With the Los Angeles Dodgers set to begin the year playing in a cricket stadium 17 hours away in Sydney,

Australia they will still be looking to get the nightmares of Michael Wacha and the 2013 NL League Championship series out of their heads. After having a 2013 regular season full of excitement, finishing 92-70, 11 games ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the postseason seemed to be a bit of a disappointment. With the new ownership group certainly not shy about spending money the Dodgers are looking to build off last season with a World Series or bust attitude. Now the richest pitcher in history, signing a seven-year $215 million extension that will pay him over $30M per, Clayton Kershaw is looking to try to match his Cy Young campaign from 2013. With the Dallas, Texas native finishing with 236 IP, 0.92 WHIP and an ERA of 1.83 the other four starters will look to shut the door on their work days as well. Zach Greinke, while not thrilled about having to play ball in the land down under, will look to establish himself as a second ace of sorts while building off his solid 2013. Rounding out the rotation will be Hyun-Jin Ryu, newly acquired Dan Haren for one year and $10 million and a battle between Paul Maholm, Josh Beckett, Chad Billingsley and others for the final rotation slot. With a bullpen that has Kenley Jansen with his cut-fastball closing and The Beard, Brian Wilson, and others supporting him the Dodgers rotation should be one of the best in baseball. Yasiel Puig does everything fast and reckless, especially driving, but he his arguably the most entertaining player in baseball for that reason as well. The Cuban defector exploded on the scene in 2013 and sparked interest like nobody before. Playing 104 games, finishing with a .319 BA, 19 HRs and entertaining everyone with his rifle of an arm in the outfield. Joining Puig this year will be fellow Cuban and recent signee Alex Guerrero. The 27-yearold infielder will plug into the second base position after signing a four-year deal worth $28 million. With Matt Kemp, Hanley Ramirez, Carl Crawford, Andre Eithier and A-Gon, Adrian Gonzalez, the Dodgers lineup in stacked. The key will be keeping all of these thoroughbreds healthy and between the chalked lines. Lets take a look at some of the key elements for the Dodgers heading into the 2014 season: Head Coach: Don Mattingly Division: NL West Home Field: Dodger Stadium Key Players: Clayton Kershaw(SP), Yasiel Puig (RF), Hanley Ramirez (SS), Adrian Gonzalez (1B), Matt Kemp (CF), Zach Greinke (SP), Carl Crawford (LF) Key Matchups/Rivals: Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Contender or Pretender: There is no question the Dodgers pitching staff and lineup are loaded. If they can stay somewhat healthy and make sure they have the bodies they want

penciled in everyday then they will be a force in the playoffs. There is no doubt talent wise they are on the short list to be lifting the Commissioners Trophy at the end of the playoffs.