A look at what's happening around the majors Thursday:SLUMPING STANTONGiancarlo Stanton looks to make an impact in pinstripes when New York opens a series against Toronto at Yankee Stadium. Stanton is 3 for 35 (.086) with 20 strikeouts in the Bronx this season, and he has been regularly booed by the home fans. Manager Aaron Boone said Tuesday he'd consider sliding Stanton slightly down in the batting order to get the 2017 NL MVP rolling.NOT AGAINThe Braves are hoping for good news on star slugger Freddie Freeman a day after a scary — and all-too-familiar looking — hit-by-pitch. Phillies lefty Holby Milner hit Freeman's left wrist with a fastball in nearly the same spot where Freeman had a fracture from a plunking last season. Freeman was on an MVP pace in 2017 before the injury cost him nearly two months. Manager Brian Snitker did not have an update on Freeman's status as of Wednesday night.OHTANI IN ACTION?Two days after exiting a start with a blister on his pitching hand, Shohei Ohtani... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Hanley Ramirez hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-3 on Saturday to get to 12-2 — the best start in their 118-year history.Andrew Benintendi had a two-run single and an RBI double, and J.D. Martinez hit a solo homer for the Red Sox.Only once — in 1918 — had Boston started 11-2.Alex Cobb (0-1) was roughed up in his Orioles debut, giving up eight runs — seven earned — in 3 2/3 innings. Pedro Alvarez had a two-run homer for Baltimore, which has lost four of five.Hector Velazquez (2-0) gave up two runs in five innings. Marcus Walden pitched the final three innings for his first big-league save.BREWERS 5, METS 1NEW YORK (AP) — Chase Anderson breezed into the seventh inning, Jonathan Villar sliced a three-run homer inside the foul pole and Milwaukee stopped the Mets' nine-game winning streak.Jett Bandy also went deep against Matt Harvey (0-1) on a windy Fireworks Night at Citi Field as the Brewers cooled off New York... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Hanley Ramirez hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-3 on Saturday to get to 12-2 — the best start in their 118-year history.Andrew Benintendi had a two-run single and an RBI double, and J.D. Martinez hit a solo homer for the Red Sox.Only once — in 1918 — had Boston started 11-2.Alex Cobb (0-1) was roughed up in his Orioles debut, giving up eight runs — seven earned — in 3 2/3 innings. Pedro Alvarez had a two-run homer for Baltimore, which has lost four of five.Hector Velazquez (2-0) gave up two runs in five innings. Marcus Walden pitched the final three innings for his first big-league save.BREWERS 5, METS 1NEW YORK (AP) — Chase Anderson breezed into the seventh inning, Jonathan Villar sliced a three-run homer inside the foul pole and Milwaukee stopped the Mets' nine-game winning streak.Jett Bandy also went deep against Matt Harvey (0-1) on a windy Fireworks Night at Citi Field as the Brewers cooled off New York... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Hanley Ramirez hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-3 on Saturday to get to 12-2 — the best start in their 118-year history.Andrew Benintendi had a two-run single and an RBI double, and J.D. Martinez hit a solo homer for the Red Sox.Only once — in 1918 — had Boston started 11-2.Alex Cobb (0-1) was roughed up in his Orioles debut, giving up eight runs — seven earned — in 3 2/3 innings. Pedro Alvarez had a two-run homer for Baltimore, which has lost four of five.Hector Velazquez (2-0) gave up two runs in five innings. Marcus Walden pitched the final three innings for his first big-league save.BREWERS 5, METS 1NEW YORK (AP) — Chase Anderson breezed into the seventh inning, Jonathan Villar sliced a three-run homer inside the foul pole and Milwaukee stopped the Mets' nine-game winning streak.Jett Bandy also went deep against Matt Harvey (0-1) on a windy Fireworks Night at Citi Field as the Brewers cooled off New York... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — Hanley Ramirez hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 10-3 on Saturday to get to 12-2 — the best start in their 118-year history.Andrew Benintendi had a two-run single and an RBI double, and J.D. Martinez hit a solo homer for the Red Sox.Only once — in 1918 — had Boston started 11-2.Alex Cobb (0-1) was roughed up in his Orioles debut, giving up eight runs — seven earned — in 3 2/3 innings. Pedro Alvarez had a two-run homer for Baltimore, which has lost four of five.Hector Velazquez (2-0) gave up two runs in five innings. Marcus Walden pitched the final three innings for his first big-league save.BREWERS 5, METS 1NEW YORK (AP) — Chase Anderson breezed into the seventh inning, Jonathan Villar sliced a three-run homer inside the foul pole and Milwaukee stopped the Mets' nine-game winning streak.Jett Bandy also went deep against Matt Harvey (0-1) on a windy Fireworks Night at Citi Field as the Brewers cooled off New York... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani retired the Oakland Athletics' first 19 batters and yielded one hit over seven shutout innings in his home pitching debut, leading the Los Angeles Angels to a 6-1 victory Sunday.Marcus Semien's clean one-out single to left broke up Ohtani's bid for a perfect game,Ohtani (2-0) struck out the side twice and finished with 12 strikeouts in all. He won his pitching debut in Oakland last weekend with six strong innings, then homered in three consecutive games in Anaheim between starts in his attempt to become the first regular two-way player in decades.Mike Trout and Ryan Schimpf homered, and Albert Pujols had an RBI double in the Angels' seventh win in nine games. Kendall Graveman (0-2) gave up five hits and four walks while failing to get out of the fourth inning for the A's, who have lost seven of 10.METS 6, NATIONALS 5, 12 INNINGSWASHINGTON (AP) — Yoenis Cespedes scored Juan Lagares with a broken-bat single in the 12th inning to help New York complete... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani retired the Oakland Athletics' first 19 batters and yielded one hit over seven shutout innings in his home pitching debut, leading the Los Angeles Angels to a 6-1 victory Sunday.Marcus Semien's clean one-out single to left broke up Ohtani's bid for a perfect game,Ohtani (2-0) struck out the side twice and finished with 12 strikeouts in all. He won his pitching debut in Oakland last weekend with six strong innings, then homered in three consecutive games in Anaheim between starts in his attempt to become the first regular two-way player in decades.Mike Trout and Ryan Schimpf homered, and Albert Pujols had an RBI double in the Angels' seventh win in nine games. Kendall Graveman (0-2) gave up five hits and four walks while failing to get out of the fourth inning for the A's, who have lost seven of 10.MARLINS 6, PHILLIES 3PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jake Arrieta (0-1) lasted just four innings in his Philadelphia debut, allowing three runs — two earned — and three... [More]

A look at what's happening all around baseball Sunday:___IT'S HIS SHOShohei Ohtani makes his second start on the mound for the Los Angeles Angels, at home against Oakland. The two-way newcomer from Japan beat the Athletics last weekend in his pitching debut, holding them to three hits in six innings. The 23-year-old Ohtani isn't expected to bat — he's homered in three straight starts as a designated hitter.ARRIETA ARRIVESJake Arrieta debuts for the Phillies, facing Miami at Citizens Bank Park. The 2015 NL Cy Young Award winner signed a $75 million, three-year deal after becoming a free agent and leaving the Cubs. No doubt Arrieta wouldn't mind having some of the run support Philadelphia produced Saturday night in a 20-1 rout of the Marlins.ROLE REVERSALMatt Harvey and the New York Mets try for their fifth straight win and a sweep at Nationals Park in the Sunday night game. After going 70-92 last year, the Mets are 6-1 under new manager Mickey Callaway. The two-time NL East champion Nats... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The average major league salary on opening day dropped slightly following an offseason of slashed contracts for many free agents and the decisions to start three highly paid players in the minor leagues, according to study by The Associated Press.The $4.41 million average Thursday fell 0.9 percent from last year's starting figure of $4.45 million, according to the AP's calculations. It was only the second drop since the end of the 1994-95 strike, after a 2.7 decrease in 2004.Two late-signing free agent pitchers were optioned to farm teams just ahead of Thursday's openers to get more preparation time: Philadelphia's Jake Arrieta and Baltimore's Alex Cobb. If they had remained in the majors, the average would have been down just $1,380. And if Arizona outfielder Yasmany Tomas had also remained in the big leagues, the average would have been up 0.2 percent to $4.46 million."An illustration of the need to amend and create an equitable distribution structure in baseball," agent... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — The average major league salary on opening day dropped slightly following an offseason of slashed contracts for many free agents and the decisions to start three highly paid players in the minor leagues, according to study by The Associated Press.The $4.41 million average Thursday fell 0.9 percent from last year's starting figure of $4.45 million, according to the AP's calculations. It was only the second drop since the end of the 1994-95 strike, after a 2.7 decrease in 2004.Two late-signing free agent pitchers were optioned to farm teams just ahead of Thursday's openers to get more preparation time: Philadelphia's Jake Arrieta and Baltimore's Alex Cobb. If they had remained in the majors, the average would have been down just $1,380. And if Arizona outfielder Yasmany Tomas had also remained in the big leagues, the average would have been up 0.2 percent to $4.46 million.Boston had a $224 million payroll and topped the major leagues for the first time since at least the 1980s.... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):7:20 p.m.Matt Davidson became the fourth player in major league history to homer three times on opening day, and the White Sox have homered six times total against the Kansas City Royals, as they spoil their AL Central rivals' 50th anniversary celebration at Kauffman Stadium.Tim Anderson also homered twice and Jose Abreu went deep for the White Sox, matching the big league record for opening-day homers set by the Mets in 1988.Three of the four players to homer three times on opening day have done so against the Royals.___7:15 p.m.Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw gave up consecutive singles to open the first inning against the San Francisco Giants.Austin Jackson singled to left center and Joe Panik followed with a single to right field. Kershaw then got Giants newcomer Andrew McCutchen to hit into a double play to shortstop before striking out clean-up hitter Buster Posey to end the inning.Kershaw had a 0.00 ERA in six spring training starts.___7:10... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):7 p.m.Felix Hernandez will join select company when he makes his 10th straight opening day start for the Seattle Mariners.Hernandez will become just the seventh pitcher to make at least 10 straight opening day starts, joining Steve Carlton, Roy Halladay, Walter Johnson, Robin Roberts, Tom Seaver and Jack Morris. Carlton, Johnson and Halladay started 10 straight; Roberts and Seaver started 12 straight; and Morris started 14 straight opening days from 1980 to 1993.Hernandez has started 11 season openers overall in his career beginning in 2007. The one gap came in 2008 when Erik Bedard started the opener for Seattle.___5:50 p.m.Justin Verlander has finished his first opening day start for the Houston Astros with six scoreless innings.Verlander struck out five, walked two and hit a batter while throwing 90 pitches for the World Series champions in their season opener at the Texas Rangers. The big right-hander, who had started nine of... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — A study by The Associated Press determined the average major league salary on opening day dropped slightly following an offseason of slashed contracts for many free agents and the decisions to start three highly paid players in the minor leagues.The $4.41 million average Thursday fell 0.9 percent from last year's starting figure of $4.45 million, according to the AP's calculations. It was only the second drop since the end of the 1994-95 strike, after a 2.7 decrease in 2004.Two late-signing free agent pitchers were optioned to farm teams just ahead of Thursday's openers to get more preparation time: Philadelphia's Jake Arrieta and Baltimore's Alex Cobb. If they had remained in the majors, the average would have been down just $1,380. And if Arizona had not sent down outfielder Yasmany Tomas, the average would have been up 0.2 percent to $4.46 million.Boston had a $224 million payroll and topped the major leagues for the first time since at least the 1980s. San Francisco... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):5:50 p.m.Justin Verlander has finished his first opening day start for the Houston Astros with six scoreless innings.Verlander struck out five, walked two and hit a batter while throwing 90 pitches for the World Series champions in their season opener at the Texas Rangers. The big right-hander, who had started nine of the previous 10 openers for Detroit, allowed four singles.Verlander has a 0.90 ERA in his six regular-season starts since getting traded from the Tigers to the Astros last Aug. 31. He was 5-0 last September, then won four more postseason games, and was the AL Championship Series MVP.Houston led 3-0 when Chris Devenski took over for Verlander at the start of the seventh inning.___5:45 p.m.Some of the biggest names in Dodgers history are gathering for opening day against the rival Giants as the franchise marks its 60th anniversary in Los Angeles.Sandy Koufax and Fernando Valenzuela chatted each other up on the field under... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):5:22 p.m.Zach Duke performed a baseball rarity at Camden Yards, striking out four in an inning.Unfortunately for the Twins reliever, he yielded two runs in the process.Duke entered in the seventh inning of a scoreless game and promptly struck out Trey Mancini, who reached when the third strike got past catcher Jason Castro.Duke also struck out Tim Beckham, Craig Gentry and Chris Davis. Between those Ks, however, Caleb Joseph hit a two-run triple.The last Twins pitcher to strike out four in an inning was Tyler Duffy in May 2016.___4:50 p.m.Braves catcher Tyler Flowers has left the game after injuring his left oblique while batting in Atlanta.In his first at-bat of the season, Flowers fouled off a pitch and a winced in pain before heading straight to the clubhouse.He was replaced by Kurt Suzuki.Flowers had surgery on both his left wrist and forearm after the 2017 season, the result of being hit by 20 pitches over the course of the season.... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):4:50 p.m.Braves catcher Tyler Flowers has left the game after injuring his left oblique while batting in Atlanta.In his first at-bat of the season, Flowers fouled off a pitch and a winced in pain before heading straight to the clubhouse.He was replaced by Kurt Suzuki.Flowers had surgery on both his left wrist and forearm after the 2017 season, the result of being hit by 20 pitches over the course of the season. But the Braves announced that he left the game with "left oblique discomfort."The 32-year-old Flowers is coming off one of his best years, hitting a career-high .281 with 12 homers and 49 RBIs. He combined with Suzuki to give the Braves one of baseball's most productive catching duos.___4:40 p.m.Just like that, Shohei Ohtani has his first major league hit.Ohtani lined a first-pitch single down the right-field line against Oakland's Kendall Graveman with two outs in the second inning and the Angels ahead 1-0.The two-way Japanese... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):4:20 p.m.Giancarlo Stanton quickly got into the swing with his new team.Stanton has hit a two-run homer in his first at-bat with the New York Yankees. He connected in the first inning against Toronto lefty J.A. Happ at Rogers Centre.Stanton led the majors with 59 homers last year and was the NL MVP. Traded to the Yankees in the winter, he batted third in his Yankees debut and was the designated hitter.After taking a called strike on the first pitch, Stanton lined an opposite-field shot estimated at 426 feet over the wall in right.Teammate Aaron Judge, who topped the AL with 52 homers, raised his arm in the dugout and broke into a smile. In 2016, Judge homered in his big league debut with the Yankees.___4:17 p.m.The Royals have marked the start of their 50th season with a lengthy celebration that included such franchise luminaries as Bo Jackson and Hall of Fame third baseman George Brett.The club honored players from every era, highlighting... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):3:42 p.m.George Springer has led off the season for the World Series champion Houston Astros with his 100th career homer.Springer, the World Series MVP, hit a 2-0 pitch from Texas Rangers starter Cole Hamels into the right-field seats in Arlington, Texas.It is the second year in a row that Springer has hit a leadoff homer in the season opener.___3:30 p.m.The first home run of the season at Camden Yards was turned into an out by Orioles right fielder Craig Gentry.Minnesota's Eddie Rosario lifted a drive that was headed over the 7-foot wall before Gentry leaped, stuck up his glove and snagged the baseball before it disappeared.Orioles starter Dylan Bundy remains perfect through two innings, thanks to Gentry's sensational grab.___2:45 p.m.Atlanta and Philadelphia set their 25-man rosters ahead of opening day at SunTrust Park.The Braves got down to the limit by placing four players on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to March 26.... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):3:30 p.m.The first home run of the season at Camden Yards was turned into an out by Orioles right fielder Craig Gentry.Minnesota's Eddie Rosario lifted a drive that was headed over the 7-foot wall before Gentry leaped, stuck up his glove and snagged the baseball before it disappeared.Orioles starter Dylan Bundy remains perfect through two innings, thanks to Gentry's sensational grab.___2:45 p.m.Atlanta and Philadelphia set their 25-man rosters ahead of opening day at SunTrust Park.The Braves got down to the limit by placing four players on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to March 26. They include third basemam Johan Camargo (right oblique muscle strain), left-handed pitcher Luiz Gohara (left ankle sprain) and right-hander Chase Whitley (right heel infection).Left-hander Jacob Lindgren, who is recovering from elbow surgery, also went on the DL.The Braves are carrying 12 pitchers and 13 position players until they need a fifth... [More]

The Latest on baseball's opening day (all times Eastern):2:45 p.m.Atlanta and Philadelphia set their 25-man rosters ahead of opening day at SunTrust Park.The Braves got down to the limit by placing four players on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to March 26. They include third basemam Johan Camargo (right oblique muscle strain), left-handed pitcher Luiz Gohara (left ankle sprain) and right-hander Chase Whitley (right heel infection).Left-hander Jacob Lindgren, who is recovering from elbow surgery, also went on the DL.The Braves are carrying 12 pitchers and 13 position players until they need a fifth starter, which is not expected until April 17 because of three off days early in the season. Anibal Sanchez is expected to fill the role until Gohara is ready.The Phillies placed three players on the 10-day disabled list: right-handers Jerad Eickhoff (right lat strain), Tommy Hunter (right hamstring strain) and Mark Leiter Jr. (right forearm strain), all retroactive to March 26.Jake Arrieta... [More]