Giancarlo Stanton and Matt Davidson gave opening day quite a jolt.A new baseball season began with a bang Thursday when Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs homered on the very first pitch.World Series MVP George Springer connected , Adam Jones and Nick Markakis hit walkoff winners and Anthony Rizzo delivered the most emotional drive of the day.Shohei Ohtani also got off to a nice start with a hit in his first at-bat .But a year after big leaguers launched a record 6,105 longballs, Stanton and Davidson staged their own long-distance home run derby.Stanton hit two hard homers and doubled in his debut with the New York Yankees during a 6-1 victory at Toronto. The reigning NL MVP led the majors with 59 home runs last year, then was traded from Miami to the Bronx."You want to get the first one out of the way and then you can relax," Stanton said.Davidson did even better, hitting three home runs for the Chicago White Sox in a 14-7 romp at Kansas City. He became the fourth player with a three-homer performance... [More]

Giancarlo Stanton and Matt Davidson gave opening day quite a jolt.A new baseball season began with a bang Thursday when Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs homered on the very first pitch.World Series MVP George Springer connected , Adam Jones and Nick Markakis hit walkoff winners and Anthony Rizzo delivered the most emotional drive of the day.Shohei Ohtani also got off to a nice start with a hit in his first at-bat .But a year after big leaguers launched a record 6,105 longballs, Stanton and Davidson staged their own long-distance home run derby.Stanton hit two hard homers and doubled in his debut with the New York Yankees during a 6-1 victory at Toronto. The reigning NL MVP led the majors with 59 home runs last year, then was traded from Miami to the Bronx."You want to get the first one out of the way and then you can relax," Stanton said.Davidson did even better, hitting three home runs for the Chicago White Sox in a 14-7 romp at Kansas City. He became the fourth player with a three-homer performance... [More]

Giancarlo Stanton and Matt Davidson gave opening day quite a jolt.A new baseball season began with a bang Thursday when Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs homered on the very first pitch.World Series MVP George Springer connected , Adam Jones and Nick Markakis hit walkoff winners and Anthony Rizzo delivered the most emotional drive of the day.Shohei Ohtani also got off to a nice start with a hit in his first at-bat .But a year after big leaguers launched a record 6,105 longballs, Stanton and Davidson staged their own long-distance home run derby.Stanton hit two hard homers and doubled in his debut with the New York Yankees during a 6-1 victory at Toronto. The reigning NL MVP led the majors with 59 home runs last year, then was traded from Miami to the Bronx."You want to get the first one out of the way and then you can relax," Stanton said.Davidson did even better, hitting three home runs for the Chicago White Sox in a 14-7 romp at Kansas City. He became the fourth player with a three-homer performance... [More]

Giancarlo Stanton and Matt Davidson gave opening day quite a jolt.A new baseball season began with a bang Thursday when Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs homered on the very first pitch.World Series MVP George Springer connected , Adam Jones and Nick Markakis hit walkoff winners and Anthony Rizzo delivered the most emotional drive of the day.Shohei Ohtani also got off to a nice start with a hit in his first at-bat .But a year after big leaguers launched a record 6,105 longballs, Stanton and Davidson staged their own long-distance home run derby.Stanton hit two hard homers and doubled in his debut with the New York Yankees during a 6-1 victory at Toronto. The reigning NL MVP led the majors with 59 home runs last year, then was traded from Miami to the Bronx."You want to get the first one out of the way and then you can relax," Stanton said.Davidson did even better, hitting three home runs for the Chicago White Sox in a 14-7 romp at Kansas City. He became the fourth player with a three-homer performance... [More]

Capsules of American League West teams, listed in order of finish last year:___Houston Astros2017: 101-61, first place, won World Series.Manager: A.J. Hinch (fourth season).He's Here: RHP Gerrit Cole, RHP Joe Smith, RHP Hector Rondon.He's Outta Here: DH Carlos Beltran, RHP Luke Gregerson, RHP Joe Musgrove, RHP Mike Fiers, RHP Michael Feliz, INF Colin Moran.Projected Lineup: CF George Springer (.283, 34 HRs, 85 RBIs), 3B Alex Bregman (.284, 19, 71, 39 2Bs), 2B Jose Altuve (MLB-best .346, 24, 81, 39 2Bs, 32 SBs, AL MVP), SS Carlos Correa (.315, 24, 84), 1B Yuli Gurriel (.299, 18, 75, 43 2Bs), LF Marwin Gonzalez (.303, 23, 90, 34 2Bs), DH Evan Gattis (.263, 12, 55), RF Josh Reddick (.314, 13, 82, 34 2Bs), C Brian McCann (.241, 18, 62).Rotation: LH Dallas Keuchel (14-5, 2.90 ERA, 251 Ks), RH Justin Verlander (15-8, 3.36, 219 Ks with Tigers and Astros), RH Gerrit Cole (12-12, 4.26, 196 Ks with Pirates), RH Lance McCullers Jr. (7-4, 4.25), RH Charlie Morton (14-7, 3.62).Key Relievers: RH Ken... [More]

A team-by-team look at the American League West entering spring training, including key players each club acquired and lost, and dates of the first workout for pitchers and catchers, and the full squad:___Houston AstrosManager: A.J. Hinch (fourth season).2017: 101-61, first place, won World Series.Training Town: West Palm Beach, Florida.Park: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.First Workout: Feb. 14/19.He's Here: RHP Gerrit Cole, RHP Joe Smith, RHP Hector Rondon.He's Outta Here: DH Carlos Beltran, RHP Luke Gregerson, RHP Joe Musgrove, RHP Mike Fiers, RHP Michael Feliz, INF Colin Moran.Going campin': This team is basically set after retaining almost every key player from last season's championship squad. The two strongest areas are the middle infield, where shortstop Carlos Correa and second baseman Jose Altuve, last year's AL MVP, return to anchor the middle of the order. Correa hit .315 with 24 homers — both career highs — and Altuve had his finest season, hitting a career-best and major... [More]

C Carlos Ruiz hit his second home run in as many starts Sunday, when he led off the bottom of the sixth with a solo shot. Ruiz, who homered off Yankees starter Sonny Gray in his last start on Aug. 26, hit the second pitch of Sunday's sixth inning over the left-field fence to give Seattle a 4-1 lead over the A's.

C Carlos Ruiz hit his second homer of the season in the third inning when he connected against RHP Sonny Gray. Ruiz also singled and collected his fifth multi-hit game in 46 games this season. Saturday was the fifth time Ruiz started this month and he entered the game hitless in 13 straight at-bats. "He's the consummate veteran," manager Scott Servais said. "He knows how to prepare. We give him a heads-up a couple (of) days ahead of time that he is going to play and who he's catching. He's ready to go. He gives us a great effort every time he's out there."

C Carlos Ruiz, who entered the game batting .194, went 3-for-3 with an RBI to improve his average to .227. "Chooch had a big day," Seattle manager Scott Servais said of Ruiz, the 38-year-old backup to Mike Zunino.

C Carlos Ruiz made his first career appearance as a pitcher as he entered the game in the bottom of the eighth inning as a reliever. Ruiz, a 12-year veteran, hit 82 mph on the Target Field radar gun but allowed a home run to Minnesota's Eddie Rosario to lead off the inning.

DH Carlos Ruiz hit his first home run since April 27, 2016, a solo shot in the third inning off Twins starter Adalberto Mejia. The 12-year veteran catcher was making only his second career start as the DH, replacing the ailing Nelson Cruz. Six of Ruiz's 11 hits this season have been for extra bases (five doubles, one homer).

C Carlos Ruiz earned the start in Philadelphia on Wednesday and made it count, delivering a three-run double in the seventh inning to break open what became an 11-6 victory. Ruiz, who played 1,069 games in a Phillies uniform between 2006-2016 before being traded to the Dodgers last year, raised his average to .129. "Nice to see him get a big hit, he's been struggling with the bat in limited opportunities that he's got, so really really happy for him," manager Scott Servais said. "Good day for Chooch."

C Carlos Ruiz was not in the starting lineup Tuesday when the Mariners brought him to his old stomping grounds in Philadelphia, where he played parts of 11 seasons and won a World Series in 2008. Ruiz did, however, pinch hit in the eighth inning. He flew out. Ruiz, who spent 18 years in the Phillies organization, will start in the day game Wednesday. He held a press conference before the game Tuesday and said he was looking forward to the ovation he would get. "These are great fans and I think when you play hard and when you do your best to win they appreciate that," Ruiz said. "It was fun to be part of this organization and play for this city. I really enjoyed the time I was here."

C Carlos Ruiz started in place of Yasmani Grandal with a left-handed pitcher (Jon Lester) on the mound for the Cubs in Game 5 of the NLCS. Ruiz was 1-for-4 and drove in a run in the eighth inning.

C Carlos Ruiz smoked a two-run, pinch-hit home run in the fifth inning. It was Ruiz's first long ball in the playoffs and the fifth of his postseason career. The homer was the first pinch-hit shot by a Dodgers player since 2009, when Orlando Hudson launched one in the NL Championship Series.

C Carlos Ruiz started in his first game after being acquired by the Dodgers for C A.J. Ellis on Thursday. Ruiz went 1-for-3 with a walk and also was hit by a pitch. He also got crossed up on a wild pitch by RHP Kenley Jansen that allowed the Cubs to tie the score in the ninth and eventually win the game in the 10th.

C Carlos Ruiz, who spent his entire 18-year professional career with the Phillies before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday, left a note to his ex-teammates on the dry erase board in the visiting clubhouse: "I will miss all of you guys. Good luck the rest of the season. Love you all. Chooch!" .

C Carlos Ruiz was acquired by the Dodgers on Thursday with cash in exchange for C A.J. Ellis, a minor-leaguer and a player to be named.Ruiz will join the Dodgers on Friday when they open a three-game series against the Cubs, and he will be a backup to C Yasmani Grandal. He waived his no-trade clause for the chance to flee a sub-.500 club and join a first-place club.Ruiz, 37, helped lead the Phillies to a championship in 2008, when he hit .375 in the World Series against the Tampa Bay Rays. He and the Phillies were back in the World Series the next year, and he was an All-Star in 2012.

LOS ANGELES -- In a move that shook up the Los Angeles Dodgers' clubhouse, popular backup A.J. Ellis was dealt to the Philadelphia Phillies for fellow catcher Carlos Ruiz on Thursday."Obviously, it was tough decision on a personal level," Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. "We felt like from a baseball standpoint, Carlos fit our team extremely well. I could go on and on about A.J. and his attributes and what he brings to a team. And if Carlos didn't possess similar things, we wouldn't have made the move."Ellis was known as one of the leaders in the Dodgers' locker room despite limited playing time this year behind starter Yasmani Grandal. Ellis also is a close friend of Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw."Shocked. Quiet," Ellis said of Kershaw's reaction upon hearing the news, according to MLB.com. Kershaw did not speak with the media about the trade. "The shock kind of hit us both simultaneously and we both cried."Ruiz, 37, helped lead the Phillies to a World Series... [More]

C Carlos Ruiz went 1-for-4 against St. Louis on Sunday, meaning he's hit safely in 14 of his last 16 games. Since July 2, the longtime Phillie is batting .365 (19 of 52) with a .484 on-base percentage, splitting time in a platoon with Cameron Rupp behind the plate. Ruiz's .265 batting average after Sunday's game would be the fifth-best of his career and his best since hitting .268 in 2013; all five of those top hitting seasons have come since 2010.