Capsules of American League East teams, listed in order of finish last year:___Boston Red Sox2017: 93-69, first place, lost to Houston in ALDS.Manager: Alex Cora (first season).He's Here: DH J.D. Martinez.He's Outta Here: Manager John Farrell, RHP Doug Fister, OF Chris Young, RHP Addison Reed, OF Rajai Davis, LHP Henry Owens, LHP Fernando Abad.Projected Lineup: RF Mookie Betts (.264, 24 HRs, 102 RBIs), LF Andrew Benintendi (.271, 20, 90), 1B Hanley Ramirez (.242, 23, 62) or Mitch Moreland (.246, 22, 79), DH J.D. Martinez (.303, 45, 104 with Tigers and Diamondbacks), 3B Rafael Devers (.284, 10, 30 in 58 games), SS Xander Bogaerts (.273, 10, 62), CF Jackie Bradley Jr. (.245, 17, 63), C Christian Vazquez (.290, 5, 32) or Sandy Leon (.225, 7, 39), 2B Eduardo Nunez (.313, 12, 58, 24 SBs with Giants and Red Sox) or Dustin Pedroia (.293, 7, 62, .369 OBP in 105 games, expected to be out until late May following knee surgery).Rotation: LH Chris Sale (17-8, 2.90 ERA, MLB-best 308 Ks, MLB-high 214... [More]

The Los Angeles Dodgers might've caught a break with Justin Turner's broken wrist.The All-Star third baseman is expected to heal without surgery, manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday. No definitive word yet on how long Turner will be out.Turner was injured Monday night when he was hit by a pitch from Oakland's Kendall Graveman. The NL champion Dodgers open the regular season a week from Thursday."It's just essentially time," Roberts said. "That's the initial thought. That could change, but that's what I've heard."Turner had cast over his wrist when he arrived at camp in the morning. He was scheduled to see a hand specialist.Turner hit .322 with 21 homers and 71 RBIs last year. He had 14 RBIs in the postseason, including seven against the Chicago Cubs in the NL Championship Series, when he and teammate Chris Taylor shared the MVP award.The Dodgers appear ready to move Logan Forsythe from second base to third in Turner's absence and have Enrique Hernandez and Chase Utley share time at second.ELSEWHERE... [More]

The Los Angeles Dodgers might've caught a break with Justin Turner's broken wrist.The All-Star third baseman is expected to heal without surgery, manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday. No definitive word yet on how long Turner will be out.Turner was injured Monday night when he was hit by a pitch from Oakland's Kendall Graveman. The NL champion Dodgers open the regular season a week from Thursday."It's just essentially time," Roberts said. "That's the initial thought. That could change, but that's what I've heard."Turner had cast over his wrist when he arrived at camp in the morning. He was scheduled to see a hand specialist.Turner hit .322 with 21 homers and 71 RBIs last year. He had 14 RBIs in the postseason, including seven against the Chicago Cubs in the NL Championship Series, when he and teammate Chris Taylor shared the MVP award.The Dodgers appear ready to move Logan Forsythe from second base to third in Turner's absence and have Enrique Hernandez and Chase Utley share time at second.ELSEWHERE... [More]

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — David Price made his delayed spring-training debut for Boston, allowing one hit over four scoreless innings in a 7-5 win over Toronto on Thursday.Price struck out five and walked one. An elbow injury limited to a career-low 11 starts last season."Felt good," Price said. "I had really good fastball command early. I made good pitches when I needed to. I stayed away from the big part of the plate with the exception of a couple of fastballs. I thought it was a good day."Price was 6-3 with a 3.38 ERA last year. The 32-year-old left-hander is entering the third season of a $217 million, seven-year contract."This is March 15 and I've never had a four-pitch mix this early in spring training," he said. "I've never been this far along even though I've only thrown in one game. I'm excited about it."Andrew Benintendi drove in two runs with a pair of doubles for the Red Sox, while Christian Vazquez hit his first home run — a two-run drive. Teoscar Hernandez had two hits and two... [More]

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — David Price made his delayed spring-training debut for Boston, allowing one hit over four scoreless innings in a 7-5 win over Toronto on Thursday.Price struck out five and walked one. An elbow injury limited to a career-low 11 starts last season."Felt good," Price said. "I had really good fastball command early. I made good pitches when I needed to. I stayed away from the big part of the plate with the exception of a couple of fastballs. I thought it was a good day.Price was 6-3 with a 3.38 ERA last year. The 32-year-old left-hander is entering the third season of a $217 million, seven-year contract."This is March 15 and I've never had a four-pitch mix this early in spring training," he said. "I've never been this far along even though I've only thrown in one game. I'm excited about it."Andrew Benintendi drove in two runs with a pair of doubles for the Red Sox, while Christian Vazquez hit his first home run — a two-run drive. Teoscar Hernandez had two hits and two... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Bartolo Colon could be pitching his way into the Texas Rangers' rotation at age 44 as he continues to shut down hitters half his age in spring training.The Rangers also ended their try to move Matt Bush from the bullpen into the rotation."I'm very happy and I get to go back to doing what I know how to do," Bush said Monday. "There are plenty of good starters and this is a role they need me to go back to. They know what they are doing and I feel like it is the right decision."The Rangers' rotation has a lot of moving parts.Cole Hamels, Matt Moore and Doug Fister appear to be locks for the top three spots. Mike Minor remains a candidate, but could be switched to closer, a role he was effective in at the end of last season with Kansas City.Left-hander Martin Perez threw 69 pitches in a minor league game Monday, allowing six runs, three earned, in four innings. He has been set back in spring training after breaking his right (non-pitching) elbow in December in an incident... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Early in spring training, many pitchers take the same approach to starts. The basic work-on-stuff, build-innings-and-conditioning, reach-pitch-limit kind of thing.For Matt Moore, it was a little different.After a poor year with the San Francisco Giants last season, the Texas lefty faced them Monday in his second outing. He allowed a run on one hit, a pair of walks and a wild pitch over 2 2/3 innings, striking out two. Moore left after giving up an RBI single to Austin Jackson."I was looking forward to it, absolutely," Moore said. "Not like I have anything out for them, it's just that those are the guys that I sat in the dugout with for the last year and a half, and got to know them pretty well. It was fun to just compete against them."The Giants traded Moore to the Rangers for prospects in the offseason after he spent part of 2016 and all of 2017 in the Bay Area. He's in his seventh season in the majors at only 28 years old, and is coming off a season of career lows.Those... [More]

Giancarlo Stanton got off to a sunny start at a new position for the New York Yankees.Making his first start in left field for his new team, the NL MVP lost two flyballs in the sun and both fell for hits Sunday in a 9-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.Stanton never played left field in his eight seasons with the Marlins, instead spending his time in right.Asked how someone should work on catching balls in the glare, the smiling slugger said: "Get sun vision gloves, see right through the sun."AROUND THE GRAPEFRUIT AND CACTUS LEAGUES:ORIOLES 10, RED SOX 8Adam Jones hit a pair of RBI doubles and a single and Manny Machado added a two-run double for Baltimore. Andrew Benintendi and Rafael Devers hit back-to-back homers for Boston off Gabriel Ynoa, who allowed six runs in two innings.The Orioles announced first baseman Chris Davis had an MRI on his sore right elbow and no structural damage was found. Manager Buck Showalter estimated Davis would be out another three to five days. Showalter also noted... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Adrian Beltre would bring in some big-time free agents if he was making those kinds of decisions for the Texas Rangers. The veteran third baseman just wants to win a World Series before the end of his career.While there have been no such marquee additions for the Rangers, the newest member of the 3,000-hit club said after arriving at spring training Monday that he's not unhappy and still believes the Rangers can compete for a postseason spot."Obviously we can be better, especially with the free agents out there that are still not signed," Beltre said. "There is no doubt that I would like to win and have the best chance to win. ... If it was my option, I would like to add some other people and make the roster even stronger."Going into his 21st big league season, when he will turn 39 just more than a week after opening day, Beltre's primary focus is to win a World Series . He has been there only once, in his first year with the Rangers in 2011, when they lost in seven... [More]

Adrian Beltre goes into his 21st major league season still seeking a World Series title. The offseason for the Texas Rangers likely would have gone much differently if the third baseman and 3,000-hit club member was their general manager."He probably would have made some different moves this winter. I think he would have addressed some different things," said Jon Daniels, the actual GM. "I respect that, but I don't feel any different from how I did at the end of (last season). We're going to go into spring training with a chance."Even in the AL West that is home to the World Series champion Houston Astros and now Shohei Ohtani, the pitcher-outfielder from Japan coveted by the Rangers before he signed instead with the Los Angeles Angels."I believe we're in a good place to allow guys, young guys, to continue to grow," fourth-year manager Jeff Banister said. "We brought in some players that we feel like really have an opportunity to help us."There will be no expensive reunion with Yu Darvish,... [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]

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Rangers general manager Jon Daniels anticipates adding depth to his rotation. It remains unlikely that pitcher will be a front-line starter."We're not going to close the door on the chance to add premium talent. You always explore it," Daniels said Tuesday. "But if I had to handicap it, I don't think it's highly likely at this point."Yu Darvish, traded by the Rangers to the NL champion Los Angeles Dodgers last July, is among several starting pitchers still available as free agents. Jake Arrieta, the 2015 NL Cy Young Award winner who went to nearby TCU, is also among that group.Daniels has consistently said the Rangers, who missed the playoffs last season after consecutive AL West titles, didn't plan to spend big this offseason."We're pretty realistic about where we are and what our goals are, both short- and long-term," Daniels said. "We've said from Day 1 we were not going to kind of go all-in from a standpoint of spending big dollars against this year."After a... [More]

RHP Doug Fister lasted just 1 1/3 innings in his start Sunday against the Astros in Game 3 of the ALDS. Fister was pulled after giving up three runs, marking the shortest postseason outing for a Red Sox starter since Bret Saberhagen (one inning) on Oct. 11, 1999. Fister allowed four hits, walked one and struck out one.

RHP Doug Fister was named the starter for Game 3 of the American League Division Series. Fister went 5-9 with a 4.88 ERA over 18 games (15 starts) with the Red Sox this season, but limited the Astros to three runs on five hits and one walk over 5 1/3 innings Sept. 29. He was 12-13 with a 4.64 ERA over 32 starts with the Astros last season.

RHP Doug Fister, perhaps pitching for his postseason spot on the roster, went 5 1/3 innings and allowed three runs in Friday night's loss to the Houston Astros, perhaps pitching himself back into the team's playoff picture. "Doug Fister did what we had oped he could do -- and that was to keep the game under control until the middle innings, set it up to where we would follow with the guys that came out of the bullpen," said manager John Farrell.

RHP Doug Fister tries to lock up the No. 3 spot in the Red Sox's postseason rotation in Friday's start against the Astros. Fister (5-8, 4.87 ERA) has fallen back to earth in his three starts since tossing four straight quality starts, allowing 14 runs over his last 11 1/3 innings (11.12 ERA). Fister is 1-0 with a 2.77 ERA in two career starts against his former team in Houston. Carlos Beltran is a smoking 5-for-11 (.455) with one home run and three RBIs lifetime versus Fister. Josh Reddick is 5-for-17 (.294) with one RBI and Jose Altuve is 3-for-4 with an RBI against him.

RHP Doug Fister came into Sunday's start with a 9.69 ERA in the first inning. He allowed a run in the first, but it was the fifth inning when Cincinnati scored two runs on three hits including a triple by Billy Hamilton. Fister allowed three earned on nine hits with no walks and nine strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. He owned a 9.69 ERA in this first inning this season, and allowed a run on two hits including Scooter Gennett's RBI double that put Cincinnati ahead 1-0 in the first. But, Gennett was retired in a rundown trying for a triple, helping Fister avoid further damage. Fister struck out seven through three innings, all but one was caught looking. He fanned all three batters he faced in the third. "I thought he was as crisp as he's been," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "Good command of the fastball, bringing that two-seamer back on the corner."

RHP Doug Fister had been doing well before his last start, where he allowed six runs in four innings versus Oakland. Those troubles continued Monday against the Orioles, when he walked five and allowed five runs on four hits in two innings plus three batters but still escaped with a no-decision.

RHP Doug Fister, who has gone from being an extra pitcher picked up on waivers into one who factors into the Red Sox's postseason plan, hit a bump in the road Wednesday. He allowed six runs in four innings in a loss to the A's. He came in 5-2 with a 2.79 ERA in seven starts in place of David Price, 3-1 with a 1.50 over his past four outings. He had allowed runs only in the first inning of those four but gave up four in the first inning Wednesday and two more in the third. Asked after the game about Fister's first-inning troubles, manager John Farrell said, "His routine is he warms up earlier than most guys and then there's a little bit of a gap of time between the end of his warmups and the first pitch."

RHP Doug Fister, who has gone from being an extra arm into likely being part of the Red Sox' postseason rotation, faces the Oakland A's in the second game of a three-game series at Fenway Park Wednesday night. He is 5-2 with a 2.79 ERA in seven starts with David Price again disabled, 3-1 with a 1.50 in his last four. All runs in those four games have come in each first inning and batters are 6-for-83 (.072) against him after that point in the game. He is 8-7 with a 2.88 ERA lifetime against Oakland and comes into this start one game under .500 -- 82-83 -- in his career.