Pitcher Julio Urías suspended through the All-Star break under domestic violence policy
NEW YORK — Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Julio Urías was suspended through the All-Star break by Major League Baseball on Friday under its domestic violence policy with the players’ association. Urías had pleaded no contest last May to one count of misdemeanor domestic battery. The penalty was the second...
Former Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy returns to Padres as special assistant to CEO
SAN DIEGO — Jake Peavy, the 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner and member of the San Diego Padres Hall of Fame, has joined the team as special assistant to CEO Erik Greupner. Greupner said Thursday the three-time All-Star will assist multiple departments and serve as a team ambassador. “I’m...
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani deliver in MLB season opener
TOKYO — Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw five strong innings, Shohei Ohtani had two hits and scored twice and the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs, 4-1, on Tuesday in MLB’s season opener at the Tokyo Dome. Playing in front of their home country, Yamamoto and Cubs...
Shohei Ohtani merchandise is prompting long lines — even in the rain — in Tokyo
TOKYO — The Los Angeles Dodgers gave Shohei Ohtani an unprecedented $700 million contract hoping to drive interest — and the dollars that come with it — from fans across the Pacific. It seems to be working. He’s the main attraction as the Dodgers and Chicago Cubs open the MLB...
Dodgers’ Mookie Betts struggling with illness; status for Opening Day in doubt
TOKYO — Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts is still struggling to recover from an illness, with manager Dave Roberts pessimistic the eight-time All-Star will be ready for Opening Day against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday in Japan. Betts was able to go through a light workout Sunday but became...
Tampa Bay Rays withdraw from planned $1.3 billion ballpark in St. Petersburg, citing storms, delays
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday withdrew from a $1.3 billion ballpark project, citing hurricanes and delays that likely will drive up the proposal’s cost. The team issued a statement by principal owner Stuart Sternberg saying that “a series of events” in October, which included severe...
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to have Tommy John surgery, out for seasonVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — Yankees ace Gerrit Cole will have season-ending Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Tuesday. The Yankees said the 34-year-old right-hander was examined Monday by Dr. Neal ElAttrache at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles. ElAttrache, the Dodgers’ head team physician, will operate. Cole, a former...
Former OF Tyler Naquin says comeback as pitcher started last year
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — As he begins his attempted comeback at a new position, Cleveland Guardians right-hander Tyler Naquin says his transition from playing outfield to pitching was more than a year in the making. Naquin, who played the outfield for four major-league teams from 2016-23, signed a minor-league contract with...
Outfielder Lawrence Butler agrees to $65.5 million, 7-year deal with A’s, AP source says
Outfielder Lawrence Butler agreed to a $65.5 million, seven-year contract with the Athletics, a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations said Thursday night, the latest big-money deal for a team suddenly spending as it prepares to play three seasons in a minor league ballpark. The agreement, first reported by...
Mets spent more in 4 years than Pirates, Marlins and Rays over past 21
NEW YORK — The New York Mets led the major leagues in spending for the third straight season in 2024 and have totaled $1.36 billion in payroll and luxury tax over four years under owner Steve Cohen, exceeding what the Miami Marlins, Pittsburgh Pirates and Tampa Bay Rays each have...
Vagabond A’s enter Sacramento era with playoff expectations
MESA, Ariz. — The Athletics have moved about an hour east from Oakland to the Sacramento area, where they will be based in a minor-league ballpark for the next three seasons while hoping a more permanent home in Las Vegas will be ready in 2028. If this doesn’t sound like...
Cleveland Guardians owner Lawrence Dolan dies at 94Video
CLEVELAND — Lawrence J. Dolan, owner of Cleveland’s major league baseball team since 2000, has died at age 94. The Cleveland Guardians put out a statement Monday saying Dolan died Sunday night of natural causes. “Mr. Dolan invested his entire life in Greater Cleveland and impacted our community on so...
Juan Soto hits a 426-foot home run in 1st at-bat for New York MetsVideo
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Juan Soto wasted little time in showing off his power for his new team. Again. Soto homered in his first spring training at-bat for the New York Mets, hitting a solo shot to left-center field in the first inning against Houston on Saturday. The Mets...
Eddie Fisher, an All-Star reliever with the Chicago White Sox in 1965, dies at age 88
ALTUS, Okla. — Eddie Fisher, the right-hander whose 15-year major league career included an All-Star selection for the Chicago White Sox and a World Series title with Baltimore, has died. He was 88. The Lowell-Tims Funeral Home & Crematory in Altus says Fisher died Monday after a brief illness. Born...
Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner might support a salary cap proposal tied to payroll minimum
TAMPA, Fla. — New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner might support a salary cap proposal as long as it contains a provision mandating minimum payrolls. “I have been on the record already saying that I would consider supporting a cap depending on what the cap is and contingent on the...
New York Yankees drop ban on beards, 49 years after it was imposed by owner George SteinbrennerVideo
TAMPA. Fla. — The New York Yankees dropped their ban on beards Friday, 49 years after it was imposed by owner George Steinbrenner, in a move aimed to improve player recruitment as the team tries to win its first World Series title since 2009. Current owner Hal Steinbrenner, son of...
ESPN, Major League Baseball will end their national television deal after 2025 season
ESPN’s coverage of Major League Baseball games — at least in its current form — will conclude at the end of the 2025 season. ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro informed baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred on Thursday morning that the network was opting out of the final three years of its contract,...
Robot umpires are getting their first MLB test during spring trainingVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — A computerized system that calls balls and strikes is being tested during Major League Baseball spring training exhibition games starting Thursday after four years of experiments in the minor leagues. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred is an advocate of the Automated Ball-Strike System, which potentially as early as...
Rob Manfred calls A’s new park in Sacramento charming but still expects to be in Vegas by 2028Video
PHOENIX — Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred called the Athletics temporary home charming but reiterated he expects the franchise will open its new stadium in Las Vegas in 2028. Manfred recently visited the 14,000-seat minor league stadium in West Sacramento, Calif., and said the owners of the Triple-A River Cats and...
Guerrero plans to become free agent after season, fails to reach long-term deal with Blue JaysVideo
DUNEDIN, Fla. — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. plans to become a free agent after the season following the passing of his deadline Tuesday to reach a long-term agreement with the Toronto Blue Jays. “Listen, I want to be here. I want to be a Blue Jay for the rest of my...
Justin Turner agrees to $6 million, 1-year deal with the Chicago Cubs, AP source saysVideo
MESA, Ariz. — Justin Turner has agreed to a $6 million, one-year deal with the Chicago Cubs, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation, giving the team additional infield depth. Turner can earn an additional $2.5 million in bonuses, according to the person who spoke to the...
Aaron Judge disagrees with Juan Soto saying Mets have better chance for titles than YankeesVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — Aaron Judge naturally takes issue with Juan Soto’s conclusion that the New York Mets have a better chance to win World Series titles than the Yankees. Soto left the Yankees as a free agent in December for a record $765 million, 15-year contract with the Mets, turning...
Yankees’ Stanton hasn’t swung bat in 3 or 4 weeks and is unsure of whether he can play in opener
TAMPA, Fla. — New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton hasn’t swung a bat in three or four weeks and isn’t sure whether he will be ready for opening day because of painful tendinitis in both elbows. Speaking Monday before the team’s first full-squad workout, the five-time All-Star revealed he played...
Marcus Stroman returns to Yankees, insists ‘I’m a starter’ and ‘won’t pitch in the bullpen’
TAMPA, Fla. — Marcus Stroman returned to Yankees camp on Friday. The righty reported on time for a mandatory physical Tuesday but did not participate in official, on-field workouts at George M. Steinbrenner Field on Wednesday and Thursday. While the collective bargaining agreement states players don’t have to participate in...
Reports: Alex Bregman, Red Sox agree to $120M, 3-year contractVideo
Alex Bregman and the Boston Red Sox agreed to a $120 million, three-year contract, according to multiple reports Wednesday. Bregman can opt out after the 2026 and 2027 seasons to become a free agent again. A two-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion during nine years with Houston, the 30-year-old...
