ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit his second homer in two games at Angel Stadium in the fifth inning, and Zack Cozart had walk-off homer in the 13th inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 3-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday.One day after Ohtani hit an electrifying three-run homer in his first home plate appearance, the Japanese two-way rookie connected for a tying two-run homer off AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in his second game at the Big A.Neither team scored again after Ohtani's blast until Cozart, the Angels' new infielder, connected for his first career walk-off homer against Zach McAllister (0-1).Ohtani also singled leading off the 10th to go 2 for 5, giving him six hits this season and five in his only two home games. The Angels' rookie sensation will make his first home pitching start Sunday against Oakland, one week after beating the Athletics on the road in his big-league pitching debut.The Angels hadn't had a walk-off homer in extra innings since Aug. 9,... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit his second homer in two games at Angel Stadium in the fifth inning, and Zack Cozart had walk-off homer in the 13th inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 3-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday.One day after Ohtani hit an electrifying three-run homer in his first home plate appearance, the Japanese two-way rookie connected for a tying two-run homer off AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in his second game at the Big A.Neither team scored again after Ohtani's blast until Cozart, the Angels' new infielder, connected for his first career walk-off homer against Zach McAllister (0-1).Ohtani also singled leading off the 10th to go 2 for 5, giving him six hits this season and five in his only two home games. The Angels' rookie sensation will make his first home pitching start Sunday against Oakland, one week after beating the Athletics on the road in his big-league pitching debut.The Angels hadn't had a walk-off homer in extra innings since Aug. 9,... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit his second homer in two games at Angel Stadium in the fifth inning, and Zack Cozart had walk-off homer in the 13th inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 3-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday.One day after Ohtani hit an electrifying three-run homer in his first home plate appearance, the Japanese two-way rookie connected for a tying two-run homer off AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in his second game at the Big A.Neither team scored again after Ohtani's blast until Cozart, the Angels' new infielder, connected for his first career walk-off homer against Zach McAllister (0-1).Ohtani also singled leading off the 10th to go 2 for 5, giving him six hits this season and five in his only two home games. The Angels' rookie sensation will make his first home pitching start Sunday against Oakland, one week after beating the Athletics on the road in his big-league pitching debut.The Angels hadn't had a walk-off homer in extra innings since Aug. 9,... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit his second homer in two games at Angel Stadium in the fifth inning, and Zack Cozart had walk-off homer in the 13th inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 3-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday.One day after Ohtani hit an electrifying three-run homer in his first home plate appearance, the Japanese two-way rookie connected for a tying two-run homer off AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in his second game at the Big A.Neither team scored again after Ohtani's blast until Cozart, the Angels' new infielder, connected for his first career walk-off homer against Zach McAllister (0-1).Ohtani also singled leading off the 10th to go 2 for 5, giving him six hits this season and five in his only two home games. The Angels' rookie sensation will make his first home pitching start Sunday against Oakland, one week after beating the Athletics on the road in his big-league pitching debut.The Angels hadn't had a walk-off homer in extra innings since Aug. 9,... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Patrick Corbin shut out the Los Angeles Dodgers on one hit over 7 1/3 innings, striking out a career-high 12 in the Arizona Diamondbacks' 3-0 victory Wednesday.The Diamondbacks swept the three-game series and won their ninth straight regular-season game against the Dodgers, going back to a pair of three-game series sweeps last season.Corbin (2-0) retired 14 batters in a row to start the game, eight on strikeouts. The Dodgers struggled to make solid contact, and it took Matt Kemp's bloop double with two outs in the fifth to break up Corbin's no-hit bid. Kemp had the Dodgers' only hit of the game.Corbin was taken out after walking Kemp with one out in the eighth inning.Brad Boxberger earned his second save with a scoreless ninth. The Dodgers had only four base runners, two in the ninth on Boxberger walks. The Diamondbacks scored a run in each of the first three innings.YANKEES 7, RAYS 2NEW YORK (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton turned boos to cheers with his first Yankee Stadium home... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani won his major league pitching debut, throwing three-hit ball over six innings and leading the Los Angeles Angels past the Oakland Athletics 7-4 on Sunday.The two-way star from Japan took the mound three days after he was the designated hitter in the opener. Reaching the upper-90s (mph) with his fastball and showing a nifty splitter, Ohtani struck out six and retired 14 of his final 15 batters.Ohtani didn't hit while pitching. Albert Pujols was the DH and went 0 for 5.Ohtani (1-0) pounded his glove following a 1-2-3 shutdown fifth. He walked one, and the only damage against him came on Matt Chapman's three-run homer in the second.Mike Trout hit a tying double in the fifth and Justin Upton followed with a go-ahead sacrifice fly. Keynan Middleton earned his first save.Daniel Gossett (0-1) allowed four runs in four innings for Oakland.ASTROS 8, RANGERS 2ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Gerrit Cole struck out 11 over seven innings in his Houston debut, and the defending... [More]

Chris Sale and his fellow aces are having all sorts of trouble with these tuneup starts.Sale was knocked off the mound by a line drive Saturday and exited with a bruised left hip. He said the injury wasn't serious and wouldn't jeopardize his opening day start Thursday for the AL East champion Boston Red Sox at Tampa Bay."I don't see anything lingering from this," Sale said. "Looked a lot worse than it really is."Sale was hit by a liner off the bat of Houston's J.D. Davis in the first inning. The left-hander crumpled to the ground, then walked off the field under his own power.On Friday, San Francisco ace Madison Bumgarner sustained a broken pinkie on his pitching hand when he was struck by a line drive. He is expected to miss at least two months.The same day, Tampa Bay star Chris Archer — set to pitch against Sale — was hit by a grounder in the forearm of his pitching arm and had to leave a minor league game.Hours after Sale was hurt, Kansas City lefty Danny Duffy exited in the third inning... [More]

Chris Sale and his fellow aces are having all sorts of trouble with these tuneup starts.Sale was knocked off the mound by a line drive Saturday and exited with a bruised left hip. He said the injury wasn't serious and wouldn't jeopardize his opening day start for the AL East champions Thursday at Tampa Bay."I don't see anything lingering from this," Sale said. "Looked a lot worse than it really is."Sale was hit by a liner off the bat of Houston's J.D. Davis in the first inning. He crumpled to the ground, then walked off the field under his own power.On Friday, San Francisco ace Madison Bumgarner sustained a broken finger on his pitching hand when he was struck by a line drive. He will miss at least a month.The same day, Tampa Bay star Chris Archer — set to pitch against Sale — was hit by a grounder in the forearm of his pitching arm and had to leave a minor league game.Hours after Sale was hurt, Kansas City lefty Danny Duffy exited in the third inning because of shoulder tightness. He said... [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]

KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) — Scott Kazmir hopes that if his second major league comeback is slowed by an injury, it would be an arm ailment."It's not good to go through pains in other parts of your body," Kazmir said Thursday after his third spring training start for the Atlanta Braves. "You tend to compensate and you get into bad habits."The 34-year-old Atlanta left-hander reached 89 mph Thursday, when he allowed two runs and four hits in three innings of a 6-4 loss to Houston."It's crazy to even say it, but from experience it seems like you'd almost want it to be your arm that goes down," Kazmir said. "You're probably going to shut it down when there's something wrong with your arm, as opposed to some little thing you've got going on somewhere else. You figure 'I'll compensate, I'll figure something out.' But it doesn't always work out that way."Kazmir is in the final season of a $48 million, three-year contract he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His left hip started to bother him in September... [More]

HOUSTON (AP) — The celebration is over for the Houston Astros after winning their first World Series last season.They don't want to think or talk about 2017. And they certainly aren't dwelling on their big win.The Astros believe the only way to build on their success is by winning again in 2018."These guys are not satisfied with what happened and they want to ... take a great team and make it legendary," general manager Jeff Luhnow said. "We're a great team, with great accomplishments. We're not legendary yet. And I think they all desire to be legendary."That sentiment was on display on Wednesday when the team's marketing department unveiled the theme for the season of: "Never Settle," words that will adorn their website, Twitter account and ballpark."The plan that Jim Crane had in 2011 when he hired me and bought this team was to get the Astros relevant as soon as possible and then win multiple championships," Luhnow said of the Astros' owner. "So we're on our way to our goal. We certainly... [More]

LF Derek Fisher finished 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles, two runs scored and an RBI. He snapped an 0-for-9 skid that covered seven games. His RBI double in the second inning marked his first extra-base hit since Aug. 9 at the Chicago White Sox.

PHOENIX -- Chris Iannetta and A.J. Pollock homered, and Zack Greinke recorded his National League-leading 16th victory as the Arizona Diamondbacks completed a three-game sweep with an 8-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday.Paul Goldschmidt doubled in two runs off Kenta Maeda in the first inning, Iannetta hit a two-run homer in a three-run second inning, and Pollock hit a two-run homer in the third as Arizona won its seventh straight game, tying a season high.The Diamondbacks had seven homers and scored 21 runs in the series, the first time Los Angeles has been swept this season. The Dodgers have lost a season-high five straight.Greinke (16-6) gave up four hits and one run in six innings while improving to 13-1 at home. He struck out six and walked two.Blue Jays 11, Orioles 8BALTIMORE -- Kendrys Morales hit three home runs and set a career high with seven RBIs as Toronto snapped Baltimore's seven-game winning streak.Morales' third homer in the eighth tied his career high and... [More]

CF Derek Fisher was called up from Triple-A Fresno on Tuesday for the second time in his rookie season and placed directly into the starting lineup against Philadelphia. He went 1-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk. He's batting .286 in his first 21 MLB at-bats. In 84 games with Fresno, Fisher is hitting .318/.384/.583 with 21 home runs and 66 RBIs in 343 ABs, with 74 strikeouts and 35 walks. "It's a great place, an awesome place, and it's fun to get a win here tonight," the rookie center fielder from Lebanon, Pa., said. "It was fun, it was a lot of people here, high school coaches and teammates and guys that I'd went to school with."

OF Derek Fisher hit a solo home run in the ninth inning of a 4-1 victory against Oakland on Monday night. After the game, the rookie was optioned to Triple-A Fresno to make room on the roster for RF Josh Reddick, who will be activated from the 7-day concussion disabled list on Tuesday. "It's a bittersweet move," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "We're happy to get Reddick back, and Fisher had done exactly what we'd asked him to do. When we called him up we knew it might be short-lived. We asked him to contribute. I played him in every game. We'll see him again soon." In his first five major-league games, Fisher hit .278 with two home runs and three RBIs.

LF Derek Fisher had his contract selected from Triple-A Fresno. He homered in his big league debut and recorded two hits in the sixth inning, becoming the first player to record his first two career hits in the same inning since Adam Laroche did so for the Braves on April 7, 2004 against the Mets. Fisher also was the second player in club history with multiple hits and RBIs in his debut, joining John Paciorek, who went 3-for-3 with three RBIs on Sept. 29, 1963 against the Mets.

Fisher is slashing .254/.328/.492 with 10 home runs and 12 steals in 41 games with High-A Lancaster.

Fisher, 21, has taken full advantage of the favorable hitting conditions at Lancaster, solidifying himself as yet another promising hitting prospect in the Astros' organization. The 37th overall pick in 2014, Fisher combines impressive power and speed tools with a good approach at the plate, posting a 23.4 percent K-rate and 9.5 percent walk rate in 201 plate appearances in the California League.

Fisher set a California League record with 12 RBI in his debut with High-A Lancaster on Saturday.

Fisher announced his arrival to Lancaster with a bang, as the 22-year-old launched three homers -- including two grand slams -- to break a record that had stood for 61 years. The 37th overall pick in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft, Fisher isn't the same caliber of a prospect as Carlos Correa, but with the shortstop expected to graduate to the big leagues at some point this season, it's conceivable that Fisher could enter 2016 as the organization's top farmhand.

Fisher, 21, is slashing .308/.389/.524 with six home runs, 23 RBI and eight stolen bases through 37 games for Low-A Quad Cities.

The toolsy Fisher had an injury-shortened final season at Virginia, which knocked down his draft value, though he was still picked with the No. 37 overall selection in the 2014 draft. He has excelled since entering the minors, though, including showing standout speed along with some pop from the left side. He could rise quickly through the ranks.