SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers found the left-handed power hitter they sought, acquiring third baseman Mike Moustakas on Friday from the Kansas City Royals to complete a second significant trade in as many days as the club makes a push for its first playoff appearance since 2011."We were looking for another big bat to add to the lineup and we got it," manager Craig Counsell said Friday night. "We feel like we can put together a really tough lineup on a daily basis now."The Brewers sent outfielder Brett Phillips and pitcher Jorge Lopez late Friday night to the Royals, who are in last place in the AL Central.Milwaukee announced the trade after beating the San Francisco Giants 3-1. Reliever Joakim Soria, who was acquired Thursday from the Chicago White Sox, made his Brewers debut by pitching a scoreless seventh inning."Two left-handed bats in the lineup with pop, I'll take it," Chase Anderson, Friday's winning pitcher, said in reference to Moustakas and Eric Thames.Kansas City... [More]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired third baseman Mike Moustakas from the Kansas City Royals, making their second deal in as many days as the club makes a push for its first playoff appearance since 2011.The Brewers sent outfielder Brett Phillips and pitcher Jorge Lopez late Friday night to the Royals, who are in last place in the AL Central.Milwaukee announced the trade late Friday night, when they beat San Francisco Giants on the road 3-1. Reliever Joakim Soria, who was acquired Thursday from the Chicago White Sox, made his Brewers debut by pitching a scoreless seventh inning.The left-handed hitting Moustakas was hitting .249 with 20 homers and 62 RBIs for the Royals. His arrival could mean that the Brewers will shift their current third baseman, Travis Shaw, to second base.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

MILWAUKEE (AP) — One by one, the Milwaukee Brewers filed into an auditorium at Miller Park as reliever Josh Hader offered his latest apology for years-old tweets that surfaced during the All-Star Game.Those racist, homophobic social-media messages were thoughtless mistakes he made as a teenager, Hader said. He sought to reassure fellow Brewers that the vile words didn't represent the man he has become, one who has learned — in part because of baseball — to reject the language of bigotry.His teammates had his back on Friday.Fellow All-Stars Jesus Aguilar of Venezuela and Lorenzo Cain, who is African-American, were among those who stood directly behind Hader during a news conference about 90 minutes before the Brewers returned from the break by hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers."It's amazing. It tells me that they have my back and that we are a true family," Hader said about the show of solidarity.Hader spoke to teammates earlier Friday in the clubhouse. Outfielder Brett Phillips said the reliever... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — One by one, the Milwaukee Brewers filed into an auditorium at Miller Park as reliever Josh Hader offered his latest apology for years-old tweets that surfaced during the All-Star Game.Those racist, homophobic social-media messages were thoughtless mistakes he made as a teenager, Hader said. He sought to reassure fellow Brewers that the vile words didn't represent the man he has become, one who has learned — in part because of baseball — to reject the language of bigotry.His teammates had his back on Friday.Fellow All-Stars Jesus Aguilar of Venezuela and Lorenzo Cain, who is African-American, were among those who stood directly behind Hader during a news conference about 90 minutes before the Brewers returned from the break by hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers."It's amazing. It tells me that they have my back and that we are a true family," Hader said about the show of solidarity.Hader spoke to teammates earlier Friday in the clubhouse. Outfielder Brett Phillips said the reliever... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers reliever Josh Hader apologized to his team after years-old racist and homophobic tweets surfaced during the All-Star Game.Hader spoke with teammates before a game Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the first action for the Brewers since the All-Star break."I just want them to know that I'm sorry for what I did back in the day and the mistakes that I made," Hader said, "and that they are a family to me and that they (the tweets) aren't me and what I meant."Outfielder Brett Phillips said Hader offered a sincere apology. Manager Craig Counsell described Hader as emotional and remorseful.Hader expressed regrets again during a news conference about 90 minutes before the game. Teammates filed into the Miller Park media auditorium as Hader spoke, with fellow All-Stars Jesus Aguilar and Lorenzo Cain among those who stood directly behind Hader."It's amazing. It tells me that they have my back and that we are a true family," Hader said about the show of solidarity.The... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers reliever Josh Hader has apologized to his team after years-old racist and homophobic tweets surfaced during the All-Star Game.Hader spoke with teammates before a home game Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was first game for the Brewers since the All-Star break.Outfielder Brett Phillips says Hader offered a sincere apology. Manager Craig Counsell described Hader emotional and very remorseful.The 24-year-old Hader also apologized and took responsibility for the tweets after the All-Star Game, saying they did not reflect his values or the person he is now.The tweets included uses of a slur used to disparage African-Americans and one that simply said "KKK."Hader also met Friday with Billy Bean, Major League Baseball's vice president for social responsibility and inclusion. Bean says he is sympathetic to Hader, whom he described as being in a "tremendous amount of pain."Bean spoke with Hader for a couple of hours. He says Hader's experience as a professional athlete in an integrated, diverse environment "has created the person that he is today."___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

BALTIMORE (AP) — Manny Machado homered before making an early exit, Adam Jones hit a three-run double and the Baltimore Orioles rallied past the Texas Rangers 6-5 Sunday.Machado was removed in the fifth inning by manager Buck Showalter after a 26-minute rain delay, taking the All-Star shortstop off a sloppy field. The last-place Orioles are entertaining offers for Machado, who is expected to be dealt before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.After being replaced by Jace Peterson, Machado sat in the dugout, wearing a sweatshirt and joking with his teammates.In a matchup between two teams staggering into the All-Star break, Texas got a first-inning grand slam from rookie Ronald Guzman but quickly gave the lead away in losing for the seventh time in nine games.Machado ignited the comeback with his 24th homer, and Jones' bases-clearing double in the third off Mike Minor (6-6) put Baltimore ahead to stay.Tanner Scott (1-1) earned his first big league win. Zach Britton worked the ninth for... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Manny Machado homered before making an early exit, Adam Jones hit a three-run double and the Baltimore Orioles rallied past the Texas Rangers 6-5 Sunday.Machado was removed in the fifth inning by manager Buck Showalter after a 26-minute rain delay, taking the All-Star shortstop off a sloppy field. The last-place Orioles are entertaining offers for Machado, who is expected to be dealt before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.After being replaced by Jace Peterson, Machado sat in the dugout, wearing a sweatshirt and joking with his teammates.In a matchup between two teams staggering into the All-Star break, Texas got a first-inning grand slam from rookie Ronald Guzman but quickly gave the lead away in losing for the seventh time in nine games.Machado ignited the comeback with his 24th homer, and Jones' bases-clearing double in the third off Mike Minor (6-6) put Baltimore ahead to stay.Tanner Scott (1-1) earned his first big league win. Zach Britton worked the ninth for... [More]

BALTIMORE (AP) — Manny Machado homered before making an early exit, Adam Jones hit a three-run double and the Baltimore Orioles rallied past the Texas Rangers 6-5 Sunday.Machado was removed in the fifth inning by manager Buck Showalter after a 26-minute rain delay, taking the All-Star shortstop off a sloppy field. The last-place Orioles are entertaining offers for Machado, who is expected to be dealt before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.After being replaced by Jace Peterson, Machado sat in the dugout, wearing a sweatshirt and joking with his teammates.In a matchup between two teams staggering into the All-Star break, Texas got a first-inning grand slam from rookie Ronald Guzman but quickly gave the lead away in losing for the seventh time in nine games.Machado ignited the comeback with his 24th homer, and Jones' bases-clearing double in the third off Mike Minor (6-6) put Baltimore ahead to stay.Tanner Scot (1-1) earned his first big league win. Zach Britton worked the ninth for... [More]

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers placed infielder Jonathan Villar on the 10-day disabled list Sunday with a right thumb strain.Villar injured his thumb sliding into third base in Milwaukee's 6-3 loss in the second game of a doubleheader against the Pirates on Saturday.He will have an MRI later Sunday. There is not a timeframe for his return. Villar hit .261 with six home runs and 22 RBIs over 87 games.The Brewers recalled outfielder Brett Phillips from Triple-A Colorado Springs. He has a .257 average, four homers and 12 RBIs in 46 major league games.Villar is the 10th Brewers player on the disabled list, with five of them suffering injuries in the final 10 days before the All-Star break."That's a lot. We're fortunate that we have a lot of depth," assistant general manager Matt Arnold said. "We're looking at hopefully getting a lot of those guys back here shortly after the break."Milwaukee is 2-7 in that stretch, including five straight losses, and ceded first place in the NL Central to the Chicago Cubs.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers have optioned outfielder Brett Phillips to Triple-A Colorado Springs to make room on the roster for right-handed pitcher Brandon Woodruff.Manager Craig Counsell said after a 5-2 win Thursday over Colorado that Woodruff would be recalled from Triple-A to start Friday night in the second of a four-game series against the Rockies. Woodruff is 1-0 with a 3.86 ERA in five games this season with the Brewers, including one start.Woodruff is making his third stint on the big league roster as Counsell juggles a rotation hit by recent injuries to right-hander Zach Davies (right shoulder) and left-hander Wade Miley (right oblique).___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Reliever Josh Hader's most important role with the Milwaukee Brewers might be that he doesn't really have a defined role at all.Come in with one out in the eighth with two runners on to preserve a four-run lead? No problem.Go 2 2/3 innings to save a one-run game on the road? Done.Hader makes quick work of high-pressure situations, no matter when they occur. A humble, team-first attitude helps. So does a 95-mph fastball and filthy slider."Just mentality-wise, just wanting the ball whenever. Just getting outs whenever you can, whenever they need," Hader said. "Really, just keeping relaxed, not trying to overdo it."Tell that to the hitters who have to face the hard-throwing left-hander with the name "Josh Haderade" on Twitter .Hader was 1-0 with a 1.64 ERA with five saves in 12 games entering Thursday night's game at Colorado. With 46 strikeouts in 22 innings, Hader is averaging an eye-popping 18.8 strikeouts per nine innings.On April 30 against Cincinnati, Hader struck out... [More]

Forget Fenway Park — David Price and the Boston Red Sox are feeling every bit at home at the Flush Factory. And in Houston, George Springer and the Astros are just as likely to be talking Boogie Bombs as balls and strikes.Why is Xander Bogaerts making an L with his fingers and dancing on second base? Who's the Ninja on Phil Hughes' Twitter feed? What's with Derek Fisher and llamas?Just like gamers everywhere, major leaguers have fallen hard for the Fortnite craze. And while it's not how John McGraw would teach teamwork, Port-a-Forts and Slurp Juice may be the biggest thing bonding some big leaguers."We play all day, every day," Springer said.Fortnite Battle Royale is perhaps the world's most popular video game, and baseball players are among its most voracious players. The game pits up to 100 competitors in a last-man-standing scenario, letting them mine materials from an ever-shrinking map while hunting down enemies with a variety of weapons. Working in teams is often critical, which is... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers have optioned Junior Guerra, their opening day starter a year ago, to Triple-A Colorado Springs.Guerra has made five spring starts and is scheduled to pitch Sunday's Cactus League finale against the Chicago White Sox. The 33-year-old right-hander, who had a groin injury in the opener at Cincinnati last year, was hampered all season and finished with a 5.12 ERA in 70 1-3 innings. He has a 3.15 ERA in 20 spring innings.Manager Craig Counsell said that pitcher Yovani Gallardo also has been told he will not make the team. Gallardo, 32, came up with Milwaukee in 2007 and spent eight years with the Brewers, starting the 2014 opener. He was 5-10 with a 5.72 ERA for Seattle last year.Chase Anderson goes on opening day on Thursday against the Padres, and Zach Davies was already scheduled to start the Brewers' home opener April 2 against St. Louis.Counsell said that Jhoulys Chacin and lefty Brent Suter will start the final two games of the opening series in San Diego. The fifth starter will be Brandon Woodruff, but he will work out of the bullpen in San Diego, Counsell said.Counsell said Woodruff will start in the home series against the Chicago Cubs, who follow the Cardinals to Miller Park.Outfielders Keon Broxton and Brett Phillips also have been optioned to the minors.___More AP baseball coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

PHOENIX (AP) — Even before the start of the season, the Milwaukee Brewers have their first hit.Milwaukee released a 2-minute, 35-second video celebrating the 25th anniversary of the movie "The Sandlot" last weekend, featuring Brewers players dressed as characters from the film reciting the movie's lines.Hank, the dog who is Milwaukee's mascot, played The Beast — a ferocious dog in the movie that the kids were frightened of when they went to retrieve home run balls. Hank is a cuddly white mixed-breed whom the Brewers adopted as a pup during spring training in 2014."It's probably my all-time favorite baseball movie," said infielder Eric Sogard, who with the spectacles he often wears was asked to play the role of Michael "Squints" Palledorous. "Anytime that movie's on, I love watching it. Squints, man, I play wearing glasses, so I feel like that nickname has been thrown around at me every once in a while.""The Sandlot" is about an adult reminiscing on his younger days playing ball with his... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Even before the start of the season, the Milwaukee Brewers have their first hit.Milwaukee released a 2-minute, 35-second video celebrating the 25th anniversary of the movie "The Sandlot" last weekend, featuring Brewers players dressed as characters from the film reciting the movie's lines.Hank, the dog who is Milwaukee's mascot, played The Beast — a ferocious dog in the movie that the kids were frightened of when they went to retrieve home run balls. Hank is a cuddly white mixed-breed whom the Brewers adopted as a pup during spring training in 2014."It's probably my all-time favorite baseball movie," said infielder Eric Sogard, who with the spectacles he often wears was asked to play the role of Michael "Squints" Palledorous. "Anytime that movie's on, I love watching it. Squints, man, I play wearing glasses, so I feel like that nickname has been thrown around at me every once in a while.""The Sandlot" is about an adult reminiscing on his younger days playing ball with his... [More]

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani didn't quite dazzle in his spring pitching debut with the Los Angeles Angels.Maybe things will change when he swings the bat for the first time in a Cactus League game.The star two-way player from Japan had mixed results in his first big league mound appearance Saturday, when he allowed a home run and didn't make it through his scheduled two innings in a 6-5 victory against the Milwaukee Brewers.The 23-year-old right-hander threw some nice pitches, including a fastball clocked at 97 mph, and a curveball that came across at 69 mph.But he also struggled with his fastball command in allowing two runs, one earned, and two hits in 1 1-3 innings. Keon Broxton tagged him for a home run leading off the second inning."Besides the results, I mean, I had a lot of fun out there, so I think it went all well," Ohtani said through a translator.He struck out two and walked one. He threw 31 pitches, 17 for strikes.Ohtani didn't hit — he wasn't in manager Mike Scioscia's... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — New Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich struck out twice in his spring training debut Friday when the Brewers hosted the Chicago Cubs in a split-squad game.He also singled before departing after the fourth inning.Yelich, who arrived via trade for four prospects in one of the major leagues' most notable offseason moves, played left field. That's the spot where he figures to see most action in 2018.Yelich was primarily a left fielder from 2013 to 2016 with the Miami Marlins, then played 155 games in center field there last season. He ran down a curling line drive off the bat of the Cubs' Ian Happ on the first pitch of the game, then went 1 for 2 with two strikeouts and a soft single to left-center."Excited to get things under way. These guys have been awesome," Yelich said.Coming from the Marlins, who let their entire starting outfield from 2017 go in the offseason, the Brewers with their additions and better outlook for a winning season seem to be a happy destination.... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Ryan Braun has never been a fan of spring training, but he'll have plenty of work to keep him busy this year.The Milwaukee left fielder reported to camp Monday to prepare for his 12th big league season. And for the first time since his rookie campaign in 2007, he'll be taking groundballs as the Brewers try to get him work at first base.Moving Braun became an option when Milwaukee acquired outfielders Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich in January. Their additions created a logjam in an already-crowded outfield, so to help ease the situation, general manager David Stearns and manager Craig Counsell approached Braun about potentially playing first base.With the Brewers trying to build off their surprising 2017 season that finished a victory short of the postseason, Braun embraced the opportunity."I don't know exactly what the plan is yet as far as how often I'll be at what position, but it's definitely something I'm looking forward to," Braun said. "If I can be more versatile,... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The rebuilding plan for the Milwaukee Brewers is a smashing success, so much so that they're not really rebuilding anymore.Bold moves to trade for Christian Yelich and sign free agent Lorenzo Cain sent a message."We decided winning in 2018 was as important as to win in 2020," owner Mark Attanasio said.A surprising 2017 season that left Milwaukee a win short of the playoffs raised hopes in what was supposed to be just the second full season of a rebuild. Rising expectations accompanied the acquisitions of Yelich and Cain.Those NL Central meetings with the two-time division champion Chicago Cubs should be fun this year."Last year, I got asked where we were and if we were ahead of schedule," Attanasio said at the team's winter fan event in downtown Milwaukee. "I think we can say now we're ahead of schedule."Some things to watch ahead of the start of spring training:NEW LOOK: The slick-fielding Cain and Yelich improve the outfield defense, which should help the pitching staff... [More]