CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Pitcher Aaron Nola and the Philadelphia Phillies have agreed to a $45 million, four-year contract, avoiding a salary arbitration hearing scheduled for this week.The 25-year-old right-hander set career bests last year when he was a first-time All-Star, going 17-6 with a 2.37 ERA. He would have been eligible for free agency after the 2021 season.."I think Aaron Nola brings a preparation we can all look up to and our other players can emulate," Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said Wednesday. "I think his between-the-lines competitiveness is off the charts. He's such a fighter, he's such a grinder, he's such a battler."Under a deal announced Wednesday, Nola gets a $2 million signing bonus, $4 million this year, $8 million in 2020, $11.75 million in 2021 and $15 million in 2022. Philadelphia has a $16 million team option for 2023 with a $4.25 million buyout."He doesn't want any of the attention, he doesn't want the spotlight on him," Kapler said. "He just wants to compete,... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The Arizona Diamondbacks will spend spring training trying to find a way to fill the void left after slugging first baseman Paul Goldschmidt was traded to St. Louis this offseason.Filling Goldschmidt's cleats was not the only question the Diamondbacks faced as they opened spring training Wednesday.Arizona has two starting rotation spots to fill and must close in on a closer, decisions that will likely last well into spring."The best players perform the best when it's needed," Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. "I think when you put a little added pressure there and guys are nipping at your heels, it creates a competition and should enhance your ability to get the job done."The Diamondbacks entered their third spring training under Lovullo with a hole at the back end of their bullpen after they non-tendered Brad Boxberger's contract, allowing him to become a free agent.With Boxberger now in Kansas City, Arizona has three main candidates to fill the closer's... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Boone kept tuning into postseason games, even after his New York Yankees were eliminated by Boston, and he watched the Red Sox win the World Series."I don't know if it was to torture myself or what," the New York manager said Wednesday as pitchers and catchers reported for spring training. "You put this hat on and this uniform on, to get to wear a big league uniform, you shouldn't need much motivation, but to watch a team that you know so well that's certainly one of your rivals celebrate where you want to be, I think that adds a little fuel to the fire, certainly."The Yankees went 100-62 in Boone's first season as manager, their best record since winning the 2009 World Series, and Boone thinks this team could be better following the additions of left-hander James Paxton, reliever Adam Ottavino, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and infielder DJ LeMahieu."I feel like as we sit in here in early February on paper we probably look a little bit strong," he said. "Hopefully... [More]

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani tossed his water bottle toward a clubhouse garbage can and missed, instead landing it in a laundry bin. He laughed out loud, smiled big as he so often does, then retrieved the trash and put it in the proper place.That's about as close to throwing as the Japanese two-way star is right now.Ohtani wouldn't change how he handled his elbow injury late last year, continuing to hit for the Angels until season's end even if it meant delaying reconstructive surgery and his ability to pitch again until 2020."I have no regrets about what happened last year. That's what the team thought about me, the plan," Ohtani said through interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. "In the end it didn't work out but I still have no regrets."The reigning AL Rookie of the Year is recovering from an Oct. 1 Tommy John surgery with the hope he will be able to bat in the Los Angeles lineup as early as May if all stays on schedule."There's a lot of variables. That's the goal I'm shooting for but there... [More]

SURPRISE, Ari. (AP) — Brad Boxberger made it to Royals, 13 years later than Kansas City first envisioned.Kansas City selected the right-hander in the 20th round of the 2006 amateur draft from Foothill High School in North Tustin, California. He opted to go to Southern Cal, and Cincinnati took him three years later with the 43rd overall pick.After seven seasons in the major leagues with San Diego, Tampa Bay and Arizona, the 30-year-old agreed this month to a $2.2 million, one-year contract with the Royals."Just the great opportunity I'd have here," Boxberger explained.Kansas City's bullpen was a strength when the Royals won the 2015 World Series, a group that included Wade Davis, Greg Holland and Kelvin Herrera. Boxberger was an All-Star that year with the Rays, leading the AL with 41 saves.He joins a bullpen that was among the worst in the major leagues last year, compiling a 5.04 ERA and blowing 24 of 57 save chances.Boxberger will compete for the closer's job in spring training with Wily... [More]

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) — The sun wasn't shining on Brandon Hyde's first workout as Baltimore Orioles' manager.Rain delayed the start of workouts Wednesday for about an hour. But eventually, 15 pitchers threw bullpens and the Orioles rolled out some new cameras to help the team evaluate them.Baltimore has three confirmed starters: Dylan Bundy, Andrew Cashner and Alex Cobb. Last week, the Orioles signed Nate Karns, who didn't pitch in 2018. They hope he can be their fourth starter, and there's spirited competition for the fifth spot."I think it's pretty open," Hyde said. "It's a great opportunity for everybody in camp. A lot of jobs to be won."Few spots on a team attempting to rebound from a franchise-worst 115 loss season are accounted for."It's just going to be a ton of evaluating," the 45-year-old Hyde said.Besides Karns, David Hess and Yefry Ramirez, who finished last year in Baltimore's rotation, will be in the mix. Josh Rogers, a left-hander obtained from the New York Yankees in the trade... [More]

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) — The sun wasn't shining on Brandon Hyde's first workout as Baltimore Orioles' manager.Rain delayed the start of workouts Wednesday for about an hour. But eventually, 15 pitchers threw bullpens and the Orioles rolled out some new cameras to help the team evaluate them.Baltimore has three confirmed starters: Dylan Bundy, Andrew Cashner and Alex Cobb. Last week, the Orioles signed Nate Karns, who didn't pitch in 2018. They hope he can be their fourth starter, and there's spirited competition for the fifth spot."I think it's pretty open," Hyde said. "It's a great opportunity for everybody in camp. A lot of jobs to be won."Few spots on a team attempting to rebound from a franchise-worst 115 loss season are accounted for."It's just going to be a ton of evaluating," the 45-year-old Hyde said.Besides Karns, David Hess and Yefry Ramirez, who finished last year in Baltimore's rotation, will be in the mix. Josh Rogers, a left-hander obtained from the New York Yankees in the trade... [More]

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Boston expects its new closer to emerge from the current Red Sox roster.All-Star Craig Kimbrel turned down a $17.9 million qualifying offer from the World Series champions, and the seven-time All-Star remains a free agent."Any time you say you're going to replace a player of Craig Kimbrel's caliber, with the type talent he has, it's not easily done," Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Wednesday as spring training workouts started. "He's to me a future Hall of Fame reliever and one of the best closers in the game. But sometimes other guys get the opportunity and they step up."Dombrowski mentioned three possibilities to close: Matt Barnes, Ryan Brasier and Tyler Thornburg"I know you have to be careful in any world of an old-fashioned mindset, but I will tell you that I still believe in talking to people, that pitching the ninth inning is different than pitching the other innings for many guys," Dombrowski said. "Not everybody can do it.Brasier... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Trevor Bauer, Gerrit Cole and Alex Wood have won their salary arbitration cases, giving players a 6-3 advantage over teams to ensure a winning record in consecutive years for the first time since 1989-90.Bauer won his hearing for the second straight year. He was awarded $13 million on Wednesday by James Darby, James Oldham and Sylvia Skratek instead of the Cleveland Indians' $11 million offer.Cole was given a $13.5 million salary by Gil Vernon, Steven Wolf and Walt De Treux rather than the Houston Astros' offer of $11,425,000.Wood will get $9.65 million instead of the Cincinnati Reds' $8.7 million offer, Dan Brent, Andrew Strongin and Phillip LaPorte decided.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Nationals have traded right-handed reliever Trevor Gott to the San Francisco Giants for cash.Wednesday's move comes after Washington designated the 26-year-old Gott for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for starting pitcher Jeremy Hellickson.Gott went 0-2 with a 5.68 ERA in 20 appearances totaling 19 innings for the Nationals in 2018, with 15 strikeouts, 10 walks and four home runs allowed.He is 5-4 with a 4.64 ERA in 81 games, all in relief, since making his major league debut in 2015 with the Los Angeles Angels.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

PHOENIX (AP) — Catcher Caleb Joseph and the Arizona Diamondbacks have agreed to a one-year contract that calls for a $1.1 million salary in the major leagues and a $250,000 salary in the minors.Arizona opened a roster spot by placing right-hander Taijuan Walker on the 60-day injured list on Wednesday.The 32-year-old Joseph played five seasons with Baltimore and is ninth among active catchers with a caught-stealing percentage of 29.4. He threw out 32.2 percent of attempted base stealers last season and tied for the major league lead among catchers with 11 double plays, but he hit just .219 with three homers and 17 RBIs in 280 plate appearances. He became a free agent when the Orioles failed to offer a contract by the Nov. 30 deadline.Joseph is a career .224 hitter with 31 homers and 122 RBIs.Walker is recovering from Tommy John surgery after tearing his right ulnar collateral ligament last April against the Los Angeles Dodgers.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

GOODYEAR, Ariz. (AP) — A new manager and coaching staff. Three new starting pitchers. The Reds begin their season with a whole new look and hopes that their run of last-place finishes could be coming to an end.There's a very different vibe as Cincinnati opens camp with its first workout by pitchers and catchers on Wednesday. Offseason trades remade the rotation and the everyday lineup, sparking hope after four straight 90-loss seasons."There is a lot more expecting to win and a lot less hoping to win," pitcher Michael Lorenzen said Tuesday.The change started at the top. The Reds fired manager Bryan Price after a 3-15 start last season and decided not to keep interim Jim Riggleman. David Bell was hired as manager, a move that resonated with Reds fans. His grandfather, Gus, and father, Buddy, played for the Reds.The 46-year-old Bell inherited a roster that lacked proven starters, the main thread in the losing seasons. Three trades brought starters Sonny Gray, Tanner Roark and Alex Wood, who... [More]

PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) — Every day for several years, Felix Hernandez has walked past large photos of himself and Randy Johnson — the Seattle Mariners' only Cy Young Award winners — in the hallway leading to the clubhouse of their spring training complex.King Felix will make those walks for perhaps the last time this year, with a bigger goal as motivation."I know this is my final year, but I don't think I am done," the 33-year-old Hernandez said on Tuesday following Seattle's first spring training workout. "I think I can do a lot of good things, and it is going to be a push for my Hall of Fame career. It means a lot. Now Edgar (Martinez) is in the Hall of Fame. We'll see."Hernandez, who has 168 victories and a career 3.34 ERA, is trying to reverse recent trends entering the final season of a seven-year contract that calls for a $27 million salary.His fastball average velocity dropped to a career-low 90.4 mph last season as calculated by Fangraphs, and his ERA was a career-high 5.55 in 29 outings.... [More]

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein criticized emails from the patriarch of the family that owns the team and said Addison Russell won't play for Chicago again unless he meets the team's high expectations while completing his domestic violence suspension.Splinter News published emails last week that included Joe Ricketts making Islamophobic comments, such as "Islam is a cult and not a religion." Others included conspiracies about former President Barack Obama's birthplace and education.Ricketts, who founded TD Ameritrade, apologized for the emails. Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts last week said in statement that his father's emails don't reflect the values of the Cubs."The emails were upsetting to read, and especially upsetting to think that some of our fans were put into a position where they had to consider their favorite team and some of those types of views," Epstein said Tuesday ahead of the start of spring training.Epstein said the emails were filled with... [More]

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom wants to hear the New York Mets' best pitch on a multiyear contract by opening day — and the team thinks that's a good call, too.New general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, who was deGrom's agent before switching sides at the bargaining table last fall, told reporters Tuesday at spring training there's "no reason for a distraction to carry into the regular season."He said the club will continue discussions with deGrom this spring and see where they lead. That leaves about six weeks to get a deal done before the Mets' season opener March 28 at Washington.However, the 30-year-old deGrom cannot become a free agent until after the 2020 season, so the sides could always reopen negotiations next offseason.Last month, the Mets and deGrom agreed to a $17 million, one-year contract to avoid arbitration — a raise of $9.6 million over his 2018 salary.Van Wagenen clarified Tuesday that he will indeed be involved in any talks with deGrom... [More]

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom wants to hear the New York Mets' best pitch on a multiyear contract by opening day — and the team thinks that's a good call, too.New general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, who was deGrom's agent before switching sides at the bargaining table last fall, told reporters Tuesday at spring training there's "no reason for a distraction to carry into the regular season."He said the club will continue discussions with deGrom this spring and see where they lead. That leaves about six weeks to get a deal done before the Mets' season opener March 28 at Washington.However, deGrom cannot become a free agent until after the 2020 season, so the sides could always reopen negotiations next offseason.Last month, the Mets and deGrom agreed to a $17 million, one-year contract to avoid arbitration — a record-setting raise of $9.6 million over his 2018 salary.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/tag/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey would love to see Bryce Harper join them in the San Francisco Giants clubhouse."I think it'd be a huge addition for us," Bumgarner said Tuesday as the Giants opened spring training. "He's obviously a superstar in the game, a young player. I think everybody in here would be pretty damn excited to have him."Harper and the Giants met in the free agent slugger's hometown of Las Vegas last week, and new San Francisco baseball operations chief Farhan Zaidi said the sides had mutual interest."I think anybody who plays Major League Baseball would love to have him on their team and that's no exception here," Posey said. "The type of player he brings and the passion he brings to the game, if we were lucky enough for it to work out, it'd be great."What is he, 26? He's won an MVP," Posey said. "That's pretty much all you need to know."San Francisco opens camp with Steven Duggar, Mac Williamson, Austin Slater and Drew Ferguson as outfield candidates."I've... [More]

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — With Corey Seager's expected return by opening day and the acquisition of right-handed hitting center fielder A.J. Pollock, the Los Angeles Dodgers are not expected to be platooning.Seager was limited to 26 games last season and did not play after April 29. He had Tommy John surgery on May 4 to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament and had arthroscopic surgery on his left hip on Aug. 7."There is a certain narrative on us platooning last year, and I think that was kind of for survival," manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday during his first spring training availability.The two-time NL champions traded Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp to the Cincinnati Reds and allowed Manny Machado and Yasmani Grandal to leave as free agents. The Dodgers' major addition was to sign Pollock as a free agent."I think that we're not as susceptible against left-handed pitching," Roberts said. "Offensively, we're much more balanced, one through eight. Whoever those eight might be on a particular... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Masahiro Tanaka wants to keep on hitting and running the bases at NL ballparks, hoping use of the designated hitter does not spread to the National League.The New York Yankees pitcher missed a month last season after hurting both hamstrings while running the bases during a June 8 game at the New York Mets.The players' association has proposed extending the DH to the NL, a plan baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says is too complex to consider for this year."I did get injured, but when you look at it I grew up where baseball was played by nine guys, meaning basically the pitcher would hit also, and I really enjoyed that baseball," Tanaka said Tuesday through a translator at New York's spring training complex.Despite winning 100 games last season, the Yankees still wound up second in the AL East behind Boston. The Red Sox beat the Yankees in the Division Series and went on to their fourth title in 15 seasons."Boston had the upper hand last season but, hopefully, we'll get... [More]

SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) — When pitchers and catchers reported to the Baltimore Orioles camp on Tuesday, they met a new administration.There is a manager in the dugout other than Buck Showalter for the first time in nine years, and a new general manager replacing Dan Duquette, who spent seven years with the Orioles.Mike Elias, who was hired in November as Baltimore's new GM, hired Brandon Hyde a month later to succeed Showalter — and the difference was obvious Tuesday. There are few recognizable names, and only a handful of roster spots are accounted for.A year ago, the Orioles lost a franchise-record 115 games, and the team used 56 players, also a record.Elias isn't making any promises for what will likely be a lengthy and challenging rebuild."It was a tough last year for the team," Elias said. "It was a lot of losses. It was a hard season, a lot of disappointing individual performances."Hyde, who spent last year as Joe Maddon's bench coach with the Chicago Cubs, wasn't hired until after December's... [More]