SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Elvis Andrus has a few aging distinctions going into his 12th major league season. The only player left in the Texas Rangers clubhouse to wear that uniform in a World Series, the 31-year-old shortstop is the club's longest-tenured player by five years and expected to be the oldest regular starting shortstop in the majors.“I still believe I'm a rookie," Andrus said Monday, when the Rangers had their first full-squad workout. “I never want to feel comfortable. I always want to feel that somebody is going to take my job, and that's the mentality and that's the reality of the game." Andrus hit .275 last season — matching his career average through 1,623 regular-season games. He was hitting .361 through the season's first month and was at .309 by the end of June, then batted .240 over the final 74 games of the season while Texas skidded to its third straight losing season since AL West titles in 2015 and 2016. Second-year manager Chris Woodward said the Rangers “were pretty... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Elvis Andrus has a few aging distinctions going into his 12th major league season. The only player left in the Texas Rangers clubhouse to wear that uniform in a World Series, the 31-year-old shortstop is the club's longest-tenured player by five years and expected to be the oldest regular starting shortstop in the majors.“I still believe I'm a rookie," Andrus said Monday, when the Rangers had their first full-squad workout. “I never want to feel comfortable. I always want to feel that somebody is going to take my job, and that's the mentality and that's the reality of the game." Andrus hit .275 last season — matching his career average through 1,623 regular-season games. He was hitting .361 through the season's first month and was at .309 by the end of June, then batted .240 over the final 74 games of the season while Texas skidded to its third straight losing season since AL West titles in 2015 and 2016. Second-year manager Chris Woodward said the Rangers “were pretty... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Elvis Andrus has a few aging distinctions going into his 12th major league season. The only player left in the Texas Rangers clubhouse to wear that uniform in a World Series, the 31-year-old shortstop is the club's longest-tenured player by five years and expected to be the oldest regular starting shortstop in the majors.“I still believe I'm a rookie," Andrus said Monday, when the Rangers had their first full-squad workout. “I never want to feel comfortable. I always want to feel that somebody is going to take my job, and that's the mentality and that's the reality of the game." Andrus hit .275 last season — matching his career average through 1,623 regular-season games. He was hitting .361 through the season's first month and was at .309 by the end of June, then batted .240 over the final 74 games of the season while Texas skidded to its third straight losing season since AL West titles in 2015 and 2016. Second-year manager Chris Woodward said the Rangers “were pretty... [More]

GOODYEAR, Arizona (AP) — For now, Francisco Lindor isn't going anywhere. And, if he had his way, he'd never leave Cleveland.“My approach this year is winning here,’’ the four-time All-Star shortstop said Monday following the Indians' first full-squad workout of training camp. “I want to win here. I want to stay here in Cleveland; this is home. I’m not playing to get traded to put myself in a good spot to get traded … I am playing to win. I want to win here.”There's no way of knowing Lindor's future. He's under contract for two more seasons, but the Indians may not be able to afford to keep him and it's possible they'll have to trade him at some point rather than risk him walking away as a free agent in 2021.Lindor can't worry about what might happen, so he's concentrating on the here and now.“I am focusing on what I have in front of my toes,” he said. "We have a great group of guys in the clubhouse, a great coaching staff. I want to spend the whole year with them and win.’’The Indians'... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Players who have won a World Series -- and those who have come up short -- seethed Monday at Commissioner Rob Manfred's reference to the sport's championship trophy as merely a "piece of metal," saying that comment reflected a disconnect between baseball's boss and those who produce the product on the field."It bothered me, man. I hated it. It made him sound really out of touch," said reliever Sean Doolittle, a member of the 2019 title-winning Washington Nationals. "That's the holy grail of our sport. That's what we show up for in the beginning of February, thinking about and working towards."Added Doolittle: "I just can't believe how out of touch that is. You're the commissioner of our game. You're the steward of this game. That's a really special thing. It's an iconic symbol of our game. Please don't say that, even off-hand, even tongue-in-cheek." As with so many things being talked about around the majors as spring training gets started, this all stems from... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Players who have won a World Series -- and those who have come up short -- seethed Monday at Commissioner Rob Manfred's reference to the sport's championship trophy as merely a "piece of metal," saying that comment reflected a disconnect between baseball's boss and those who produce the product on the field."It bothered me, man. I hated it. It made him sound really out of touch," said reliever Sean Doolittle, a member of the 2019 title-winning Washington Nationals. "That's the holy grail of our sport. That's what we show up for in the beginning of February, thinking about and working towards."Added Doolittle: "I just can't believe how out of touch that is. You're the commissioner of our game. You're the steward of this game. That's a really special thing. It's an iconic symbol of our game. Please don't say that, even off-hand, even tongue-in-cheek." As with so many things being talked about around the majors as spring training gets started, this all stems from... [More]

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Javier Báez wants his Chicago Cubs to be better prepared this season. The two-time All-Star said Sunday at spring training that he and the Cubs were lacking last year when it came to their pregame routines and work ethic.“We had a lot of optional things, not mandatory, and everyone kind of sat back on that — including me. I wasn’t really going out there and preparing for the game. I was getting ready during the game, which is not good,” Báez said. “But this year, I think before the games, everybody should be out there as a team, stretch as a team, be together as a team so we can play together.”Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein said last week he could think of only two times in 18 years of running major league clubs that he felt “basic organizational standards for work, preparation and behavior” were not being met.He didn’t point specifically at the 2019 Cubs, but after manager Joe Maddon’s departure, many are reading between the lines.New skipper David... [More]

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — Yoenis Céspedes arrived at spring training and was as silent as his bat has been for most of the past two seasons. The New York Mets outfielder stepped back toward his locker as the media approached before the team's first full-squad workout on Monday and said, “Not today, not tomorrow, not at all this year” when asked if he would talk. A two-time All-Star, Céspedes said he felt no obligation to speak with the media. “Because I don’t want to,” he explained.Asked whether he would speak to his fans, he replied: “To my fans, maybe."Céspedes turned his back to media, spritzed cologne on and forcefully put the bottle down in his locker. Céspedes hit and ran but did not break with the outfielders as the horn sounded for the fielders to break into two groups when the Mets took the field for the first time in spring training. Against reliever Michael Wacha in batting practice, Céspedes turned on a curve and drove it just left of the foul pole in left field — with home-run... [More]

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — Miguel Cabrera acknowledged Monday that he has something to prove after a disappointing season. But the Detroit Tigers slugger is definitely done tinkering with his swing."I don't want to change my swing anymore," Cabrera said before the Tigers' first full-squad workout of the spring. “I just want to be natural. The last three years I've been changing my swing a lot to feel comfortable at home plate.”Hobbled by a sore right knee, Cabrera tried making several adjustments to get through the 2019 season. In 136 games, he hit .282 with 12 home runs and 59 RBIs — all well below his career standards.Manager Ron Gardenhire said a big part of the lack of production was Cabrera's weight, which drifted well over his official playing weight of 249 pounds.Cabrera was noticeably trimmer upon showing up for his 13th Tigers spring, and he said the knee feels "pretty good.""Last year I was heavy," he said. "I think I lost a lot of weight from last year to this year. I tried to eat... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — On the day position players reported to camp, the Washington Nationals finally got around to putting up a sign on the ivy-covered wall near the entrance to their spring training facility with a curly "W," a rendering of the Capitol dome and, most significantly, the proclamation "2019 WORLD CHAMPIONS.""Now we are happy to come back," slugger Juan Soto said, "and show the people we can do it again."And two of the reasons the Nationals did what they did last season -- and, more significantly, figure repeating is a realistic goal to pursue this season -- also showed up Monday: Soto and an enthusiastic cabbage race.Say what?Yes, the daily schedule posted in the clubhouse proclaimed this "National Cabbage Day," alongside a separate piece of paper listing the rosters for two teams of 20 pitchers and catchers each, one captained by Max Scherzer, the other by Stephen Strasburg. At precisely 9:30 a.m., clubhouse and equipment manager Mike Wallace strode outside carrying... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Adalberto Mondesi might be one of the best kept secrets in baseball.The only player to make his big league debut in the World Series, the 24-year-old Mondesi has blossomed into an emerging star for the Kansas City Royals.Last season, his 10 triples tied for the most in the majors and his 43 stolen bases ranked second. He did that despite injuries limiting him to 102 games.In 2018, Mondesi became the only player to record at least 14 home runs and steal 32 bases in no more than 75 games.“I don’t think the baseball world has any idea how good this kid can be,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “Just look at some of the best shortstops and some of the ones that are getting the most attention and this guy can do everything they do and then some. He’s a special player and he’s a special person.”Mondesi went on the injured list twice last year with a groin strain and left shoulder trouble. He again hurt his shoulder in the final week while diving for a ball and had surgery... [More]

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Javier Báez wants his Chicago Cubs to be better prepared this season. The two-time All-Star said Sunday at spring training that he and the Cubs were lacking last year when it came to their pregame routines and work ethic.“We had a lot of optional things, not mandatory, and everyone kind of sat back on that — including me. I wasn’t really going out there and preparing for the game. I was getting ready during the game, which is not good,” Báez said. “But this year, I think before the games, everybody should be out there as a team, stretch as a team, be together as a team so we can play together.”Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein said last week he could think of only two times in 18 years of running major league clubs that he felt “basic organizational standards for work, preparation and behavior” were not being met.He didn’t point specifically at the 2019 Cubs, but after manager Joe Maddon’s departure, many are reading between the lines.New skipper David... [More]

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — The son's stay in town has outlasted the father's. The irony isn't lost on Jacob Stallings.It wasn't necessarily supposed to be this way. Stallings was still a catching prospect — and not necessarily a young one — in the Pirates' organization four years ago when his dad Kevin left a successful run as the men's basketball coach at Vanderbilt to take on the same job at the University of Pittsburgh. The marriage between the elder Stallings and the Panthers lasted all of two nightmarish seasons. By the spring of 2018, Pitt moved on. It seemed the younger Stallings might meet the same fate. Pittsburgh designated for him assignment several times as he pogoed between the minors and the majors after making his debut in 2016. The odds of him ever sticking in Pittsburgh seeming to grow more and more remote as his mid-20s turned into his late-20s.Yet rather than worry about it, Stallings buried himself in the game. When he spent the first half of 2019 as the third catcher while... [More]

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — Cameron Maybin is starting his third stint with the Detroit Tigers.This one feels a bit different.“The first two times around, there were a lot of familiar faces," the veteran outfielder said Sunday. "Not that many now.”Maybin began his big league career with Detroit in 2007 and was enough of a prospect that he was traded for Miguel Cabrera. He returned to the Tigers in 2016 after a trade, and now the 32-year-old Maybin is back again after agreeing to a one-year contract.Maybin was a first-round draft pick for Detroit in 2005, and when he arrived in the majors, the Tigers were coming off a World Series appearance and were on their way to about a decade of consistent contention. They still had star pitcher Justin Verlander when Maybin returned in 2016, and that team nearly made the postseason.Now, however, Detroit is rebuilding. The Tigers still have Cabrera, but it's the team's young prospects who may end up getting much of the attention from fans in spring training.... [More]

GOODYEAR, Ariz. (AP) — Cincinnati Reds pitcher Trevor Bauer says he has gotten positive response to his criticism of a plan being considered by Major League Baseball to expand the playoffs, one that includes an extended break for top seeds and some teams choosing who they will play.Bauer directed his ire toward Commissioner Rob Manfred in a tweet last week: “Your proposal is absurd for too many reasons to type on twitter and proves you have absolutely no clue about baseball. You’re a joke.” Deep into a lengthy with ESPN aired Sunday about the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, Manfred was asked specifically about his reaction to Bauer’s tweet that characterized the commissioner as a joke. “Well, I think if you look back on the questions we’ve already gone through, I’m pretty good about accepting people’s views and criticisms,” Manfred told ESPN. “I don’t have to agree with them, and I’ll say this about that particular comment. No matter how much, how completely I disagreed with what... [More]

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — Be it on a Triple-A field in Syracuse or a tennis court in South Asia, Tim Tebow is still working, hoping for a shot at the majors.Now 32, the former celebrated quarterback is back for his fifth year as a minor league outfielder for the New York Mets.A two-time national champion at Florida who won the Heisman Trophy and later a playoff-winning QB for the Denver Broncos, Tebow was contacted by the XFL in its return to football action this season. He said he loves the opportunity the league is giving to players who will eventually, he feels, make an NFL roster.“But for me, this is what I wanted to do and pursue it and be all-in. When I’m 50, I can’t come back and do this," Tebow said Sunday at the Mets' spring training complex. “This is part of a season and a time, and I feel I’m in that season. I don’t know when I’ll feel like I’m out."Tebow’s steady dedication has resulted in some odd workout locations, including one in the Maldives last month with his wife,... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Dusty Baker wants action from Major League Baseball: End the criticism of the Astros from across baseball over sign stealing, and take steps to ensure pitchers don't throw at his players.“It's not good for the game, it's not good for kids to see it, so I think both,” the new Houston manager said Saturday. “Stop the comments and also stop something before it happens.”Baker spoke in response to a wave of harsh comments during spring training about the Astros' use of video to steal signs in 2017 and 2018. Los Angeles Dodger first baseman Cody Bellinger said Friday the Astros “stole” the 2017 World Series title from them and adds that Jose Altuve did likewise with the MVP, denying the Yankees' Aaron Judge.Houston players, management and ownership spent the first day of camp apologizing for their actions and professing remorse. But many players and front offices around the league didn't feel they went far enough.Washington general manager Mike Rizzo said he wanted... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Back in a familiar bullpen, Greg Holland is hoping to recapture the glory days.Holland was part of the dominant Royals relief corps that led them to back-to-back World Series. He was a two-time All-Star selection and logged 145 of his career 205 saves with Kansas City.That bullpen also included Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera, who also were closers.“It’s a good feeling when you have a lead after six, that you’ve won the game. That was kind of the process,” Holland said. “That was a top bullpen from top to bottom for several years. That will be a lasting memory for me."“I try not to take too many steps down memory lane. I just try to stay in the moment,” he said.At 34, Holland is now at spring training with the Royals on a minor league contract. After having surgery near the end of the 2015 season, sitting out 2016 and pitching erratically the last two years, he is trying to earn a job in a bullpen that has a plethora of openings.“They gave me a chance to come into camp,... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Dusty Baker wants action from Major League Baseball: End the criticism of the Astros from across baseball over sign stealing, and take steps to ensure pitchers don't throw at his players.“It's not good for the game, it's not good for kids to see it, so I think both,” the new Houston manager said Saturday. “Stop the comments and also stop something before it happens.”Baker spoke in response to a wave of harsh comments during spring training about the Astros' use of video to steal signs in 2017 and 2018. Los Angeles Dodger first baseman Cody Bellinger said Friday the Astros “stole” the 2017 World Series title from them and adds that Jose Altuve did likewise with the MVP, denying the Yankees' Aaron Judge.Houston players, management and ownership spent the first day of camp apologizing for their actions and professing remorse. But many players and front offices around the league didn't feel they went far enough.Washington general manager Mike Rizzo said he wanted... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Dusty Baker wants action from Major League Baseball: End the criticism of the Astros from across baseball over sign stealing, and take steps to ensure pitchers don't throw at his players.“It's not good for the game, it's not good for kids to see it, so I think both,” the new Houston manager said Saturday. “Stop the comments and also stop something before it happens.”Baker spoke in response to a wave of harsh comments during spring training about the Astros' use of video to steal signs in 2017 and 2018. Los Angeles Dodger first baseman Cody Bellinger said Friday the Astros “stole” the 2017 World Series title from them and adds that Jose Altuve did likewise with the MVP, denying the Yankees' Aaron Judge.Houston players, management and ownership spent the first day of camp apologizing for their actions and professing remorse. But many players and front offices around the league didn't feel they went far enough.Washington general manager Mike Rizzo said he wanted... [More]