The first Spring Training games are almost upon us, and while the wins and losses won't count, the play on the field certainly will — especially for players who are hoping to win a spot on the Opening Day roster with a strong performance. What happens in Florida and Arizona over the next few weeks comes with some seriously high stakes: World Series hopefuls need to figure out which players to break camp with, while the future could be now for some of the very best prospects in the sport.
Which position battles should you have your eye on as the action heats up? Here are 10 that could well define the shape of the MLB season to come.
Atlanta Braves: No. 4 and No. 5 starters
The candidates: Bryce Elder, Grant Holmes, Hurston Waldrep, Joey Wentz, Martin Perez
There seemed to be just one rotation spot up for grabs in Atlanta, and then Spencer Schwellenbach's elbow injury opened up a second. The good news is there is some viable depth from which to pull: Elder, Holmes and Wentz all provide at least a reasonable floor of MLB experience, even if it hasn't always been good experience.
Braves fans might not want to hear this, but it's hard to avoid Elder once again breaking camp with a rotation spot; his ability to soak up innings is simply too valuable for a team with this many injury risks. Unlike Wentz, Waldrep has a Minor League option remaining, but his 2.88 ERA in 56.1 innings as a rookie is simply too hard to ignore here. Plus, Wentz and Holmes can easily pivot to bullpen roles, so there are spots for everybody.
The winners: Bryce Elder, Hurston Waldrep
Boston Red Sox: No. 5 starter
The candidates: RHP Johan Oviedo, LHP Connelly Early, LHP Payton Tolle
Early and Tolle are the two best pitching prospects in a Boston system full of them, and both of them flashed big-time upside in their brief tastes of the Majors last season. But the Red Sox gave up a promising young outfielder in Jhostynxon Garcia to get Oviedo for a reason: Clearly they like something in the former Pirates righty, and his MLB experience gives him a leg up in this battle.
Plus, Boston has a real lack of lefties in the bullpen at the moment, and both Early and Tolle could start there before transitioning into the rotation later in the summer as the team attempts to limit their workloads in their first full big-league seasons. There will be plenty of innings to go around, and too many options is a good problem to have.
The winners: Johan Oviedo
Cincinnati Reds: No. 5 starter
The candidates: RHP Chase Burns, RHP Rhett Lowder
It's easy to watch Burns throw triple-digit gas and proclaim him the next big thing, but while the strikeout numbers were eye-popping (67 across his first 43.1 MLB innings) a 4.57 ERA points to the inconsistencies in his command right now. Lowder burst onto the scene with a 1.17 ERA in 30.2 innings in his big-league debut in 2024, and while he missed basically all of last season with injury, he's back healthy now. He's certainly the more finished product at this stage, and like in Boston, the Reds are no doubt keen to limit Burns' workload in an effort to keep the young flamethrower healthy. He could start in the bullpen and then work his way into a starting role in summer, either in a five- or six-man rotation.
The winners: Rhett Lowder
Detroit Tigers: Shortstop
The candidates: Javier Baez, Trey Sweeney, Kevin McGonigle
In a world in which Konnor Griffin didn't exist (more on him in a moment), we'd be talking much more about McGonigle as the top prospect in baseball. But will he be ready to win a starting spot out of camp? There's always a chance that he's simply too good to ignore this spring, but it's worth remembering that he's still just 21 years old and has only 46 games of experience above A-ball.
McGonigle will be in Detroit sooner rather than later; he's a remarkably polished player for his age, with a hit tool that's well beyond his years. But a little more seasoning wouldn't be the worst thing, and it's not like the Tigers don't have at least passable options in Baez and Zach McKinstry to hold down the left side of their infield in the short term. It feels more likely that McGonigle starts at Triple-A for a few weeks. Then again, maybe he hits .400 this spring and leaves the team no choice.
The winners: Javier Baez
Los Angeles Dodgers: Second base
The candidates: Hyeseong Kim, Alex Freeland, Miguel Rojas, Kiké Hernandez
It's hard to find room for competition on the two-time defending champs, but the news that Tommy Edman is likely to start the regular season on the IL as he recovers from offseason ankle surgery creates an unexpected opening at second base on Opening Day. And because these are the Dodgers we're talking about, there's no shortage of options, from veterans like Rojas and Hernandez to an intriguing Swiss army knife in Kim to a former top prospect in Freeland.
Rojas and Hernandez feel more like bench pieces at this point in their respective careers, and L.A. will likely prioritize Hernandez and Kim's versatility too much to lock them into one spot on the diamond. That would seem to open a path for Freeland, a consensus top-100 prospect a year ago who struggled at the plate in his first taste of the Majors. The defense is solid, and hopefully he can get his contact numbers back up closer to where they were at Triple-A. Unless he really struggles in spring, he has easily the most upside of the group, and they can always hand things back over to Rojas if he falls flat.
The winners: Alex Freeland
New York Mets: Right field
The candidates: Tyrone Taylor, Brett Baty, MJ Melendez, Carson Benge
With Juan Soto sliding from right field to left and Luis Robert Jr. locked into center field duties, there's one spot remaining in the Mets outfield. Fans will no doubt be rooting for Benge, a former first-round pick in 2024 who rocketed his way through the Minors before finally hitting a bump in the road at Triple-A last season.
Was that a cause for concern, or simply a cold stretch at the end of a long season? Spring might give us the answer, and David Stearns has left the door open to handing Benge a roster spot if he swings a hot bat in the Grapefruit League. Then again, he might fall victim to a roster crunch: The additions of Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien and Jorge Polanco have left nowhere in the infield for Baty, and right field could be the best way to keep his bat in the lineup. The guess here is Benge gets sent back to conquer Triple-A unless he really tears the cover off the ball this spring.
The winners: Brett Baty
Philadelphia Phillies: No. 5 starter
The candidates: Andrew Painter, Bryse Wilson, Tucker Davidson
Zack Wheeler's injury and the departure of Ranger Suarez has created a hole in the Phillies' once-airtight rotation, and if you'd like to know how badly Dave Dombrowski wants Painter to fill it, just look at the lack of competition in camp. Philadelphia has nothing but non-roster invitees behind its top pitching prospects, as sure a sign as any that this is his job to lose. Then again, he posted a 5.65 ERA at Triple-A last season after missing all of 2023 and 2024 due to Tommy John surgery, so he's far from a sure thing. The Phillies need Painter to be ready, or else jobs will be on the line.
The winners: Andrew Painter
Pittsburgh Pirates: Shortstop
The candidates: Nick Gonzales, Konnor Griffin
Griffin arrives at Pirates camp with as much hype as any position-player prospect in recent memory, a physical specimen at 6-foot-4, 225 pounds who nonetheless stole 65 bases in the Minors last season while playing clean defense at shortstop. He's checked every box and then some, and he's still just 19 years old.
So now the question becomes: Will Pittsburgh hand him a starting job out of spring? There will be tons of pressure for them to do so unless Griffin really, really struggles at the plate (hard to see happening, I admit). He played just 21 games at Double-A last season, and inexperience is certainly a concern. Then again, he's done nothing but mash at the pro level, and sometimes a guy is just special. Plus, the fact that the Pirates are looking to make a playoff push this year — and the draft compensation they'll get if Griffin starts the year in the Majors and earns Rookie of the Year votes — means they can't afford to play games with his service time.
The winners: Konnor Griffin
Seattle Mariners: Third base (and second base)
The candidates: Cole Young, Colt Emerson, Leo Rivas, Miles Mastrobuoni
Technically, this is two position battles rolled into one. The name to know here is Colt Emerson, Seattle's top prospect who slugged all the way to Triple-A last season at just 19 years old. If he shows that he's ready for the Majors in spring, the Mariners can slot him in at third base while sliding Brendan Donovan over to second. If he's not, Donovan can play third with Cole Young back for another year at the keystone.
Emerson is the future somewhere on the infield in Seattle, a legit top-10 prospect with a very polished hit tool. Then again, he's still very young, and Young himself was a top prospect not all that long ago. There are reasons to believe he could be better at the plate in 2026 than he was in 2025, and I think the Mariners will give him a second chance unless Emerson is just scorching this spring.
The winners: Cole Young
St. Louis Cardinals: Second base
The candidates: Thomas Saggese, JJ Wetherholt
If this were simply a meritocracy, there'd likely be no doubt about whether Wetherholt would start the year as the Cardinals' everyday second baseman. But St. Louis is just beginning a multiyear rebuild under new president Chaim Bloom; their win-loss record in 2026 simply doesn't matter all that much to the long-term picture. Saggese is a fine utility player in his own right and is more than capable of holding second base down for a month or two if it means that the Cardinals get another year of service time over their top prospect. Whenever Wetherholt is up, his .905 OPS in the Minors suggests he'll be ready to rake.