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The expectations placed on George Springer have never been higher. 

As a college player at Connecticut, they were already on the rise. After the Houston Astros drafted him 11th overall in 2011, those expectations again grew, and by the time he finished his second full minor league season in 2013 with a .303/.411/.600 line to go with a 1.010 OPS, 37 home runs and 108 RBI, he was a potential star.

Spring training statistics have to be taken with a grain of salt, as the MLB preseason is as much about shaking off the rust and working on specific things as it is about actual on-field performance.

That being said, we as baseball fans love us some statistics, so there's no sense pretending they don't exist.

Here in mid-March, there are already a handful of players who have stood out, albeit in less than 10 games.

When Marcus Stroman's knee went, it didn't take the Toronto Blue Jays' playoff hopes with it. 

Stroman is a key cog in the Jays' rotation and the news that the 23-year-old right-hander is out for the season with a torn ACL was a painful blow, no doubt. 

At this point in the spring, players are focused on getting their work in to be ready for the start of the season. Unless you're a rookie or marginal player trying to land a job, statistics are largely meaningless.

With more than three weeks remaining before the start of the season, there is still plenty of time for a player to find his groove.

It's not easy to get a bad grade just yet.

After breaking out the red pen and grading the MLB offseason's 20 biggest acquisitions, there is a startling number of high marks. Simply put, just over a week's worth of games isn't much time for a lot to go wrong.

For big-money free-agent signings and prominent trade additions, spring training is all about staying healthy. As a result, ending up on the injury report is the surest way for a player to see his grade take a hit.

You are probably getting sick of preseason baseball, and to be honest with you, so am I. We're all in need of Opening Day and some meaningful games to analyze.

But before we get to that point, the rest of spring training will need to unfold. Despite the games having no meaning on the 2015 season, we will still be able to draw some conclusions from the upcoming events that will take place over the next few weeks. 

By all rights, the biggest star on the field during Thursday's exhibition between the Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Angels should have been the guy who played Ron Burgundy, Ricky Bobby and Lord Business.

New York Yankees star pitcher Masahiro Tanaka took the mound on Thursday for his debut spring training start against the Atlanta Braves and was quite effective in limited action.

Tanaka retired the side in two perfect innings, striking out two batters and flashing dominant form in an encouraging outing at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida.

Through the first nine games of spring training at Camelback Ranch, it’s clear that the Los Angeles Dodgers are beginning to shake off the winter rust.

Most of the players are, anyway.

Some members of the team have yet to find their rhythm on the mound and in the batter’s box. While the sample size is small, these players will need to turn things around if they have aspirations of making the 25-man roster when camp breaks in less than three weeks.

The injuries keep piling up for the Texas Rangers in spring training. Right-hander Anthony Ranaudo left Thursday's game against the Chicago White Sox with an arm injury.    

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