Phillies release Willis  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Phillies have released Dontrelle Willis, the enigmatic lefthander who was attempting to revive his career as a reliever.  —  He was plagued by ineffectiveness and arm soreness during the first four weeks of camp.

Shortstop Signed Through 2015, With Club Options For '16 And '17  —  The Royals agreed to a multiyear extension with shortstop Alcides Escobar on Thursday, signing the middle infielder for four guaranteed years through the 2015 season with club options for each of the following two years.

Derek Jeter out with calf injury  —  TAMPA, Fla. — New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter has an injured left calf that will keep him out of spring training until at least next week.  —  Jeter, who will turn 38 in June, missed nearly a month last season in his pursuit of 3,000 hits with an injury to his right calf.

Wang strains hamstring while fielding vs. Yanks  —  Nats right-hander stumbles attempting to record out at first base  —  VIERA, Fla. — Nationals right-hander Chien-Ming Wang left Thursday's game against the Yankees in the third inning after falling down while running toward first base after fielding a ground ball.

Nick Leyva: Positioning the Pirates Infield  —  Nick Leyva is heading into his 36th season of professional baseball, but when it comes to positioning an infield, he isn't as old-school as you might think.  The Pirates' third base coach still uses his instincts and experience …

Hall of Famer George Brett speaks his mind about future eligible players  —  The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a hallowed place and as one of its members, George Brett knows he also plays an important role as one of its stewards.  —  That means not being afraid to speak …

Aroldis Chapman's fastball is losing its zip  —  GOODYEAR, Ariz. - Two years into the Aroldis Chapman experiment and it's still just that: an experiment, full of potential and pratfalls, of amazing moments and even more confounding ones.  The hypothesis was that the Cuban kid who throws …

Zito Strong Again as Giants Top Mariners  —  PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) — Barry Zito managed to turn in a solid spring start despite throwing his curveball and fastball higher in the strike zone than he wanted.  —  The veteran left-hander struck out four in four innings, Brandon Crawford hit …

Alfredo Aceves values moment  —  One way or another, he knows worth  —  FORT MYERS — Regardless of whether he begins the season as a starter or a reliever, Alfredo Aceves wants to be described in one word.  —  Valuable.  —  In four innings yesterday against a St. Louis Cardinals travel squad …

Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton confident he'll be ready opening day  —  Just caught up with Giancarlo Stanton, who said he hopes to play in a Grapefruit League game again some time next week.  —  Stanton hasn't played since last Sunday when he was hit on the left wrist by a pitch.

Is Baseball Ready for Bryce?  —  Dear MLB: Please don't muzzle the most entertaining prospect since Babe Ruth.  Thank you, fans everywhere  —  “F**k!!!”  This is Bryce Harper—the erstwhile pastime's answer to LeBron James, Mozart child prodigy of the great game.

Verlander fans eight, Tigers rally to top O's  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — Justin Verlander struck out eight of the 14 Orioles batters he faced but still found himself on the short end for much of Thursday afternoon before Gerald Laird's two-run single paced a three-run sixth in a 4-2 win for the Tigers at Joker Marchant Stadium.

Norris Grand Slam in Ninth Lifts A's  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Oakland manager Bob Melvin wasn't surprised by Jemile Weeks' power display.  —  Weeks homered from both sides of the plate, Cliff Pennington added four hits and Derek Norris capped a five-run ninth inning with a grand slam …