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The last week of Spring Training is full of decisions and opportunities- who stays, who goes, who gets released, who is going to be on the field when the season opens on Sunday, April 5 in Chicago with the Cubs hosting the Cardinals.

Every Spring Training, general managers have to deal with major dilemmas regarding top prospects: Do you bring them north because you believe they give you the best chance to win now, or do you let them simmer in the Minors to work on some areas of improvement while also keeping their service time in check?

Some interesting questions for the new season

AL East

Alex Rodriguez returns, the Red Sox debut their new lineup, and the Rays enter the post-Joe Maddon era in a division that is completely up for grabs.

More cuts this week as prospects have been sent down to Minor League camps and Spring Rosters have been slowly whittled down. Players have had their taste of the nectar of the Gods and are now back to the reality of small crowded lockers, tight locker rooms and longer days. Players are not sent down just because they are not ready or because they are not needed or because they are not the best player to put on the field. The reality of baseball's rules on free agency play a big role in who is on he Opening Day roster.

The daily routines are very different in Major League camp and Minor League camp. There is more instruction and skills evaluation at Minor League camp. Major Leaguers may get instruction but it's typically not taken unless specifically asked for. 

Things change dramatically now that games have started for all teams in Florida and Arizona. Players are now trying to accomplish various things- hit the ground running and make an impression on coaches and front office personnel, win a job on the opening day roster, put themselves on the radar as a possible call up after the season starts, make the team as a non-roster invitee and just get in playing shape. Veterans dislike the length of Spring Training and everyone else hopes it's long enough to get enough innings to plead their case.

Tomorrow is the day when the first full squad workouts begin. Some teams start as late as Friday but most start tomorrow and Wednesday.

There are some major stories in MLB this Spring that will play out over the first half of the season. 

Pitchers and catchers are in camp now and the 2015 MLB season is under way. Lots of movement throughout both leagues with many teams looking to improve their staffs over the winter. This the start of a lot of extra catchers catching a lot of bullpens. Teams extend non-roster invitee invitations to most catchers on their systems since there are so many arms that need work. These catchers are going to put those knees, ankles and backs through the paces catching multiple bullpens each day. Not much fun and the pitchers are the ones getting the looks from the coaches not the backstops.

Position players all report next week. However, these are mandatory reporting dates and many players are in camp early to hit the ground running when things start up. There are fewer days to get ready for Spring Training games this year than ever before so players need to be ready to avoid injuries, win a job, keep a job, work on a new position, etc. It's a time of great excitement to the young players and a chore for many of the veterans. We've heard more than one veteran say they wouldn't mind playing longer if the just didn't have to go to Spring Training every year. 

X Bats uses Spring Training to see players, old and new, when they are in camp trying to win a job, keep a job, get acclimated to a new team, etc. before the Spring Training games commence. It is one of the few times each year when bat companies, shoe companies, glove companies, etc. can spend some time with players helping them find the best tools to maximize their performance. 

Spring Training is right around the corner. Everyone is over the Super Bowl and football season, basketball & hockey are in mid-season, people are looking forward to the end of winter, cold and snow and baseball is the harbinger of Spring. Our National Pastime is all about new beginnings. Baseball fans have followed the Hot Stove League all winter and are anxious about how their team improved in the off season and if they'll be contenders this year.

1.Ty Cobb, .36636
2. Rogers Hornsby, .35850
3. Joe Jackson, .35575
4. Lefty O'Doul, .3493
5. Ed Delahanty, .34590
6. Tris Speaker, .34468
7.Ted Williams, .34441
8. Billy Hamilton, .34429
9. Dan Brouthers, .34213
10. Babe Ruth, .34207
11. Dave Orr, .3420
12. Harry Heilmann, .34159
13. Pete Browning, .3415
14. Willie Keeler, .34129
15. Bill Terry, .34116
16. George Sisler, .34015
17. Lou Gehrig, .34008
19. Jesse Burkett, .33844
20. Tony Gwynn, .33818
21. Nap Lajoie, .33810
18.Jake Stenzel, .3378
22. Riggs Stephenson, .33607
23. Al Simmons, .33417
24-Cap Anson .3341
25. John McGraw, .33359

Active Players Closing In 
x-Joe Mauer, .3230
x-Ichiro Suzuki, .3187

The World Series is played between the champion clubs of the American and the National Leagues, which collectively includes 29 clubs based in the United States and one club from Canada. The "modern" World Series has been and annual event since 1903. Baseball has employed various championship formulas since the 1860's. When the term "World Series" is used by itself, it is usually understood to refer to the "modern" World Series exclusively.

The World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff. Best-of-seven has been the format of all the modern World Series except in 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921 when the winner was determined through a best-of-nine playoff. The Series winner is awarded the World Series Trophy, as well as individual World Series rings. The Series winner also receives a larger proportion of the gate receipts than does the Series loser.

There have been three different "most valuable player" awards in baseball since 1911. The Chalmers Award was the first of those three and it was presented by between 1911 and 1914 by Chalmers Automotive a Detroit based automobile company. By 1915 the Chalmers Award was no longer considered popular. Rumors about possible cheating and the inability for any player to win more than once were factors which led to its demise.

1956-2014

The Cy Young Award was then Commissioner Ford Frick's idea to honor the best pitcher in Major League Baseball. Hard lessons were learned by the Chalmers Award (1911-1914) earlier in history so the recipients of the Cy Young Award were selected by the Baseball Writers Association of America from the inception of the award. During the first eleven years (1956 - 1966), only one winner from Major League Baseball was selected. Immediately after Commissioner Frick retired, the rules were changed to honor the best pitcher from each league.

1931-2014

The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball award given to one outstanding player in both the American and National Leagues. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America. The winners receive the Kenesaw Mountain Landis Memorial Baseball Award, which is named in honor of the first MLB commissioner, who served from 1920 to 1944. MVP voting takes place before the postseason but the results are not announced until after the World Series. The BBWAA began polling three writers in each league city in 1938, reducing that number to two per league city in 1961. The BBWAA does not offer a clear-cut definition of what "most valuable" means, instead leaving the judgment to the individual voters.