CHICAGO (AP) — Fiercely energetic Tim Anderson spiked his bat to celebrate a home run and Kansas City's Brad Keller responded by drilling him with a fastball, setting off a benches-clearing fracas in the Royals' 4-3, 10-inning victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday.Anderson tossed his bat toward the White Sox dugout following his two-run drive in the fourth inning. Keller hit him in the buttocks with his first pitch leading off the sixth.Anderson, the AL's leading hitter, was restrained by Royals catcher Martin Maldonado but kept jawing with Keller on the way to first base. The dugouts and bullpens emptied, though no punches appeared to be thrown. White Sox manager Rick Renteria and Royals bench coach Dale Sveum shoved each other, and the usually mild-mannered Renteria was particularly animated.There were four ejections — Anderson, Keller, Renteria and Sveum.Hunter Dozier led off the 10th with a tiebreaking homer against Nate Jones (0-1). His drive to left on a 2-0 fastball made... [More]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Seattle became the first major league team to homer in each of its first 15 games when Dee Gordon connected in the sixth inning, then beat the Kansas City Royals 7-6 Thursday behind Daniel Vogelbach's home run in the 10th inning.Seattle improved the best record in the major leagues to 13-2, completing a four-game sweep and extending its winning streak to six. The Mariners became just the third team since 1987 to open with at least 13 wins in the first 15 games after Milwaukee (14-1 in 1987) and Boston (13-2 last year).Kansas City has lost 10 straight games, has the poorest record in the big leagues at 2-10 and is off to its worst 12-game start since 2006. The Royals failed to preserve leads of 4-0 in the sixth and 6-4 with two outs in the ninth.Kansas City's Whit Merrifield had his hitting streak end at 31 games. Merrifield went 0 for 6. He had not gone hitless since Sept. 9.Royals center fielder Billy Hamilton was carted off with a knee injury after failing to grab... [More]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Seattle became the first major league team to homer in each of its first 15 games when Dee Gordon connected in the sixth inning, then beat the Kansas City Royals 7-6 Thursday behind Daniel Vogelbach's home run in the 10th inning.Seattle improved the best record in the major leagues to 13-2, completing a four-game sweep and extending its winning streak to six. The Mariners became just the third team since 1987 to open with at least 13 wins in the first 15 games after Milwaukee (14-1 in 1987) and Boston (13-2 last year).Kansas City has lost 10 straight games, has the poorest record in the big leagues at 2-10 and is off to its worst 12-game start since 2006. The Royals failed to preserve leads of 4-0 in the sixth and 6-4 with two outs in the ninth.Kansas City's Whit Merrifield had his hitting streak end at 31 games. Merrifield went 0 for 6. He had not gone hitless since Sept. 9.Royals center fielder Billy Hamilton was carted off with a knee injury after failing to grab... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:SHAKY STARTSNathan Eovaldi tries to snap Boston out of its early-season funk. The Red Sox are 3-9 in defense of their World Series championship, and the rotation has an 8.78 ERA. Eovaldi (0-0, 8.10) has struggled during starts against Seattle and Oakland. He'll oppose the Blue Jays, who averaged 2.66 runs over their first 11 games before beating Chris Sale and the Red Sox 7-5 at the Fenway Park home opener Tuesday.TIEBREAKER GAMEYadier Molina and the Cardinals go for a four-game sweep of the Dodgers in St. Louis. The longtime National League rivals have played each other 2,074 times since 1892 and the series is even at 1,029-1,029 with 16 ties. St. Louis has won four in a row overall and outscored its opponents 19-6 during the winning streak. Los Angeles has dropped three straight after a five-game winning streak. Dodgers right-hander Walker Buehler (1-0, 6.75 ERA) faces Michael Wacha (0-0, 1.54) in the series finale. Buehler has struck... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Thursday:SHAKY STARTSNathan Eovaldi tries to snap Boston out of its early-season funk. The Red Sox are 3-9 in defense of their World Series championship, and the rotation has an 8.78 ERA. Eovaldi (0-0, 8.10) has struggled during starts against Seattle and Oakland. He'll oppose the Blue Jays, who averaged 2.66 runs over their first 11 games before beating Chris Sale and the Red Sox 7-5 at the Fenway Park home opener Tuesday.TIEBREAKER GAMEYadier Molina and the Cardinals go for a four-game sweep of the Dodgers in St. Louis. The longtime National League rivals have played each other 2,074 times since 1892 and the series is even at 1,029-1,029 with 16 ties. St. Louis has won four in a row and outscored its opponents 19-6 during the winning streak. Los Angeles has dropped three straight after a five-game winning streak. Dodgers right-hander Walker Buehler (1-0, 6.75 ERA) faces Michael Wacha (0-0, 1.54) in the series finale. Buehler has struck out... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Carson Kelly drilled a single into the left field corner, scoring Nick Ahmed with two outs in the ninth inning to lift the Arizona Diamondbacks over the struggling Boston Red Sox 5-4 Saturday night.Boston has dropped three straight and fell to 2-8 overall, a lousy start to their World Series championship defense.Colten Brewer (0-1) allowed consecutive singles to Eduardo Escobar, Ahmed and Kelly in the ninth. Right fielder Mookie Betts threw out Escobar at home on Ahmed's hit, but Kelly's rip to left allowed Ahmed to score easily.Kelly had two hits and three RBIs. The walkoff knock was the first of his career.Greg Holland (1-0) pitched a scoreless top of the ninth.PADRES 6, CARDINALS 4ST. LOUIS (AP) — Austin Hedges and Manny Machado each hit a two-run homer off Andrew Miller in the eighth inning, helping San Diego beat St. Louis for its third consecutive win.Fernando Tatis Jr. opened the eighth with a walk and Hedges followed with a go-ahead drive over the wall on in left.... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Austin Hedges and Manny Machado each hit a two-run homer off Andrew Miller in the eighth inning, helping the San Diego Padres beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-4 on Saturday for their third consecutive win.Fernando Tatis Jr. opened the eighth with a walk and Hedges followed with a go-ahead drive over the wall on in left. With two out and Ian Kinsler on first via another walk, Machado made it 6-3 with his second homer of the season.It was the first time that Miller (0-1) allowed multiple homers in a game since Sept. 22, 2015 for the New York Yankees at Toronto.Matt Wisler (1-0) pitched two scoreless innings for the win in his first outing with the Padres. Kirby Yates worked the ninth for his fifth save in five chances.ANGELS 5, RANGERS 1ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Mike Trout hit a grand slam for his fourth homer in three days, and Los Angeles beat Texas for its first back-to-back victories of the season.Trout's 458-foot blast in the fourth inning off Drew Smyly (0-1) cleared the... [More]

Jose Ramirez is expected to be in the Cleveland Indians' opening day lineup Thursday, four days after fouling a pitch off the area below his left knee.Manager Terry Francona said Tuesday that Ramirez should be ready to go for the opener at Minnesota. The All-Star third baseman worked out Monday and Tuesday in Arizona, testing his bruised left knee while Cleveland finished its exhibition schedule with games against the Rangers in Texas. Ramirez will join the team for a workout Wednesday in Minnesota.Ramirez left the field on a cart Sunday in an alarming scene for the Indians, who will already be without star shortstop Francisco Lindor and second baseman Jason Kipnis. Both players are working back from right calf strains.Ramirez had 39 home runs and 105 RBIs last season, finishing third in AL MVP voting for the second straight year.Cleveland lost to Texas 5-4 on Tuesday in its final spring training game. Mike Clevinger allowed four runs (two earned) in three innings. He walked two, struck... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — For the third time in five years, Nick Hundley is starting over. This time, the 35-year-old is part of a catching platoon in Oakland where he'll be splitting time with Josh Phegley.It's not unlike other situations Hundley has been through in his career. He spent the past two seasons behind Buster Posey in San Francisco, was a backup in Colorado and Baltimore prior to that, and split time as a starter over seven years in San Diego.With so much activity on his resume, Hundley has become accustomed to learning quickly, something that's come in handy as he tries to find a comfort zone with the Athletics."For a guy like him who's been different places and a veteran guy, it's easier for him to figure it out on the fly," manager Bob Melvin said prior to Tuesday's exhibition game in San Francisco. "Even though it's been a shortened spring, a guy like him figures it out pretty quickly. I'm not too worried about him learning our staff. He's caught everybody and understands the... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin took another step toward finalizing his pitching rotation Monday, announcing right-hander Frankie Montas will be the team's fourth starter.The 26-year-old Montas has had varied success during parts of two seasons with the A's but was dominant this spring after adding a splitter to complement a 97 mph fastball and slider. The new pitch produced immediate results as Montas went 2-0 with a 0.56 ERA in five games with 16 strikeouts and five walks over 16 innings.He joins an A's rotation that includes Mike Fiers, Marco Estrada and Brett Anderson."Deservedly so," Melvin said. "He's had a terrific spring, pitched well whether he was starting a game, whether he was piggy-backing with somebody, and continued pitching the same the entire spring — with some pressure on him knowing that he had to win a job. Proud of him. He deserves to be in the rotation."Melvin didn't use a projected starter in Oakland's 5-4 exhibition win over San Francisco,... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin took another step toward finalizing his pitching rotation Monday, announcing right-hander Frankie Montas will be the team's fourth starter.The 26-year-old Montas has had varied success during parts of two seasons with the A's but was dominant this spring after adding a splitter to complement a 97 mph fastball and slider. The new pitch produced immediate results as Montas went 2-0 with a 0.56 ERA in five games with 16 strikeouts and five walks over 16 innings.He joins an A's rotation that includes Mike Fiers, Marco Estrada and Brett Anderson."Deservedly so," Melvin said before a Bay Area exhibition game against the San Francisco Giants. "He's had a terrific spring, pitched well whether he was starting a game, whether he was piggy-backing with somebody, and continued pitching the same the entire spring — with some pressure on him knowing that he had to win a job. Proud of him. He deserves to be in the rotation."Montas' emergence this... [More]

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Bryce Harper has been playing catch-up since his free agency carried over into spring training.With a week left until opening day, the Philadelphia Phillies' big-money addition looks ready to pay off.Harper hit his first two Grapefruit League homers, combining with fellow new additions Andrew McCutchen and J.T. Realmuto to help Philadelphia pound the Toronto Blue Jays 13-6 Thursday.Harper smashed a two-run homer to right off Sam Gaviglio in the fourth inning and had a solo shot against lefty Thomas Pannone in the sixth. McCutchen also took Gaviglio deep in the second, and Realmuto had a three-run shot in the fourth. That trio has been sharp this spring, with Harper posting a 1.192 OPS, Realmuto at 1.285 and McCutchen .830.Gift Ngoepe and Andrew Knapp also went deep, and Vince Velasquez struck out nine but allowed three runs and two homers in 3 1/3 innings. Velasquez has a 12.79 ERA this spring.Lourdes Gurriel Jr. homered to continue a hot spring with Toronto, and... [More]

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Bryce Harper has been playing catch-up since his free agency carried over into spring training.With a week left until opening day, the Philadelphia Phillies' big-money addition looks ready to pay off.Harper hit his first two Grapefruit League homers, combining with fellow new additions Andrew McCutchen and J.T. Realmuto to help Philadelphia pound the Toronto Blue Jays 13-6 Thursday.Harper smashed a two-run homer to right off Sam Gaviglio in the fourth inning and had a solo shot against lefty Thomas Pannone in the sixth. McCutchen also took Gaviglio deep in the second, and Realmuto had a three-run shot in the fourth. That trio has been sharp this spring, with Harper posting a 1.192 OPS, Realmuto at 1.285 and McCutchen .830.Gift Ngoepe and Andrew Knapp also went deep, and Vince Velasquez struck out nine but allowed three runs and two homers in 3 1/3 innings. Velasquez has a 12.79 ERA this spring.Lourdes Gurriel Jr. homered to continue a hot spring with Toronto, and... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco Giants President and CEO Larry Baer was granted a leave of absence from the team on Monday following the release last week of a video showing him in a physical altercation with his wife.The Giants board of directors released a statement that said Baer had made a request that was accepted to take personal time away from the team in response to the video released by TMZ showing the altercation in a San Francisco park between Baer and his wife, Pam."Mr. Baer has acknowledged that his behavior was unacceptable, apologized to the organization and is committed to taking steps to make sure that this never happens again," the statement said.The Giants executive team, including president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, will manage the day-to-day operations. The other members of that team are executive vice president of business operations Mario Alioto, executive vice president and general counsel Jack Bair, executive vice president of administration Alfonso... [More]

Clayton Kershaw might not be on the mound when the two-time NL champion Los Angeles Dodgers start the season.The lefty ace is working his way back from shoulder soreness that caused him to shut down his spring training.Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said "that's fair" when asked Monday whether Kershaw might miss the opener March 28 against Arizona at Dodger Stadium."There's just way too much importance put on the opening-day roster. The No. 1 thing is for him to be ready and to feel confident physically and mentally," Roberts said, "and when that is, it is."Kershaw has made a franchise-record eight consecutive opening day starts, and was tabbed to do so again when the Dodgers arrived in Arizona.But a couple days later, the three-time Cy Young Award winner had some shoulder soreness that caused him to halt his throwing program. He's taking anti-inflammatory medication.Kershaw began throwing against last week, slowly building up the amount of work and the distance of his throws. He threw on... [More]

Byron Buxton is eager to lose all reminders of a lost season.The 25-year-old Minnesota center fielder began spring training with five straight hits, including two home runs and 10 RBIs, before going hitless in three tries Wednesday for the Twins in a rain-shortened 4-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies."We haven't played very many games out here and he's already shown everyone who's watching he can do a lot of things," first-year Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. "He is as impactful as any player in the game."Buxton hit just .156 with four RBIs over 28 games last year in an injury-plagued season. He dealt with migraines, a broken toe, hand and wrist issues.Buxton batted .300 with 11 home runs, 35 RBIs and 13 stolen bases in 57 games after the All-Star break in 2017, and won a Gold Glove."He can do things on both sides of the ball and on the bases," Baldelli said.FROM AROUND THE GRAPEFRUIT AND CACTUS LEAGUESORIOLES 7, RED SOX (SS) 6Chance Sisco hit two home runs, singled and drove in five... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Jeff Samardzija kept a locker at Oracle Park in San Francisco this offseason and worked out at the ballpark three days a week. The Giants pitcher also spent two days per week rehabbing at a clinic in San Mateo, California.The work paid off Wednesday in his first spring start, the next phase of his comeback from a disappointing 2018 season.Making his first in-game appearance since July 14, Samardzija threw 32 pitches over two scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out one against the Royals at Scottsdale Stadium."I think everybody saw last year that I was hurt," said Samardzija, who was limited to 10 starts in 2018 because of soreness in his right shoulder. "For a lot of the year, I thought I could muscle through it. That's usually how I approach injuries, is ignore and move on. That had worked for me in the past, but that had been other parts of the body — obliques and hamstrings and quads."What I learned is you can pitch with all those feeling 50 percent,... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Jeff Samardzija kept a locker at Oracle Park in San Francisco this offseason and worked out at the ballpark three days a week. The Giants pitcher also spent two days per week rehabbing at a clinic in San Mateo, Calif.The work paid off Wednesday in his first spring start, the next phase of his comeback from a disappointing 2018 season.Making his first in-game appearance since July 14, Samardzija threw 32 pitches over two scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out one against the Royals at Scottsdale Stadium."I think everybody saw last year that I was hurt," said Samardzija, who was limited to 10 starts in 2018 because of soreness in his right shoulder. "For a lot of the year, I thought I could muscle through it. That's usually how I approach injuries, is ignore and move on. That had worked for me in the past, but that had been other parts of the body — obliques and hamstrings and quads."What I learned is you can pitch with all those feeling 50 percent,... [More]

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — For nearly three years, Johnny Cueto pitched with a stabbing pain in his right elbow. He won 18 games for San Francisco in 2016 and started the All-Star game that year dealing with the discomfort.How he did so, Cueto isn't sure. And the animated right-hander can now envision how great it will be once he's back on the mound and pain-free following Tommy John reconstructive surgery."It was a lot for me to deal with. It was almost three years with pain in the elbow, and strong pain," said Cueto, who turns 33 on Friday. "It's not easy. Last year I started well, but it's a mental pain, it's a pain that felt like someone stuck a knife in my elbow and stabbed it over and over again. It was unbearable and I don't know how I was able to pitch and block the pain."Cueto arrived in Arizona a couple of days behind the Giants pitchers and catchers because of personal reasons and had his physical Thursday. He is scheduled to throw next week for the first time since his August... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Drew Pomeranz is eager to return to his top form from two years ago and forget an injury-shortened year in 2018.The left-hander agreed Wednesday to a $1.5 million, one-year contract with the San Francisco Giants to provide depth in their rotation, and the deal includes $3.5 million in possible roster and performance bonuses.Pomeranz is very familiar with the NL West, having pitched for Colorado and San Diego, and also knows the Bay Area. He spent the 2014-15 seasons with Oakland."The big thing for me was opportunity," Pomeranz said. "My big thing is getting back on track to doing what I can do and just being myself again because it's very frustrating when you have to fight through a year where you know this isn't me, how do I fix this, what I can I do to make this never happen again? In that regard, this just felt like a great fit for me."Pomeranz pitched the past three years with Boston. He won a career-high 17 games for the Red Sox in 2017. But he went 2-6 with a... [More]