Rangers veteran Shin-Soo Choo is helping out financially strapped minor league players with the season on hold, giving $1,000 each to 191 of them who are in the Texas organization.Choo said Wednesday that he remembers the financial struggles when he was in the minors. The 37-year-old outfielder-designated hitter hopes the gifts will help ease those worries for the current minor leaguers, most he has never met, allowing them to stay focused on their baseball careers instead of having to figure out ways to make money.“I've done it before, minor leagues, seven years,” said Choo, who was 18 when he left South Korea to join the Seattle Mariners organization before the 2001 season. “I know right now the minor league system is better than 15-20 years ago, but still tough. Everything's very difficult, especially money wise."Choo is one of a few major league players helping out with the baseball season on hold. Colorado Rockies infielder Daniel Murphy gifted $100,000 on Wednesday to a fund operated... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — When and if opening day comes around this year, New York Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake anticipates a brimming bullpen.Major League Baseball and the players' association have talked about a compressed schedule to get in as many games as possible. That will set off a call to arms."I think if you have 15 guys it gives you some depth," Blake said Wednesday.Active rosters were to expand from 25 to 26 from opening day through Aug. 31 in exchange for the limit dropping from 40 to 28 from Sept. 1 on. When a strike delayed the start of the 1995 season until April 25, teams were allowed 28 players through May 15.There is talk of 28- to 30-man rosters following the shutdown caused by the new coronavirus. Teams are preparing for a season that could extend into late November or even December, if domes and ballparks in warm-weather cities are used."Both the PA and the MLB are very, very adamant about playing as many games as we can this year," Seattle pitcher Marco Gonzales said.... [More]

The Associated Press (AP) — April 21931 — Virne Beatrice "Jackie" Mitchell, the first woman in professional baseball, pitched against the New York Yankees in an exhibition game in Chattanooga. Babe Ruth waved wildly at the first two pitches and took a third strike. Lou Gehrig timed his swing to miss three straight pitches. Tony Lazzeri, after trying to bunt, walked and Mitchell left the game.1952 — Hall of Fame outfielder Monte Irvin of the New York Giants broke his ankle in an exhibition game. Irvin played just 46 games that season.1984 — The New York Mets lost to the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 for their first opening-day defeat in 10 years.1996 — St. Francis of Illinois pummeled Robert Morris 71-1, with Robert Morris coach Gerald McNamara ending the after four innings.1997 — For the first time, the salary of one player — Albert Belle — exceeded the payroll of an entire team — the Pittsburgh Pirates. Belle, the game's highest-paid player for 1997 at $10 million, made $928,333 more than the whole... [More]

Rangers veteran Shin-Soo Choo is helping out financially strapped minor league players with the season on hold, giving $1,000 each to 191 of them who are in the Texas organization.Choo said Wednesday that he remembers the financial struggles when he was in the minors. The 37-year-old outfielder-designated hitter hopes the gifts will help ease those worries for the current minor leaguers, most he has never met, allowing them to stay focused on their baseball careers instead of having to figure out ways to make money.“I've done it before, minor leagues, seven years,” said Choo, who was 18 when he left South Korea to join the Seattle Mariners organization before the 2001 season. “I know right now the minor league system is better than 15-20 years ago, but still tough. Everything's very difficult, especially money wise."Choo is now going into the final year of a $130 million, seven-year deal he signed as a free agent with the Rangers. He is set to be the highest-paid Texas player this season... [More]

APRIL 31974 : The Cincinnati Reds defeated the Atlanta Braves 7-6 in 11 innings before a crowd of 52,000 at Riverfront Stadium. In his first at-bat, Hank Aaron hit a three-run homer off Jack Billingham. It was his 714th, tying Babe Ruth’s career record. The Braves had considered keeping Aaron on the bench for the season-opening series in Cincinnati so that he could attempt to tie the record four days later in Atlanta. But commissioner Bowie Kuhn would not allow it and ordered the Braves to put Aaron into the lineup for at least two of the three games.1988 : George Bell became the first player to hit three home runs on opening day, leading the Toronto Blue Jays past the Kansas City Royals 5-3. Bell, bitter throughout spring training with his move to designated hitter, homered three times in that role off Bret Saberhagen.1994 : Chicago’s Karl Rhodes hit three solo home runs off Dwight Gooden in a 12-8 loss to the New York Mets on opening day at Wrigley Field. Rhodes became the second player... [More]

April 61972 — For the first time in history, the major leagues failed to open on schedule because of a player strike, which started on April 1. The traditional season opener between Houston and Cincinnati was canceled and a total of 86 games were lost before the strike was settled.1973 — Ron Blomberg of the New York Yankees became the first major league designated hitter. With the bases loaded in the first inning, he was walked by pitcher Luis Tiant, but the Red Sox won 15-5.1973 — At the Oakland Coliseum, Tony Oliva became the first designated hitter to homer. The Twins DH hit a two-run shot in the first inning off of Catfish Hunter to Minnesota to an 8-3 win.1974 — Due to renovations at Yankee Stadium, the New York Yankees' home opener took place at Shea Stadium. It was their first home game outside Yankee Stadium since 1922.1977 — The Seattle Mariners played their first regular-season game and lost 7-0 to the California Angels at the Kingdome.1982 — A freak storm that brought subfreezing... [More]

The Associated Press (AP) — April 21931 — Virne Beatrice "Jackie" Mitchell, the first woman in professional baseball, pitched against the New York Yankees in an exhibition game in Chattanooga. Babe Ruth waved wildly at the first two pitches and took a third strike. Lou Gehrig timed his swing to miss three straight pitches. Tony Lazzeri, after trying to bunt, walked and Mitchell left the game.1952 — Hall of Fame outfielder Monte Irvin of the New York Giants broke his ankle in an exhibition game. Irvin played just 46 games that season.1984 — The New York Mets lost to the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 for their first opening-day defeat in 10 years.1996 — St. Francis of Illinois pummeled Robert Morris 71-1, with Robert Morris coach Gerald McNamara ending the after four innings.1997 — For the first time, the salary of one player — Albert Belle — exceeded the payroll of an entire team — the Pittsburgh Pirates. Belle, the game's highest-paid player for 1997 at $10 million, made $928,333 more than the whole... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — Even with major leaguers likely to receive some semblance of another spring training to get ready, teams are going to have to be creative with how they handle starting pitchers whenever baseball returns.The last thing anyone wants is arm problems to arise almost immediately after baseball restarts -- whenever that ends up being because of coronavirus outbreak. “Possibly having a six-man rotation or something along those lines. Maybe a piggyback situation for us just those first couple outings,” Seattle left-hander Marco Gonzales said during a conference call on Tuesday.Gonzales was slated to be the Mariners' starter on opening day.“Maybe we go three or four innings for the starters. And that’s who this affects most really is starting pitchers. Maybe we have a piggyback situation or something along those lines. Like I said, those are things we need to get creative with," he said.No one knows when baseball will start again after being derailed by the COVID-19 virus pandemic.... [More]

April 11931 — Pitcher Virne Mitchell, 17, signed with the Chattanooga club of Tennessee, becoming the first woman to play for an otherwise all-male baseball team.1972 — The first collective players strike in major league history began. The strike lasted 12 days and canceled 86 games.1996 — Umpire John McSherry, 51, who planned to see doctors the next day about an irregular heart beat, collapsed seven pitches into Cincinnati's opener and died at a hospital about an hour later.1970 — An investment group headed by Bud Selig bought the Seattle pilots for $10.8 million.1989 — A. Bartlett Giamatti took over as baseball commissioner.2001 — The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers 8-1 when the major league baseball season opened in San Juan, Puerto Rico.2013 — Bryce Harper homered in his first two at-bats, Stephen Strasburg retired 19 batters in a row and the defending NL East champion Washington Nationals opened the season with a 2-0 victory over the Miami Marlins. Harper, the reigning NL... [More]

In order to get back on the baseball field, Nick Ahmed is willing to play as a masked man.The two-time Gold Glove shortstop for the Arizona Diamondbacks said he's seen some pictures of recent baseball games in Asia where players have worn protective masks to shield themselves from the spread of the coronavirus.He said the masks “wouldn't be ideal” but if it means baseball could be played, he's ready.“I'll be up for anything at this point just to be able to play,” Ahmed explained Tuesday during a video conference. “If they said, ‘Hey, you can start games on May 15th or June 1st, but you have to wear masks.' If that's the only thing holding us back than sure, guys would do it.”Ahmed is at his home in Phoenix with his wife, two young sons and brother, trying to stay in shape, fighting boredom and hoping baseball can be played at some point this spring or summer.Ahmed said players are open to just about any scenario for playing games. That includes empty ballparks, ample doubleheaders or yes,... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Red Sox starter Chris Sale had Tommy John surgery on his left elbow on Monday, his 31st birthday, waiting 11 days after doctors said he needed the operation because of difficulty in scheduling during the coronavirus pandemic.Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said the team worked with doctors to make sure the procedure didn't burden an already-stressed healthcare system. "Under normal circumstances we might have been able to have it happen a little bit sooner," Bloom said on a conference call with reporters. “We know that this is not life and death. ... It’s apples and oranges with this versus when you talk about something that’s life-threatening." Dr. Neal ElAttrache replaced Sale's ulnar collateral ligament at the Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles; the Red Sox said the surgery was a success. Sale is expected to miss 14-15 months, which would bring him back in the middle of the 2021 season.“We look forward to his return sometime next year,” Bloom said. Also Monday,... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — Red Sox starter Chris Sale had Tommy John surgery on his left elbow on Monday, his 31st birthday, and the team said it was successful.The procedure was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache at the Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles.Sale is expected to miss 14-15 months, which would bring him back in the middle of the 2021 season.Sale missed the start of spring training with an illness that the team described as a flu that morphed into pneumonia. The Red Sox then said he had a flexor strain near the elbow, but the team hoped he would avoid ligament replacement surgery. A seven-time All-Star, Sale is 109-73 in 10 major league seasons and entering the second season of a six-year, $160 million contract. After helping the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series, he went 6-11 with a 4.40 ERA in 25 starts last year — his fewest wins and starts, highest ERA, and the first time he failed to finish in the top six in Cy Young voting in any full season as a starter. “Tommy John's been a factor in my life for 20 years now," Sale said earlier this month. “It's on the table, but it's always been on the table. So, that's not something I'm going to worry myself with. I can't go out there with that in the back of my mind. I have to have the confidence that what we're doing is going to work.” ___

As Major League Baseball and the players' union contemplate various ways to create a schedule for whenever the coronavirus pandemic subsides, Cincinnati Reds catcher Tucker Barnhart raised a concern that is surely shared by others around the sport: Could trying to cram in games, and maybe extend the season into late November or December, lead to injuries? "The player safety piece is a big thing," Barnhart, a union representative, said Monday on a conference call with reporters.That involves how many off-days are salvaged in 2020, how many times teams are told to play in any given week and how 2021 could be affected if there is a shorter-than-usual offseason."Moving forward, I don't think you can do things that are going to compromise the integrity of next season, as well. What I mean by that is forcing the issue of getting so many games in that you risk injury, and you risk major injury to players, because you are trying to get in as many games as you can," Barnhart said. "This is all assumptions... [More]

March 291973 - Orange baseballs are used in an exhibition game by Oakland owner Charlie Finley. The A's suffered 11-5 exhibition loss to Cleveland. George Hendrick of the Indians hit three home runs in the game.2000 — The Chicago Cubs open the major league season at the Tokyo Dome in Japan by defeating the New York Mets 5-3 in the first big league game ever played outside of North America.2015 — Belmont broke three NCAA Division I records and tied a fourth during a 20-run sixth inning in a 34-10 victory over UT Martin. The Bruins set the marks for most plate appearances (26), total bases (43) and RBIs (20) in an inning. Belmont homered seven times in the sixth to tie the record for most homers in an inning.2017 — New York Mets reliever Jeurys Familia was given a 15-game suspension under Major League Baseball's domestic violence policy.

NEW YORK (AP) — Players agreed to a deal with Major League Baseball that would preserve service time in the event this season is canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but left open details of what a reconfigured schedule would look like.As part of the agreement approved by the union Thursday night, players will not challenge the loss of their salaries if no games are played. Management will advance $170 million in salary payments over the first 60 days of the original schedule, and that money does not have to be returned if the season is canceled. Player salaries this year are expected to total roughly $4 billion.Management was given the right to cut the amateur draft in both 2020 and 2021, and to freeze the values of signing bonus money at 2019 levels.Details were divulged to The Associated Press by people familiar with the agreement who spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made.Teams approved the 17-page agreement Friday, the person said.Opening day was... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — If the final pitch of the 2020 baseball season comes closer to Christmas than Halloween, that's fine with the players.Major League Baseball owners ratified a 17-page agreement with the union on Friday in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, with players willing to extend the season as long as needed to cover as close to a full schedule as possible.Even if it involves neutral sites in warm-weather cities and domes. Even if it involves playing in empty ballparks. Even if it involves lots of day-night doubleheaders.And if it means expanding the playoffs from 10 teams, fine.“Players want to play. That's what we do,” said union head Tony Clark, a former All-Star first baseman. “Being able to get back on the field and being able to play, even if that means their fans are watching at home, but being able to play for their fans is something they've all expressed a desire and an interest to do, and to do so as soon as possible."The deal provides for $170 million in advances from... [More]

March 281970 — Commissioner Bowie Kuhn announced the return of the All-Star selection to the fans.1977 — Lenny Randle of the Texas Rangers, angry about having been benched during spring training, attacked 50-year-old manager Frank Lucchesi and sent him to the hospital with a shattered cheekbone.1999 — Harold Baines singled in the tiebreaking run in the top of the 11th inning as the Baltimore Orioles beat the Cuban all-star team 3-2 in Havana. It was the first time in 40 years a major league team had played in Cuba.1991 — Methodist College beat Maryville 43-0 to set an NCAA record for runs in a game. The previous record of 42 had been set by King College in 1902. Methodist scored 15 runs in the first inning and Brandon Bridgers had seven of his team's 34 hits.March 291973 — Orange baseballs are used in an exhibition game by Oakland owner Charlie Finley. The A's suffered 11-5 exhibition loss to Cleveland. George Hendrick of the Indians hit three home runs in the game.2000 — The Chicago Cubs... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Players agreed to a deal with Major League Baseball that would preserve service time in the event this season is canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but left open details of what a configured schedule would look like.As part of the agreement approved by the union Thursday night, players will not challenge the loss of their salaries if no games are played. Management will advance $170 million in salary payments over the first 60 days of the original schedule, and that money does not have to be returned if the season is canceled. Player salaries this year are expected to total roughly $4 billion.Management was given the right to cut the amateur draft in both 2020 and 2021, and to freeze the values of signing bonus money at 2019 levels.Details were divulged to The Associated Press by people familiar with the agreement who spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made.Teams approved the 17-page agreement Friday, the person said.Opening day was to... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Players agreed to a deal with Major League Baseball that would preserve service time in the event this season is canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but left open details of what a configured schedule would look like.As part of the agreement approved by the union Thursday night, players will not challenge the loss of their salaries if no games are played. Management will advance $170 million in salary payments over the first 60 days of the original schedule, and that money does not have to be returned if the season is canceled. Player salaries this year are expected to total roughly $4 billion.Management was given the right to cut the amateur draft in both 2020 and 2021, and to freeze the values of signing bonus money at 2019 levels.Details were divulged to The Associated Press by people familiar with the agreement who spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made.Teams approved the 17-page agreement Friday, the person said.Opening day was to... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Players agreed to a deal with Major League Baseball that would preserve service time in the event this season is canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but left open details of what a configured schedule would look like.As part of the agreement approved by the union Thursday night, players will not challenge the loss of their salaries if no games are played. Management will advance $170 million in salary payments over two stages, and that money does not have to be returned if the season is canceled. Player salaries this year are expected to total roughly $4 billion.Management was given the right to cut the amateur draft in both 2020 and 2021, and to freeze the values of signing bonus money at 2019 levels.Details were divulged to The Associated Press by people familiar with the agreement who spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made.Teams approved the roughly 17-page agreement Friday, the person said.Opening day was to have been Thursday, but... [More]