Rankings/List

There has only been one week of baseball—games that count anyway—but so far, so good for many of the Oakland Athletics' top-10 minor league prospects.

It's only a week into the regular season in major league and minor league baseball, but the Cubs' top 10 prospects have all changed their stock in some way. It could be minor or major (no pun intended), but many are either moving closer or further from the major leagues. 

Based on how they've performed in spring training and the minor leagues so far, here is how the stock of each of the club's top 10 prospects has changed.

Considering how it began, the first major league start by Masahiro Tanaka went about as well as that of any other big-name international signing in recent memory.

The 2014 Minor League Baseball season began on Thursday, with a total 54 games played by teams representing all four full-season levels.

As expected, the day featured countless impressive performances by top-ranked prospects, both hitters and pitchers, with many players making an immediate impact at a new, more challenging level.

So, which players had the best Opening Day, you ask?

With the finalization of Bruce Bochy's 25-man roster, it's time to take a look at where the San Francisco Giants' top prospects landed following the all-important decision. Only a few lucky youngsters cracked San Francisco's 2014 big league squad, with the majority of the top talents sent back to the minor leagues to continue to hone their skills.

The New York Mets have had little reason to be optimistic for the past few years, but this year has the potential be different.

The St. Louis Cardinals were tabbed by Baseball America in 2013 as the top minor league system in Major League Baseball. That marked a massive turnaround for an organization that had been consistently ranked near the bottom over the past 15 years.

Baseball is back, and that's a reason to be excited in itself. 

The Braves didn't get off to the start they were hoping for with a 2-0 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers on Opening Day on Monday afternoon.

Despite that loss, there is plenty of reason to be excited about the 2014 season if you are a Braves fan.

The team returns a young and talented core that won the National League East last season.

It's been proven time and again that pitching wins championships. While the Boston Red Sox got to the postseason last year on the strength of the league's No. 1 offense, their pitching staff stepped up big in the playoffs and helped them claim the title.

At the beginning of spring training, I wrote an article ranking all 30 starting rotations. With the regular season finally getting underway, it's time to update those rankings.

When we evaluate, project and rank prospects, we are essentially hyping them up.

Every player that reaches the major leagues is a special talent and worthy of a degree of excitement, but when a highly touted prospect races through the minor leagues and draws rave reviews along the way, he quickly becomes a huge deal.