With a month of spring training in the books, people inside baseball are starting to form their opinions on players. Who's real; who's not. Who changed; who didn't. Who matters; who doesn't.
It felt like the perfect time to survey more than 30 players, managers, coaches, general managers, scouts, evaluators and other personnel to differentiate small-sample-size mirage from genuine breakout. And in doing so, it informed plenty of other areas in need of analysis.
So I decided to don a few different hats here. This is for the fantasy players, the gamblers, the prospect lovers, the casuals, the wannabe scouts and executives, and especially those who love looking back at predictions and snitch-tweeting @OldTakesExposed.