The Future looks Bright in Troy

Clearwater, Florida: As all teams in the NASBL prepare for the 2010 season in their spring training facilities, it's easy for teams to have a positive outlook on the season. The bright Florida sun and warm weather always seem to bring out the the best in players, fans and management alike. The new look Haymakers are not exempt from this phenomenon...."We plan on contending for the playoffs," says 3B/DH Mark Reynolds, "We are going to surprise some people." Reynolds isin't the only player on the team with playoff hopes. "I know I'm new to the team, but we have a great bunch of guys here," says pitcher Max Scherzer, "this lineup is going to be much better than they were last year." He may just be right. The 2010 Haymaker lineup is looking to improve on a lineup that produced near the bottom in every category last year, cumulated by a second from the bottom team batting average. With improved play from Mark Reynolds, Jason Bartlett, Andre Ethier, Brandon Phillips, Billy Butler, and Hunter Pence all anchored by 3B/C and new star Pablo Sandoval; Troy should have no problem scoring runs.

Always a strength of a Haymaker team, this years bull-pen looks as strong as ever. Six arms deep with two quality lefties anchored by closer Huston Street; there should be no problem stopping runs from scoring late in the game.

The main weakness of this year's team though is what keeps them a possible contender instead of a bone-a-fide contender. There are a couple of decent young arms in Jered Weaver and Max Scherzer, but after that it looks rough. Mike Pelfrey and Jon Garland will have to work a good number of innings, and it will be tough for them to be able to pull a .500 record.

When GM/Manager Ken Anderson was asked about a possibility of a playoff spot; he said, "Anything's possible. Right now we're just trying to get ready for the season. If we do enough to prepare, we could definitely make a case for it."

Here's a look at the Haymakers depth chart for the upcoming season:

C: Geovanny Soto/Pablo Sandoval /Omir Santos

1B: Billy Butler /Fernando Tatis

2B: Brandon Phillips/Omar Infante /Juan Uribe

3B: Pablo Sandoval/Juan Uribe/Mark Reynolds

SS: Jason Bartlett /Juan Uribe

LF: Andre Ethier /Jose Batista/David Murhpy

CF: Chris Dickerson /Brett Gardner/Omar Infante/Jose Batista

RF: Hunter Pence /David Murphy

DH: Mark Reynolds

SP: Jered Weaver

SP: Max Scherzer

SP: Jon Garland

SP: Mike Pelfrey

SP: Justin Masterson

SP: Homer Bailey

Closer: Huston Street

Setup: Mike Gonzalez

Setup: Brandon Lyon

Relief: Jason Bulger

Relief: Jeff Fulchino

Relief: Pedro Feliciano