FanHouse prospect expert Frankie Piliere released his organization rankings yesterday, and I thought I'd highlight some things for you. Here are the top five, and bottom five teams:

1. Tampa Bay Rays
2. Texas Rangers
3. Oakland A's
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Cleveland Indians

26. Toronto Blue Jays
27. St. Louis Cardinals
28. Pittsburgh Pirates
29. Houston Astros
30. San Diego Padres

Some quick thoughts on the extremes, in classic MLB Notebook form:

• Is it any surprise the Rays are number one? It shouldn't be. This team had top picks galore this decade, and are headed by a smart front office. If they can get some fanbase to help increase their payroll, they will be scary.
• The day the Braves don't have a top system is the day John Schuerholz retires.
• The Indians trading Victor Martinez, Cliff Lee and C.C. Sabathia virtually guaranteed a top system. If not, they would be headed down a tough road.
• Even with the Halladay trade, the Blue Jays are struggling. I blame J.P. Ricciardi. But, I blame everything on GMJP (how dare you eat the last burger last night. Jerk).
• I've harped on the Astros for a long time. This team is getting old, fast, and there are no replacements waiting in the wings.
• The Padres will be back towards the top in no time. Jed Hoyer is taking this team in the right direction.
• If you are a smallish market team like the Pirates and don't have any prospects, can you ever succeed? The new regime appears to be a good one, but it will take time. Time Pirate fans are dreading.

• Xavier Nady has reached a deal with the Chicago Cubs, according to sources. The deal is reportedly worth $3.3MM over one year, with an additional $2MM available in incentives. This deal seems fairly reasonable, and a return to the NL should benefit Nady. The X Man is returning from Tommy John surgery, and while he thinks he'll be ready to start the year, I see that as far too optimistic. Am I an injury expert? Hell no. But, coming back from TJ in under a year is a tough task, one I don't think that Nady will be able to achieve. CHONE projects Nady as a 0.7 WAR player, while the fans have him at 1.7 WAR. I think he'll come in at about 1.3 WAR this year, which should pay off his contract.
• In another move, the Cubs signed Chad Tracy to a minor league deal, which could be worth $900k if he makes the big league roster. For no apparent reason, I've always had a soft spot for Tracy, and would like to see him do well. Maybe it's the goatee? Tracy used to play for the D'Backs, where he manned first and third base, as well as being able to fill in at the corner outfield spots. Now, he is likely delegated to pinch hit duty and the occasional game at first base. CHONE is very pessimistic when it comes to Tracy's hitting ability, so much so that I find it to be ridiculous. If healthy, Tracy is a nice bench bat for the Cubs (career .297/.358/.482 hitter against RHP), and comes cheaply.
• Both of these moves show me a bit of progress for the Cubs, but they still really need to find a way out of Zambrano's contract and need to get rid of Jim Hendry sooner rather than later. Both could cripple the franchise in the near future.

Yourrrrrr Minnesota Twins have signed Jim Thome to serve as DH for the 2010 season. The contract is reportedly for $1.5MM with another $700,000 in incentives.

I like this deal, with some reservations. On the plus side, the Twins just signed a future Hall of Famer who can still hit (.249/.366/.481 last year) and who mashes lefties (.244/.379/.511 last year, .294/.429/.614 career). Surely, he can add some pop to an anemic Twins lineup that...oh, sorry. They were 7^th in MLB in wOBA last year. Well, that was unexpected.

ANYWAY, I still like the idea of adding a guy like Thome who can produce plenty of effective ABs at a small price. But it does mean the Twins are going to have to rethink some things. For one, Thome is exclusively a DH at this point. Which would be fine, except they already have a guy there in Jason Kubel, and they can't move him to first base because former MVP (however undeserved) Justin Morneau is occupying that spot – and you don't mess with Canadians. So then the plan would be to move Kubel to left field, which, again, would be fine if not for one mitigating factor – they already have a guy there in Delmon Young. And so there's where this gets interesting.

Because I want it to have it's own post to make it more visible, below is the link to the Baseball by Paul podcast, of which I was a guest.

We talked about the Mariners, undervalued fantasy players, and answered some questions from the audience. It was a fun time, and I would love to be back anytime he will have me.

If you haven't listened to his podcast before, it's understandable. It started up last Tuesday, and has featured guests Jason Collette and Will Carroll (along with myself, but I'm not exactly in that company). It's such a great show, that I'm considering adding it to the sidebar for easy reference. You can listen in on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 3:00 PST, and I believe he is trying to put together a Saturday show as well.

Anyway, make sure to give the show a listen.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/pjs24/2010/01/26/baseball-by-paul-podcast

I'll be on the Baseball by Paul online radio show starting at around 6:05 est. We'll talk some Mariners and undervalued fantasy players

Link to listen is below.

http://tobtr.com/s/882800

Have to run off, but looks like the A's have signed Ben Sheets to a one-year deal worth between $8-$10MM.

Good deal, and he is likely to be moved at deadline (in my opinion).

Mark Loretta is retiring from the game of baseball, and he's got a nice fall back:

On his first official day of retirement, former Major League infielder Mark Loretta landed a job in the Padres' front office.

Loretta, who played for five teams over a 15-year career, will join the Padres as a special assistant to the baseball operations staff.

I'd heard he was supposedly a really sharp guy who had a future in the front office or on the field. I'm glad the Padres let him start off his career in their system, and he should do well with Jed Hoyer. I doubt he ever becomes an actual GM, but he probably could be a nice Asst. GM or maybe a scouting director.

Just for kicks and giggles, let's look at his career numbers:

• .295/.360/.395
• 76 HR
• 768 runs scored
• 47 steals (35 CS)
• 103 wRC+

He had some great years, mainly 2003 and 2004 with the Padres. We'll now get a chance to see what he can do off the field.

Just when I thought the Royals signing of Rick Ankiel couldn't get much worse, it did:

While introducing newcomer Rick Ankiel on Monday, general manager Dayton Moore said the injury-prone Guillen would be replaced in right field by David DeJesus, last year's left fielder. The 30-year-old Ankiel will play center and Scott Podsednik, another newcomer, will be in left.

What did I say about this deal when it was signed (on twitter)? "If he's the full time RF, I'm OK with it, but adding in that option is just scary."

Yep, that was me. Just to drive home the point, let's look at each outfielders career UZR/150 in CF:

Ankiel: -9.4
DeJesus: 4.9
Podsednik: -5.6

To be fair, Ankiel has only played a little more than a full season in center, and has one hell or an arm on him. However, why not stick the best fielder in center? At the very least I thought they would put Podsednik in center due to his speed, but apparently I was wrong.

Good luck, Royals fans. When GMDM exercises Rick Ankiel's 2011 option, you will really be having some fun.

• Maicer Izturis has re-signed with the Angels for $10MM over three years. Did the Angels feel the need to redeem themselves after their last signing, because they just did. Izturis is young, plays some D, and doesn't strike out a ton. The only problem with this deal is that it could block Howie Kendrick. However, Izturis can play shortstop, and if Kendrick doesn't start out slow it shouldn't matter anyway.
• An ESPN.com video is reporting that the Yankees made an offer to Johnny Damon. The deal is supposedly for one-year. I would guess the deal would be for around $5-$7MM, but I don't know for sure. If I'm the Yankees, I'd rather save a couple bucks to possibly spend on the bullpen and let Gardner start next year. But, what do I know?
• In the same video, Buster Olney said the A's are bidding hard for Ben Sheets. I'm not surprised. The A's could be a nice sleeper team in the tight AL West and could make things difficult for the Mariners, Angels and Rangers. I'd like them to spend the money to add a front-line starter (if healthy), as their rotation could use some veteran leadership and I'm not sure if Duke is the best option for that at the moment.

With fantasy baseball drafting quickly approaching, it's the time of the offseason for some pre-draft fantasy analysis.

One question at the forefront of my fantasy baseball preparation is whether fantasy managers should be comfortable with Adam Lind as part of their team's outfield core. I'm answering that question in the affirmative. Lind seemingly came out of nowhere in 2009 and ended up becoming one of the bright spots for the Blue Jays. Based on his 2009 production, Lind should be part of your team's outfield - or as the DH or a utility player in flex leagues. Here's why.

Expect Lind to serve as Toronto's primary DH. He'll also get some time in left field. That means daily at-bats and a better-than-good chance to improve upon his 2009 numbers. Lind hit .305/.370/.562 with 35 home runs, 114 RBI, 46 doubles, and 93 runs in 587 at-bats last season. Lind had a break out season in 2009. That break out season could cause Lind to get drafted early on in your fantasy draft, as many fantasy managers believe in Lind's numbers carrying over into 2010. Lind sported a .326 BABIP in 2009, which showed progress from 2008 (.322). That jump corresponds to the jump in his batting average, from .282 in 2008 to .305.