A look at what's happening around the majors today:BOUR BLUNDERAngels slugger Justin Bour looks to improve his baserunning after yet another blunder on the bags. He failed to run out a popup in a tie game in the eighth, and the Mariners alertly let the ball and turned it into an easy, inning-ending double play. Seattle wound up winning 5-3."There's no excuse for it. It's terrible," Bour said.Last Saturday at Wrigley Field, Bour singled in the first inning and tried to advance on an overthrow. Bour lumbered toward second, slid in and was called safe. But convinced he was out, he simply left the base and began walking back to the dugout, and was tagged by the Cubs' Javier Baez halfway between second and first.CHECK HIMMets ace Jacob deGrom will have an MRI on his right elbow after the NL Cy Young Award said his arm has felt sore. DeGrom is leaving the team in St. Louis to get examined back in New York, and the team is putting him on the injured list."We're not sure what it is," manager Mickey... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Saturday:CHECK HIMMets ace Jacob deGrom will have an MRI on his right elbow after the NL Cy Young Award said his arm has felt sore. DeGrom is leaving the team in St. Louis to get examined back in New York, and the team is putting him on the injured list."We're not sure what it is," manager Mickey Callaway said.The 30-year-old deGrom, who had Tommy John surgery in 2010, began this season with two dominant outings. But he lost his last two starts while allowing a total of nine runs on 13 hits — including five homers — and five walks in nine innings.DeGrom signed a $137.5 million, five-year contract right before opening day.NEW HOMEBlake Swihart gets a chance to jump-start his career after Boston traded the catcher to Arizona. The 27-year-old was cut by the Red Sox this week after going 6 for 26 in 12 games.Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen worked in player development and amateur scouting with Boston when Swihart was selected in the first... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich hit three homers, including a pair of three-run shots, and drove in a career-high seven runs to power the Milwaukee Brewers past the St. Louis Cardinals 10-7 on Monday night.Yelich, the reigning NL MVP, hit his first three-run homer to cap a six-run second inning. After St. Louis tied it with three runs in the sixth, Yelich answered in the bottom half with a towering three-run blast to right off Mike Mayers (0-1).Yelich capped his night with his eighth homer this season, going deep to lead off the eighth. He also lined out in the first and was walked intentionally in the fourth.Junior Guerra (1-0) worked 1 2/3 innings for the victory. Josh Hader struck out the side in the ninth after allowing Marcell Ozuna's sixth home run to open the inning.DODGERS 4, REDS 3LOS ANGELES (AP) — Joc Pederson hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Los Angeles a comeback victory over Cincinnati in Clayton Kershaw's season debut.Raisel Iglesias (0-3) walked... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich hit three homers, including a pair of three-run shots, and drove in a career-high seven runs to power the Milwaukee Brewers past the St. Louis Cardinals 10-7 on Monday night.Yelich, the reigning NL MVP, hit his first three-run homer to cap a six-run second inning. After St. Louis tied it with three runs in the sixth, Yelich answered in the bottom half with a towering three-run blast to right off Mike Mayers (0-1).Yelich capped his night with his eighth homer this season, going deep to lead off the eighth. He also lined out in the first and was walked intentionally in the fourth.Junior Guerra (1-0) worked 1 2/3 innings for the victory. Josh Hader struck out the side in the ninth after allowing Marcell Ozuna's sixth home run to open the inning.METS 7, PHILLIES 6, 11 INNINGSPHILADELPHIA (AP) — Juan Lagares scored from second base on Michael Conforto's hard grounder in the 11th inning and New York beat Philadelphia.Lagares led off with an infield single against... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Jose Altuve hit two homers, Carlos Correa homered with three RBIs and the Houston Astros completed their first sweep of the New York Yankees with an 8-6 win Wednesday night.The Astros needed late-game comebacks to win the first two games of the series but used a four-run fifth inning to break the finale open and held on for their sixth straight win despite a big eighth inning by the Yankees.It's the first time since 2004 the Astros have swept a homestand of at least two series. They beat the Athletics three times this weekend before the Yankees arrived.Altuve, who has homered in three straight games, hit his first one off James Paxton (1-2) to tie it at 1 in the first inning after Brett Gardner hit a leadoff homer for New York.The Astros were up by 1 with no outs in the fifth inning when Altuve connected off Paxton again. The towering shot clanged off the light pole atop the wall in left field to make it 4-2.A single by Michael Brantley chased Paxton, who was replaced by... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — Jose Altuve hit two homers, Carlos Correa homered with three RBIs and the Houston Astros completed their first-ever sweep of the New York Yankees with an 8-6 win Wednesday night.The Astros needed late-game comebacks to win the first two games of the series but used a four-run fifth inning to break the finale open and held on for their sixth straight win despite a big eighth inning by the Yankees.It's the first time since 2004 the Astros have swept a homestand of at least two series. They beat the Athletics three times this weekend before the Yankees arrived.Altuve, who has homered in three straight games, hit his first one off James Paxton (1-2) to tie it at 1 in the first inning after Brett Gardner hit a leadoff homer for New York.The Astros were up by 1 with no outs in the fifth inning when Altuve connected off Paxton again. The towering shot clanged off the light pole atop the wall in left field to make it 4-2.A single by Michael Brantley chased Paxton, who was replaced... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:THE BIG 3-0Whit Merrifield can set a record for the longest hitting streak in Royals history. He extended his streak to 30 games Tuesday night, tying the team mark set by George Brett in 1980. Merrifield's string started last season and he's hit safely in all 10 Kansas City games this year. The Royals will face rookie Yusei Kikuchi and the Seattle Mariners at Kauffman Stadium.AILING STARMike Trout will likely miss the Angels' series finale against Milwaukee after straining his right groin Tuesday night. The two-time AL MVP said he first felt discomfort after completing a workout earlier in the day and it flared up as he was running to second base in the second inning. He was removed for Peter Bourjos in the fourth and is day-to-day. "I didn't want to push it. It is better to take time out than blow it out," Trout explained. Los Angeles has Thursday off before beginning a three-game series Friday in Chicago against the Cubs. "When it is... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Wednesday:THE BIG 3-0Whit Merrifield can set a record for the longest hitting streak in Royals history. He extended his streak to 30 games Tuesday night, tying the team mark set by George Brett in 1980. Merrifield's string started last season and he's hit safely in all 10 Kansas City games this year. The Royals will face rookie Yusei Kikuchi and the Seattle Mariners at Kauffman Stadium.OUT OF CONTROLYu Darvish tries again to find the strike zone after two shaky starts for the Cubs. The four-time All-Star has walked 11 over 6 2/3 innings so far, with an 8.10 ERA. Darvish was hurt for most of last season, his first with Chicago after signing a $126 million, six-year deal. He next faces Pittsburgh at Wrigley Field.YOU AGAINBryce Harper takes another swing at his former team when the Philadelphia Phillies host Washington. Harper hit a three-run homer Tuesday night off ex-teammate Stephen Strasburg, but the Nationals rallied from a five-run deficit... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Trevor Bauer was pulled by manager Terry Francona after seven hitless innings and 117 pitches, and watched from the dugout as Toronto's Freddy Galvis broke up Cleveland's bid for a combined no-hitter with a leadoff single in the ninth inning of the Indians' 4-1 win Thursday night.Bauer was attempting to throw Cleveland's first no-hitter in 38 years — on the 25th anniversary of Progressive Field's opening — but was taken out as his pitch count increased."It was the right decision," Bauer said.Jon Edwards got two outs in the eighth before closer Brad Hand worked out of a bases-loaded jam. Hand, however, gave up a hard single to center by Galvis. Alen Hansen followed with Toronto's second hit and the Blue Jays scored before Hand struck out two for his third save.Bauer (1-0) walked six and struck out eight. The Indians haven't pitched a no-hitter since Len Barker's perfect game against Toronto in 1981.Aaron Sanchez (1-1) took the loss. This was the third time this season the... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Trevor Bauer was pulled by manager Terry Francona after seven hitless innings and 117 pitches, and watched from the dugout as Toronto's Freddy Galvis broke up Cleveland's bid for a combined no-hitter with a leadoff single in the ninth inning of the Indians' 4-1 win Thursday night.Bauer was attempting to throw Cleveland's first no-hitter in 38 years — on the 25th anniversary of Progressive Field's opening — but was taken out as his pitch count increased."It was the right decision," Bauer said.Jon Edwards got two outs in the eighth before closer Brad Hand worked out of a bases-loaded jam. Hand, however, gave up a hard single to center by Galvis. Alen Hansen followed with Toronto's second hit and the Blue Jays scored before Hand struck out two for his third save.Bauer (1-0) walked six and struck out eight. The Indians haven't pitched a no-hitter since Len Barker's perfect game against Toronto in 1981.Aaron Sanchez (1-1) took the loss. This was the third time this season the... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bryce Harper homered deep into the second deck in right-center field for his first hit with Philadelphia and celebrated with an emphatic curtain call, highlighting the Phillies' 8-6 win over the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.Hitless over five at-bats this season after signing a $330 million, 13-year deal, Harper crushed Jesse Biddle's fastball 465 feet with two outs in the seventh. Fans gave Harper a standing ovation and chanted "MVP! MVP!"After getting high fives in the dugout, Harper climbed out for a curtain call, throwing both fists in the air and shouting "Let's go!"Maikel Franco and J.T. Realmuto also went deep for Philadelphia. The game was tied at 4 in the fifth when Realmuto lined a two-run drive off Wes Parsons (0-1).Adam Morgan (1-0) faced one batter in the fifth inning.Dansby Swanson and Charlie Culberson homered, and Freddie Freeman had four hits and drove in two for the Braves.BREWERS 4, CARDINALS 2MILWAUKEE (AP) — Christian Yelich became the first MVP to... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Saturday:BRYCE CHECKBryce Harper was a hit on opening day in Philadelphia, getting plenty of applause in those gaudy green Phanatic spikes . But he's still hitless, something he'll try to change when the Phillies continue a series against Atlanta. Harper was 0 for 3 with two strikeouts Thursday, though his intentional walk set up Rhys Hoskins' seventh-inning grand slam in a 10-4 victory. The Braves' Bryse Wilson is set to oppose Philly's Nick Pivetta.YU AGAIN?Chicago Cubs righty Yu Darvish makes his season debut after an injury-shortened year — he'll face some former Rangers teammates when he starts at Texas. Darvish hasn't pitched in the majors since last May 20, when elbow trouble sidelined him in his first season since signing a rich deal with the Cubs.Darvish made his big league debut with Texas in 2012 after playing seven pro seasons at home in Japan. He was 52-39 with a 3.42 ERA in 122 starts for the Rangers before they dealt the four-time... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Texas Rangers are about to face a pair of their former aces, Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels, in consecutive games against the Chicago Cubs."That will be unique," Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. "It will be a good challenge for our guys because they're both so talented and it's fun to see our guys play against the best."While Darvish and Hamels will pitch during the opening series in the ballpark they used to call home, their former team is going through quite a rotation reclamation. The Rangers have four new starters, three of them coming off Tommy John surgery in 2017 — the last season Darvish and Hamels were in Texas together.Darvish made his big league debut with Texas in 2012 after playing seven pro seasons at home in Japan. He will start against the Rangers on Saturday in the second game of the series after Jon Lester made his third consecutive opening-day start for the Cubs in a 12-4 victory Thursday.Hamels, who started openers for the Rangers in... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Mike Minor will now do for the Rangers what Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish did the past three seasons in Texas.With those former Rangers aces in the visitors' dugout, Minor starts the season opener for Texas against the Chicago Cubs on Thursday. The left-hander's first career opening day start comes only a year after his return to a rotation following shoulder surgery that led to him missing two entire seasons and then being a full-time reliever."From being hurt for two years and not thinking I was ever going to throw again, pitch again in the big leagues, or pitch at all, to being the opening day starter, yeah it feels pretty good," Minor said. "I even doubted myself because of the way I felt, and then once I was healthy, I didn't doubt myself."The opener also marks the managerial debut for new Rangers skipper Chris Woodward, the 42-year-old former utility infielder who spent the past three seasons — and the last two World Series — as third base coach for the Los Angeles... [More]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Mike Minor will now do for the Rangers what Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish did the past three seasons in Texas.With those former Rangers aces in the visitors' dugout, Minor starts the season opener for Texas against the Chicago Cubs on Thursday. The left-hander's first career opening day start comes only a year after his return to a rotation following shoulder surgery that led to him missing two entire seasons and then being a full-time reliever."From being hurt for two years and not thinking I was ever going to throw again, pitch again in the big leagues, or pitch at all, to being the opening day starter, yeah it feels pretty good," Minor said. "I even doubted myself because of the way I felt, and then once I was healthy, I didn't doubt myself."The opener also marks the managerial debut for new Rangers skipper Chris Woodward, the 42-year-old former utility infielder who spent the past three seasons — and the last two World Series — as third base coach for the Los Angeles... [More]

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Chicago Cubs pitcher Cole Hamels has had a fun few days of firsts. Over the weekend, he recorded his first hole-in-one on a golf course, and on Monday night he hit a home run in his final spring training tuneup.Hamels has another first coming up when he faces the Texas Rangers in his initial start of the regular season. It'll be the first time the left-hander has pitched against a former team.Although Cubs manager Joe Maddon had not announced the rotation order, it is now lined up with Jon Lester starting on opening day Thursday against the Rangers, followed by Yu Darvish, Hamels, Kyle Hendricks and Jose Quintana."It's finally that time. I feel healthy, strong," Hamels said. "Now it's go time, get in front of the big crowds and big stadiums and everything starts to matter."Monday night was Hamels' fifth spring start. He faced the defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox and did serve up Andrew Benintendi's home run with one out in the third, but led off the Cubs... [More]

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Chicago Cubs pitcher Cole Hamels had had fun few days of firsts. Over the weekend, he recorded his first hole-in-one on a golf course, and on Monday night, he hit a home run in his final spring training tuneup.Hamels has another first coming up when he faces the Texas Rangers in his first start of the regular season. It'll be the first time the left-hander has pitched against a former team.Although Cubs manager Joe Maddon has not officially announced the rotation order, it is now lined up with Jon Lester starting on opening day Thursday against the Rangers, followed by Yu Darvish, Hamels, Kyle Hendricks and Jose Quintana."It's finally that time. I feel healthy, strong," Hamels said. "Now it's go time, get in front of the big crowds and big stadiums and everything starts to matter."Monday night was Hamels' fifth spring start. He faced the defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox and did serve up Andrew Benintendi's home run with one out in the third, but led off... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Veteran outfielder Hunter Pence is set to start the season with his hometown Texas Rangers after going to spring training on a minor league contract.Manager Chris Woodward told Pence on Thursday that he will be on the 25-man roster as the team's fourth outfielder when the Rangers open the regular season at home next Thursday against the Chicago Cubs.That means slimmed-down 24-year-old outfielder Willie Calhoun will start the season at Triple-A Nashville.Pence, a three-time All-Star who turns 36 on April 13, is a .280 career hitter in 12 big league seasons with Houston, Philadelphia and San Francisco. He was part of two World Series championships with the Giants.Pence was hitting .333 with three homers and seven RBIs in 40 spring training at-bats through Thursday. The right-hander was a better fit for the Rangers roster at this point. He will make $2 million while in the majors."This is a really big deal, and it impacted me in a big way," Pence said. "To be honest,... [More]

Mike Trout is about to cash in.Big time.Trout and the Los Angeles Angels are close to finalizing a $432 million, 12-year contract that would shatter the record for the largest deal in North American sports history, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.The deal was disclosed Tuesday by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been finalized. The contract was likely to be announced by the end of this week, the person said.Hours later, news broke that Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros have agreed on a $100 million, six-year deal that keeps the All-Star third baseman under contract with the team through 2024, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation.Trout would set a baseball record for career earnings at about $513 million, surpassing the roughly $448 million Alex Rodriguez took in with Seattle, Texas and the New York Yankees from 1994-2017.Trout's latest deal would... [More]

Mike Trout is about to cash in.Big time.Trout and the Los Angeles Angels are close to finalizing a $432 million, 12-year contract that would shatter the record for the largest deal in North American sports history, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.The deal was disclosed Tuesday by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been finalized. The contract was likely to be announced by the end of this week, the person said.Trout would set a baseball record for career earnings at about $513 million, surpassing the roughly $448 million Alex Rodriguez took in with Seattle, Texas and the New York Yankees from 1994-2017.Trout's latest deal would top the new $330 million, 12-year contract between Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies, and Trout's $36 million average annual value would surpass pitcher Zack Greinke's $34.4 million in a six-year deal with Arizona that started in 2016. The contract... [More]