Giants rock Royals in World Series opener  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — By the time Madison Bumgarner took the mound to throw his first pitch, the San Francisco Giants already held a three-run lead.  —  It might as well have been 100 with the way Bumgarner and this orange-and-black bunch play in the World Series.

Pace-Of-Play Initiatives Get Mixed Reviews In AFL  —  MESA, Ariz.—Major League Baseball is using the Arizona Fall League to test methods to speed up the game, and players so far are mixed about the results.  —  The pace-of-play initiatives are being tested during games at Salt River Fields …

Palm Beach County approves funding for Nationals-Astros spring training complex but without a site  —  After years of searching for a spring training alternative to Viera, the Nationals took their most promising step yet in securing a partnership with a municipality in Florida.

Padres dismiss hitting coach Plantier  —  9/29/14: Padres executive vice president and GM A.J. Preller discusses the 2014 season and looks ahead to the offseason and beyond  —  SAN DIEGO — The Padres have relieved Phil Plantier of his hitting-coach duties, a baseball source told MLB.com on Wednesday.

Beat reporter Jordan Bastian answers Tribe fans' questions  —  9/26/14: Cody Allen induces a groundout to earn the save as the Indians earn a tight 1-0 victory over the Rays  —  What kind of relievers do you think Cleveland will be interested in this offseason?  And will Cody Allen still be the relief ace?

Rangers' 12-hour marathon meeting gives Jeff Banister chance to fix flaw in organization  —  Here are 10 things you might not know about newly hired Rangers manager Jeff Banister.  —  of  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. — With baseball in bloom just yards away on a delightful Tuesday in the desert …

D-Backs prospect Peter O'Brien used to catching flak  —  The skeptics are not new, and Diamondbacks prospect Peter O'Brien has heard what they have to say.  They don't think he can catch in the major leagues.  O'Brien answers their doubts with an anecdote from his past.

Phillies Sign Williams  —  Jerome Williams made enough of a positive impression that the Phillies are bringing him back next season.  —  They announced today that they signed him to a one-year, $2.5 million contract, which includes performance bonuses.  Williams, 32, went 4-2 with a 2.83 ERA in nine starts this year.

Free Agent Profile: Adam LaRoche  —  Though he's not technically a lock to hit the open market due to a $15MM mutual option ($2MM buyout), Adam LaRoche is a near certainty to be a free agent due to the rarity of such options being picked up by both sides of the agreement.

Bautista: 50-50 chance Cabrera returns to Jays  —  Melky Cabrera will hit free agency in a matter of weeks, but Jose Bautista says the Toronto Blue Jays still have a good chance at re-signing the switch-hitting left fielder.  —  “He's going to see what he can get out there and I guess …

Yankees' CC Sabathia ready for a heavy workload in 2015  —  NEW YORK - As the World Series plays on, CC Sabathia's October baseball consists of twice-weekly throwing sessions at Yankee Stadium and unlimited thoughts of 2015.  —  Three months after his season-ending right knee surgery …

Torii Hunter likely to continue baseball career in 2015: ‘I really want to play with the Tigers’  —  Torii Hunter is leaning toward playing again in 2015. … Torii Hunter is spending a lot of his time right now watching his sons play college football, so he hasn't made a final decision regarding the 2015 season.