Though the season has just started, here's who I think are the most overrated teams and players in the MLB:

National League:

Most overrated team: Atlanta Braves

Although the Braves are in the same division as the New York Mets, they have won the NL East every year since 1995. By winning the NL East almost like clock work, it would be stupid to pick against them as the division winner, right? Wrong. Even as they have Andruw Jones, who homered 51 times last year, all of their former superstars are beginning to fade. For example: Chipper Jones seems as if he is getting older every time he walks onto the field. For one thing, he warms the bench almost half the season every season due to injuries. Also, he hasn't led the Braves in BA in four years. What the Braves need to do is trade Chipper for some young blood. In actuality, one of the best players on the Braves is Jeff Francoeur, and he is only in his second year with the Braves.

American League:

Most overrated team: New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are leading the AL East currently, and the only reason I post them as overrated is because of the old, inconsistent pitching. Sure, Randy Johnson is one of the greatest pitchers to ever play, but he is 41. Here's some career advice, Randy: You're probably not going to past Nolan Ryan for career strikeouts, so just retire. The last thing the MLB needs is another Julio Franco. The same thing goes for Mike Mussina, although he is leading the Yankees' pitching staff with a 5-1 record, my career advice for you is the same as Randy's. Who knows, maybe you guys have talent for golf as well as you did for baseball. Lucky enough for the Yankees, they still have some- and I mean very little- young pitchers: Shawn Chacon (28, 3-1) and Jaret Wright (30, 0-2). But, as the Yankees' starters struggle to find the Fountain Of Youth, the relievers are hunting, too. Arguibly one of the best closers of all time, Mariano Rivera isn't getting any younger at 36. I don't whether or not is time to throw in the towel, yet, but I think George Steinbrenner and Joe Torre should trade him for some young starters. Fortunately for the Yankees, Kyle Farnsworth (30) is another reliever. I think if they trade Rivera, they should move Farnsworth to closer, and getting a little youth to try to close out your games. But, the Yankees have won 26 World Series titles, so they probably know more than me when it comes to winning games.

Most overrated player in the MLB: Barry Bonds

I know, I know. 712 home runs, and third on the all-time home run list. But, since he has only hit four homers this year, and just coming off what could have been the biggest steroid scandal ever, how can anyone root for him (other than San Francisco). Great timing, Barry, the one year you're not on pace to hit 500 home runs, is the same season in which you have been accused of steroids. Well, obviously, he's all out of juice: 4 HRs, only a .237 BA, only 14 hits, and only 11 hits this season. I can't believe someone like this is about to past one of the greatest baseball players to ever live in Babe Ruth, but might actually surpass "Hammerin'" Hank for the most home runs all time. I know what he's thinking right now: "Where'd that fan throw that syringe on opening day?"

The Oakland A's have battled injuries all year in their pitching staff, such as Huston Street, Esteban Loaiza, and Rich Harden. Fortunately, the depth and stamina of the A's bullpen has saved them...literally.

Two bullpen pitchers have already been appointed to starters (Brad Halsey, Kirk Saarloos), and the A's have a total of 9 saves. This number is definetely small on paper, but the pitching staff has taken care of business. Reliever Kirk Calero averages 10.45 strikeouts per nine innings, and has a save. Joe Kennedy has 6 strikeouts on ten innings, and Chad Guadin has only allowed 1 earned run and 4 hits. But, throughout these players, the A's bullpen relies heavily on two players: Justin Duchscherer and Huston Street. Huston Street has produced only 4 saves, but has been injured due to a strained muscle. Fortunately, he pitched an inning against the Rangers on Tuesday. Justin Duchscherer has been relied heavily upon due to Street's absence. Last year, he was the only representative of the A's in the All Star Game. He has produced 2 saves, and struck out 15 batters on 14.1 innings.

For the starters, the pitching rotation has a combined record of 11-10. This is also another reason the A's rely heavily on their bullpen. Out of the starters, the pitcher with the best record is Rich Harden (3-0). Unfortunately, he is currently injured. Now, the A's best starter is 2002 Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito (2-2). Although he doesn't have the best record of the remaining pitchers (Joe Blanton, 3-2), he is probably the most relied on. Zito has allowed 25 hits, struck out 27 batters, all on 35 innings. Joe Blanton has allowed 37 hits, struck out 19 batters, on 29.1 innings pitched.

Although the A's do not have the most experienced bullpen, they have loads of potential. In fact, the oldest active player in the A's pitching rotation is Barry Zito (27).  

WOW! What a surprising first few weeks of baseball it has been: Bonds hits 712, rookie Jonathan Papelbon leads the AL in saves, Grex Maddux is 5-0. But, amidst these news headlines, there are two teams that are overlooked, although, record-wise, some of the best teams in the business- the Cincinnati Reds and the Detroit Tigers.

The Cincinnati Reds have probably been the most surprising team in the leauge thus far, and they have earned themselves respect (for once). But the way they have played so far, I'm not so sure if I wouldn't pick them to beat the Cardinals and the Astros and steal the NL Central. For one thing, they lead the NL and are second in the MLB in runs scored (158), but most surprisingly their pitching and defense is finally starting to come around. In actuality, Bronson Arroyo and Adam Harang would be front-runners for the NL Cy Young Award if they continue to produce the numbers they are now. In addition, Arroyo has only given up 12 total runs this season (not to mention two homers), and Harang has only walked nine batters. These two pitchers provide 9 out the Reds' 19 wins. Defensively, Ryan Freel, Ken Griffey Jr., and Adam Kearns are all %1.000 on fielding.

The Detroit Tigers started the season flawlessly this year, but have started to slow down a little. But, give the Tigers some credit- it's kind of hard to keep the way of play that they had been producing the whole year. The Tigers have hit an amazing 43 HOME RUNS this season, and five players have produced at least five homers. As a team, the Tigers are batting .286 and only giving up a .216 batting average to opposing teams. They have also as a team hit 49 doubles. Although they do not have any outstanding pitchers on their team, Mike Maroth, Kenny Rogers, and Jeremy Bonderman have a combined 11 out of 19 wins for the team. Defensively, the lowest fielding percentage by a starter is .939 (Carlos Guillen).

For these two teams, it is been almost like a dream. But, will their cinderella story fade as the season progresses? We'll find out this October.

Most underrated team in the NL: Colorado Rockies

The Rockies? Yeah, the Rockies. How can a team with nobody be 15-12 this year? Well, for starters, they have scored 141 runs this season, which is second in the NL (behind the Reds). In addition, Matt Holliday, Brad Hawpe, and Garrett Atkins have a combined 18 out of the team's 32 home runs. Their defense has been surprising, too: their pitching staff has given up 22 home runs, they have struck out 182 strike outs, and have given up 257 hits. Although these numbers aren't outstanding, they have definetely improved from last year's start.

Most underrated team in the AL: Cleveland Indians

Although some pick them to win their division, AL teams need to worry much more about this team then the AL Central. On offense, they have owned opposing teams, scoring 171 runs this season (leads the MLB). Switch-hitting Travis Hafner has 9 home runs out of the Indians' 32, and the team has a combined 295 hits. On the defensive side, the Indians' pitching staff has struck out 188 batters, and have given up 261 hits. Their defense isn't the best in the league, but they have arguibly the best offense in the MLB.

Most underrated player in the MLB: Nick Swisher (Oakland A's)

Although Brad Hawpe of the Colorado Rockies may never be mentioned, Nick Swisher has to be one of the best hitters in the MLB. Unfortunately, he recieves as little publicity as the WNBA. But, I don't blame you for not ever hearing of him, when you think of best outfielders, you think of Andruw Jones, Barry Bonds, Manny Ramirez, and Vladimir Guerrero. Nevertheless, Swisher has hit 10 home runs, 5 doubles, and has a batting average of .318. He also leads the A's with a .756 slugging percentage. In conclusion, I am not being bias towards Nick Swisher because he is on my favorite team, but he will shape up to be an MVP candidate at the end of this year.

What kind of name is that? Who in their right mind would name their kid Huston Street?  You might hear people ask those questions, but to myself and A's fans around the world: it only means success. The A's have a long line of tremendous pitchers: Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersly, Catfish Hunter, and many more. But of these three, they seem to, also, have a "bizzarre name." I myself do not think any of these names are bizzarre, for they have a place in history. Obviously, the A's have had a history of contrevorsy, but they seem to always be in the race for the playoffs, and always have a pitcher in contention for Cy Young. I'm not saying that only A's with strange names can win the Cy Young award, but I am saying that Huston Street is only 22 and a top contender for the overall saves leader in the MLB.

The last time the A's actually won a World Series game was in 1988, when they played the Dodgers. Everybody should remember game 1 of the Series, with Kirk Gibson's walk-off home run, and everybody knows that Dennis Eckersly was on the mound when it happened. But, what everybody doesn't know is that Eckersly threw his slider to Gibson. Eckersly's slider was arguibly the nastiest sliders to have ever been thrown, and, in coincidence, Huston Street's slider happens to be his best pitch, and is, too, one of the nastiest sliders in the league. The difference between the two pitchers is that Huston Street is a righty. I am not trying to say that if Eckersly was a righty, then the A's would have won the game. But, Street is still developing, and with two bad knees it is hard to hit a low slider breaking towards you rather than away.

Unfortunately, Street has been out with a strained muscle since the middle of August, so his numbers aren't as up to date as the Red Sox's Jonathan Papelbon. Fortunately, he did return today for an inning against the Angels, and I can almost guarantee that if the A's make the playoffs this year, Huston Street will be a deciding factor in whether or not the A's lose by another walkoff, or win by a pitching duel.

You can just tell by the name.