Friendly Competition

Below are the most important and fiercest competitions in Spring Training. The Yankees, Mariners and both of the Sox are all unsettled.

1. SS, Julio Lugo/Jed Lowrie, Boston Red Sox (B-/B-)- Lugo and Lowrie are the same players but have very different styles of play. Lugo steals and Lowrie hits for average. Lowrie is the better fielder, and he makes nice contact but Lugo still has the pontential to steal 30 bases. Lugo's sub-.240 batting average when he was healthy for the Sox may relegate him to the bench. Projected Winner- Lugo

2. CF, Melky Cabrera/Brett Gardner, New York Yankees (B-/B-)- Gardner and Cabrera would do best in a platoon role where Gardner can hit righties and Cabrera can hit lefties. Gardner hit well below the mendoza line against lefties, and Carbrera still has the makings of a decent contact hitter when healthy. Gardner will win the job out of spring training because of his 80 on the scouting scale speed, his ability to walk and his current .378 batting average through March ninth. Projected Winner-Gardner

3. 1B, Russel Branyan/Matt Tuiasosopo/Brandon LaHair, Seattle Mariners (B/C+/C)- Branyan is poised to win the competition for the first bag at Safeco. Branyan has always had the most power in the majors, regularly hitting balls 450 feet in batting practice. Like Dunn, he doesn't make contact and strikes out at an unacceptable rate but 30-40 home runs in 500 at bats (he hit 12 in 132 last year) is enough for him to beat out two mediocre prospects. Winner- Branyan.

4. SP, Clay Buchholz/Tim Wakefield/Matt Clement/Michael Bowden, Boston Red Sox (B+/B-/B-/B-)- Bucholz is still one of the best young pitchers not yet securing a spot in the majors. He throws hard, between 90-95 and has a nasty 12-6 curve and solid change. Bowden is a new prospect and isn't particularly special, while Wakefield prefers to come out of the bullpen. Matt Clement is a wildcard, and with his injury history, probably will compete with Bartolo Colon for the "6th" spot. Projected Winner- Bucholz

5. LF, David Murphy/Nick Evans/Fernando Tatis, New York Mets (B/B-/C+)- Minaya is known to always stick with latino players before white players so that plays well for Tatis. Evans is a good prospect and came into hiw own in 2008 batting .300 in AA. Murphy is likely the front runner after performing the best in the majors and batting over .300. A platoon combing 2 of the 3 is a distinct possibility. Projected Winner- Muphy.

6. 2B, Orlando Hudson/Blake DeWitt, Los Angeles Dodgers (B+/B-)- This is a closer battle than you might think. Hudson is a premier option at second, sporting the best defense at his position and a solid .280-.300 batting average yearly. DeWitt showed som decent power, slugging over .400 in 2008 but can also play 3rd, giving Casey Blake, an again basemen, a break here and there. Hudson can play anywhere, even short if Furcal goes down, so second base may not be a lock for him. Projected winner- Orlando Hudson

7. LF, Endy Chavez/Franklyn Guttierez, Seattle Mariners (B/C+)- Chavez played good defense for the Mets, and with their glut of left fielders they ended up trading him to Seattle. His 1 homerun at Shea in 2008 likely won't help his case. Guttierez hasn't played up to his potential just yet but he did nearly go 10-10 last year with the Indiands. With a full season Guttierez could go 20-20. Projected Winner- Guttierez.

8. DH, Nick Swisher/Hideki Matsui, New York Yankees (B/B-)- Swisher hit 24 homers last year after a strong season with the Athletics. Matsui was out for most of the season with a broken wrist but still managed to hit around .300. The Yankees are loyal to Matsui and may need Swisher to play the outfield at some point. Projected Winner- Matsui.

9. RF, Xavier Nady/Nick Swisher, New York Yankees (B/B-)- Swisher is in a nother, less obvious, competition with Nady who hit 24 homeruns between the Yankees and Pirates last year. Nady is a poor defender and can't hit righties at all. Swisher is a solid defender and doesn't have awful splits. Nady and Swish could platoon, and Nady would get the lefties (the shorter end of the bargain). Nady quit on the Yankees last year, and for that Cashman is considering traded the fagbag. Projected Winner- Nady.

10. OF, Delmon Young/Carlos Gomez, Minnesota Twins (B/B-)- After striking out about 150 times last year, Gomez's starting job may be in jeopardy. The kid can play good defense and is fast, stealing 32 bases in '08, but his bat isn't ML ready. Young always puts up solid numbers, batting between .280-and .300 and hitting 10-14 homeruns. He could finally break out this year, but it seems more and more unlikely. Projected Winner- Gomez.