him more money as he gets closer to the record but the question should be raised, can he actually reach the record, which sits at 762, and surpass it?

The Yankees signed Alex Rodriguez with the thought that he would be able to produce night in and night out, as well as wanting him to break the home run record in a pin-stripe uniform. There isn’t a doubt that he can still do it but the Yankees are sitting on a lot of ifs, ands, and buts for a man they invested 30 million dollars in for another 6 years.

After a shaky first half of the season, the Milwaukee Brewers have finally begun playing baseball in a way that shouldn’t come as any surprise.

There are three things in Major League Baseball that need to be addressed.

The first thing that needs to be addressed is All-Star selection.

In fourteen games thus far without Albert Pujols, the St. Louis Cardinals have lost half of those contests. While that number may make you think Pujols is being missed it doesn’t truly reflect what’s going on with the Cardinals.