Written by Joe Lucia | 21 March 2010

There aren't many guys left in camp that don't have a spot guaranteed...lets take a look at the slim pickings left. Here are your locks. POSITION PLAYERS (12) Brian McCann David Ross Troy Glaus Martin Prado Omar Infante Yunel Escobar Chipper Jones Melky Cabrera Matt Diaz Nate McLouth Eric Hinske Jason Heyward PITCHERS (10) Derek Lowe Jair Jurrjens Tommy Hanson Kenshin Kawakami Tim Hudson Peter Moylan Billy Wagner Takashi Saito Eric O’Flaherty Kris Medlen The only change is the shift of Jason Heyward to the lock position. With today's cuts of Brent Clevlen and Mitch Jones, Heyward is the only outfielder left in camp with a legitimate shot at making the squad, no offense towards Matt Young and Gregor Blanco. There is still the one bench spot left, and there are 2 spots left in the bullpen. I will be excluding all the outfielders left in camp, and will only focus on the remaining infielders that have a legitimate shot for the last roster spot on the bench. Brooks Conrad vs Joe Thurston: I still think Conrad is the clubhouse leader. This spring, he's shown the ability to play both second and third, and provides the pop off the bench that Thurston cannot offer. Conrad has shown improvement on his most major deficiency, his tendency to strike out, by only K'ing 4 times all spring. But the last week has been more kind to Thurston, as he's actually got the lead in SLG and AVG, which I did not expect considering Thurston has shown all the power of a pillow over his major league career. It really is neck and neck, but I think that in the end, Conrad's power potential and ability to take a walk will get the slight edge of Thurston's versatility and major league experience. Now, we touch on the bullpen. There are 2 spots left, and the following men are fighting for it: Manny Acosta, Jesse Chavez, Craig Kimbrel, Jojo Reyes, and shockingly, Johnny Venters. Scott Proctor is also left in camp, but he probably won't be ready for major league action until the middle to end of April, so he wouldn't be a good choice to make the final roster. If you remember from a week and a half ago, my picks to make the final roster were Acosta and Reyes. Has anything changed since then? Manny Acosta: His stock took a week this week, allowing a pair of homers to send his ERA up in the air. However, he's still got a great 8:2 K:BB ratio, and he has spent most of the past 2 seasons with the Braves. Bobby loves players he's familiar with, and unless Acosta completely collapses this week, I think he's still a favorite for one of the spots. Above average. Jesse Chavez: Chavez was a tentative favorite coming into the season, and this spring has absolutely killed him. He has still not struck out a batter this spring, and has walked 4 men. His appearance in today's game was going absolutely dreadfully before the cancellation, but most of that may have been due to the rain. With Chavez, the main question comes down to this: are you willing to take a chance on him in the majors assuming his performance this spring has been a fluke? I personally don't think he's the best candidate, but then again, I've been biased against him since day one. Average. Craig Kimbrel: Nobody expected Kimbrel to be a finalist for the bullpen spot, but here we are. He's only allowed 2 hits and 0 runs all spring, but the 4 walks shows that his control problems still haven't been resolved. I think giving Kimbrel a spot in the pen to start the year could absolutely ruin him. I'd rather take the chance putting him in Gwinnett and letting him get his control issues worked out than to let him work them out in the majors and possibly damage the team in the process. Bobby absolutely has loved what he's seen so far, and I'm hoping that his adoration for Kimbrel doesn't result in him making the roster based purely on stuff. Below average. Jojo Reyes: The surprise of camp. Braves fans aren't looking at the big picture of Reyes making the final roster: he wouldn't be the 5th starter. He wouldn't even be the choice for a spot starter. Plain and simple, he'd be a long reliever who's effective against lefties. People have been saying this is the ideal role for him for years now, and it appears that the team is just beginning to listen now. He's been solid if unspectacular all camp so far, and I firmly believe that if he's able to focus on just being able to give the team one solid inning as opposed to 5, he'd be a better pitcher. Above average. Johnny Venters: Did anyone at all expect Venters to be talked about as a bullpen finalist? I sure as hell didn't. But again...here we are. Like Reyes, he's been solid if unspectacular. He's only walked 1 man in his 6 1/3 innings, but by the same token, he's only struck out 3. His impeccable control so far is the sole reason he's in this conversation. I don't think he's going to make the roster, but if he works as a reliever while in Gwinnett this season, he could be an option for the future for the team. But as of right now...I don't think his odds are too good. Below average. So my picks haven't changed in a week, but we have a lot more to think about. The biggest surprise of the remaining men left is Jesse Chavez absolutely sucking wind and not looking at all like the pitcher the Braves received for Rafael Soriano this offseason. He just hasn't been good at all. He's one of the 3 guys left that has the best shot at the bullpen, but unless he improves drastically while Acosta or Reyes struggle, he's the odd man out right now.