It's the beginning of March, and there are a few things that we sports fans can look forward to with excitement--the NBA playoff race is shaping up nicely (in the West), talks of brackets, bubbles, and Cinderella's litter the crisp spring air, and Spring Training is in full swing...Ok, let's think about this now, how important is Spring Training to a sport that has 162 games? Every year, players (especially every day starters) gripe about the uselessness of preseason exhibition games, and some fans get excited for the first few, but most are only interested in when the real deal begins. Some sports purists and experts argue that these exhibition contests are necessary, others think they are a waste of time, and highly insignificant. So this begs two questions: Is preseason necessary and significant? Which sport's preseason is the most/least necessary?

It is my humble opinion that preseasons are unfairly discounted, as the concept and purpose for them are useful. Players need a tune-up to shake the rust of the offseason, and coaches need an opportunity to see, if only through a small glimpse, what potential issues there are, and who deserves to play when the regular season starts. That being said, there are a few issues I have with each preseason.

Here is my ranking and analysis of the preseasons for the four major sports; I am basing the rankings on accuracy of results in determining regular season performance, significance in preparation, appropriate length, and overall necessity of the preseason for that particular sport. Here is how I rank them:

4-MLB-Spring Training-This preseason is seemingly held more for tradition's sake than for the sake of preparing for the regular season. Sure it is an opportunity for coaches to sort out bullpen issues, but typically there are few position battles decided during Spring Training. It is also a very poor way to give future performance a prognosis; I find it absolutely ridiculous that I saw headlines saying the Mets were in trouble because of Johan Santana's first (short) Spring Training outing. Is Juan Gonzalez going to lead the league in RBI's or HR's this season because he hit a jack off Santana? The answer is no. I also disagree with its length, and this is probably the biggest factor that makes Spring Training last on my list. Over a month of preseason for a season that will already last almost 7 months is a bit overkill. I think it would be sufficient to play out about 10 games or so and get into the season. I do understand that a preseason is necessary for baseball so guys can dust off their rust, but considering they have the shortest layoff in sports, how much rust is there to shake?

3-NHL-Considering the regular season is covered about as much as MLB's Spring Training,  it is needless to say that the NHL preseason is hardly a blip on the radar of sports. The reason I cannot rate it last, however, is because (much like many other things in the NHL) they get it right. Each team plays in the range of 6-9 games, providing a simple, short tune-up for the long haul of the season. Also, after looking at the preseason standings, the general order of things is similar to what it is now, over 3/4 of the way through the season. As far as necessity goes, I cannot imagine it is very necessary to put the guys at risk to injury, and though skating and puck handling are very unique skills, I don't think they need as much polishing as the skills in other sports. Overall I think the NHL does a decent job with their preseason, but because of it's lack of significance to the general public, I cannot rank it any higher.

2-NBA-This preseason is similar to the NHL's preseason in length in proportion to the regular season. In my opinion it is perfect on that front. Each team plays 7-8 games and they jump right into the regular season, and while there are a few outliers (Atlanta @ 7-1) San Antonio was atop the West and Miami was bottom of the barrel in the NBA (0-7). The NBA is able to do this because of their use of the Summer League in determining undeclared roster spots. Usually the starting five is set in stone, especially among top teams. Overall I feel that the NBA has a very efficient and effective preseason. How necessary it is? Not very. Like I said, major roster decisions are seldom made as a result of preseason performance in the NBA, but they earn this high ranking because they don't drag it out too long, and I think that is the biggest issue people have with preseasons.

1-NFL-This preseason has the largest proportion of games in relation to it's regular season with a 1:4 ratio. That is the biggest beef that players, and fans have with it. It is extremely insignificant in determining regular season success; consider this: The New England Patriots had the same record as the Miami Dolphins (2-2), and the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants had a worse record than both teams (1-3). That being said, however, the NFL preseason is extremely important in preparing for the season, perhaps the most important of all the sports. NFL teams go into preseason with the most undetermined roster spots and depth chart positions of any other sport. Sure there is minicamp, and practice, but this is the only opportunity coaches have to see how guys fit in during game situations. Every year there are even a few major position battles for starting QB, RB, or WR--battles that could determine how the team does during the regular season. The significance and necessity of the preseason for the NFL far outweighs the insignificance of the standings when it is complete, and that is why I have them ranked this high.

So there you have it, that is my opinion but how would you rank them? Do you feel that preseason is necessary or could you do without it? Let me know what you guys think, I look forward to hearing your thoughts.