Wednesday, happy to have ya! Hopefully you can provide some spice into our lives because this has been a relatively slow sports week so Danilo Gallinari Jersey far. Somebody stir the pot! CBS Sports HQ Newsletter Your Ultimate Guide to Every Day in Sports We bring sports news that matters to your inbox, to help you stay informed and get a winning edge. I agree to receive the "CBS Sports HQ Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the . Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. Slow news day or not, I made a promise to be here in your inbox first thing every morning and, of course, I'm here to honor that promise. For what it's worth, we've still got some good stuff to cover this morning. We're going to discu s which have the most pre sure on them to win the World Series this year, as well as which players we're going to see compete in All-Star skills events this weekend. To cap things off, we'll touch on service-time manipulation i sues and what the heck the deal is with "NBA Top Shot." Stick around. What you need to know 1. Ranking MLB teams by pre sure to win World Series For all the weird changes that baseball has dealt with over the past few years, one thing remains true: only one team gets to hoist the World Series trophy at the end of the year. Of course, the pre sure to be that one team varies from case to case. Last year, the Dodgers were facing tons of pre sure after coming so close in 2017-2018, then Evan Turner Jersey spending a ton of money to get over the hump. But some clubs also enter Spring Training with very little expectations.So, Great question, I'm glad I asked. Our Mike Axisa has answers: Yankees: Not a major shock here. With the Dodgers finally getting to the top of the mountain, Dikembe Mutombo Jersey the Yankees take over as the big-market team that's desperate for something to show for their title pursuit. But New York also chopped $50 million off its payroll for the second time in four years this offseason, and they've probably got a limited window with this current group. There's a lot of urgency in the BronxAstros:They've already started losing pieces (goodbye, George Springer) and this season might be their last chance to win a World Series with the core they tanked to build. Add in the fact that the one World Series they already win is a bit tainted by the cheating scandal and, yeah, there's a little pre sureCubs:The Cubs said goodbye to Yu Darvish, Jon Lester, and Kyle Schwarber over the winter, and Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, and Anthony Rizzo will all become free agents after the season. They don't seem super willing to spend money to field the best product, but they play in a weak division and there's still pre sure to end up with more than one title during the Bryant/Rizzo eraMets: Under the direction of new owner Steve Cohen, the Mets went out and got Francisco Lindor, Carlos Carrasco, and more. This is a team that has stated its intentions clearly: " ," said Cohen during his introductory pre s conference. Now, he's officially on the clockDodgers:The Dodgers snapped their 32-year World Series drought last year, which earns them a grace period. But their team is VERY strong and they went out and spent a ton of money to bring in Trevor Bauer (blowing past the luxury tax threshold in the proce s) Bob Pettit Jersey so just one championship in this era would be a bit of a disappointment. They've got a little added pre sure of being the odds-on favorites this year as wellFor the full rankings, you can head right . As a Red Sox fan, it's a little embarra sing that Boston clocks in all the way down at No. 20 on the list (especially given the resources and riches at the team's disposal) and I think patience is going to start wearing pretty thin here quickly if those expectations aren't raised in short order. It does make me feel better that the Yankees are still in desperation mode ... for now.2. NBA reveals All-Star skills events participants The NBA All-Star Game that nobody seemed to ask for is quickly approaching this weekend, and things will be a little different in 2021. The skills events, which usually take place on the Saturday before the ASG, will take place before/during the game on Sunday this year. The Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest will take place before the All-Star Game, and the Slam Dunk Contest will be held during halftime.Yesterday, we found out which players will be taking part in those events, as . Skills ChallengeRobert Covington (Trail Blazers)Luka Doncic (Mavericks)Chris Paul (Suns)Julius Randle (Knicks)Domantas Sabonis (Pacers)Nikola Vucevic (Magic)3-Point ContestDevin Booker (Suns)Jaylen Brown (Celtics)Stephen Curry (Warriors)Zach LaVine (Bulls)Donovan Mitchell (Jazz)Jayson Tatum (Celtics)Dunk ContestAnfernee Simons (Trail Blazers)Ca sius Stanley (Pacers)Obi Toppin Moses Malone Jersey (Knicks)I'm intrigued to see how smoothly this all runs, considering the changes being made, but, at the very least, it should make the Sunday All-Star experience a little more interesting. I'll be spending the entire dunk contest rooting for one of the Tony Snell Jersey contestants to shatter the backboard and wreak some havoc on the second half of the game.3. MLB's service-time i sue isn't going anywhere Even if you haven't been following baseball all that closely over the past few years, you've probably heard of a little thing called "service-time manipulation." It's become a major point of contention in MLB recently, mainly because via arbitration eligibility and free agency.Service time is measured in days spent in the majors, either on the active roster on the injured listPlayers are eligible for free agency after six full years of service time, but if they land even a day short of the service time requirements, free agency is pushed back a full yearService time manipulation is not expre sly forbidden by the league's CBA, but it undermines the competitive integrity of the sportService-time manipulation has become a hot-button i sue over the years as several players have accused their respective teams of contriving reasons to hold them off the major league roster in order to avoid paying them. Some of those players have filed grievances and sparked contentious battles. The discu sion around the matte