Nationals' Scherzer, Astros' Verlander concerned about game  —  WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Two more aces are expressing concern about how major league teams are playing their cards.  —  Washington right-hander Max Scherzer said Thursday there are too many teams trying not to win, and all the rebuilding “poisons the game.”

Sources: Manny Machado, San Diego Padres meet for second time  —  San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller flew to Miami last week and met with free-agent infielder Manny Machado, sources confirmed to ESPN's Jeff Passan.  —  It's the second meeting the Padres and Machado have had this offseason …

Tommy ‘T-bone’ Giordano, longtime MLB scout and executive, dies at 93  —  Tommy Giordano, a longtime scout who played only 11 games in the major leagues but spent more than seven decades in a variety of baseball roles, died Thursday.  He was 93.  —  Known affectionately as “T-bone,” …

Jacob DeGrom not sure if Mets' offer will come before Opening Day  —  Just a few hours after NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom threw his first practice pitch of spring training, he let everyone know the score.  —  He hasn't received a long-term contract offer from the New York Mets and isn't sure he will before Opening Day.

Chocked roster could lead Cardinals to make moves, explore trades later in spring  —  JUPITER, Fla.  • While the Cardinals have adopted and repeated a stance that they do not intend to add to their 40-man roster in the opening weeks of spring training, the inevitable question facing the front office will be who to subtract.

Coming off division title, Atlanta Braves arrive for final spring training at Disney  —  Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna was selected as the 2018 National League Rookie of the Year.  (John Bazemore/Associated Press)  —  The Atlanta Braves are back.  —  But not for long.

Trevor Bauer accuses Indians of ‘character assassination’ during arbitration hearing  —  All-Star pitcher Trevor Bauer won his salary arbitration hearing with the Cleveland Indians this week, getting a $7-million raise over last year, but said Thursday he's unhappy with the way he was treated toward the end of the process.

Jose Urena named Marlins' Opening Day starter again  —  Jose Urena is getting a second chance for a first impression as the Miami Marlins' Opening Day starter, manager Don Mattingly announced Thursday.  —  “I know we put this off every year, because we didn't really know,” Mattingly told reporters.

GM Jeff Luhnow confirms Astros almost added Bryce Harper in 2018  —  WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Bryce Harper is the biggest name in baseball right now, despite still being an unsigned free agent as spring training begins for the 2019 season.  —  Manny Machado, Dallas Keuchel, Marwin Gonzalez …

Ian Clarkin reunites with his former unofficial draft adviser: Kris Bryant  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Friday marks the start of the Division I college baseball season, but left-hander Ian Clarkin has no regrets about not following in the footsteps of Kris Bryant at the University of San Diego.

Detroit Tigers go high-tech to get better on the field.  Here's how:  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — In the nearly four years since Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila took over, it has been clear that the team is diving further into analytics.  —  The push began with hiring Jay Sartori …

Slugger C.J. Cron says he didn't see Rays' move to DFA him coming, 'but I wasn't shocked either'  —  Cron hit a career-high 30 homers last season, but was designated and placed on waivers.  He's now with the Twins.  —  FORT MYERS — Former Rays slugger C.J. Cron said that being designated …

Julio Urias, though no longer ‘The Teenager,’ remains important to Dodgers' future … Clayton Kershaw wanted an unobstructed view, so he marched over to join a group clustered near home plate, a few feet away from the catcher Thursday at Camelback Ranch.  At the other end …