Harper walks twice in 1st spring ABs with Phillies  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. — Bryce Harper drew two five-pitch walks on Saturday in his first two spring training plate appearances since signing a record contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.  —  The six-time All-Star outfielder signed a $330 million …

Yankees unafraid of Masahiro Tanaka's ugly Opening Day history  —  SARASOTA, Fla. — Masahiro Tanaka has been a big-game pitcher for the Yankees.  —  Last year, he was on the mound for the only game the Bombers took from the Red Sox in the American League Division Series.

Detroit Tigers' Michael Fulmer's dip in velocity a concern.  Here's why  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — Michael Fulmer's first pitch on Saturday afternoon registered at 92 mph on the Joker Marchant Stadium scoreboard.  —  As progression would have it, the early reading seemed to support his theory of things to come …

Cincinnati Reds lefty Alex Wood suffers setback with more back tightness  —  GOODYEAR, Ariz. - For the second time this spring, Alex Wood felt his back tighten up after pitching on a mound.  He made his Cactus League debut on Feb. 25 and it could be another week before he makes his next appearance.

Billy Hamilton has no hard feelings toward the Cincinnati Reds: ‘I still want them to do well’  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. - Playing against many of his former teammates Friday, Billy Hamilton couldn't stop smiling throughout the afternoon.  —  When players were stretching before the game …

Why Rougned Odor's hitless game has Chris Woodward thrilled  —  Rougned Odor has walked three or more times in a regular-season game only twice in his five-year career.  —  The Texas Rangers second baseman walked five times against the Orioles on Aug. 2 (he also homered) and walked three times in a game in 2017.

Having his contract renewed is symptom of a ‘system that is not great,’ says Flaherty  —  JUPITER, Fla.  • By rejecting the Cardinals' calculated salary offer for the 2019 season, Cardinals starter Jack Flaherty forced the team to unilaterally renew his contract, not because he took issue with the club …

Giants give no guarantee to Dereck Rodriguez  —  SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Dereck Rodriguez was like a painkiller for the Giants last year, providing the ailing team with a desperately needed dose of starting pitching after coming up from the minors in late May.  —  While most of the staff …

Cubs prospect Adbert Alzolay headed back to Iowa  —  One of the biggest prospects in the Chicago Cubs' system is headed back to Des Moines this summer.  —  Right-handed pitcher Adbert Alzolay was among 14 players assigned to Chicago's minor league camp on Saturday.

What the Padres having the top farm system might actually mean  —  The Kansas City Royals' minor league system was ranked by Baseball America as the best in baseball in 2011.  —  Nine of the team's prospects were deemed to be among the top 100 in baseball.  Names like Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Danny Duffy.

UC Irvine caps regular season in record fashion with win against CSUN  —  IRVINE — UC Irvine put an exclamation point on one of the best regular seasons in program history on Saturday night, beating Cal State Northridge 86-74 at the Bren Center to finish league play at 15-1 for the second time in school history.

Column: ‘I believe in myself’: Javier Baez is getting overlooked again — and that's just the way he likes it  —  Photos of Cubs infielder Javier Baez.  —  Chicago Tribune  —  After Bryce Harper signed with the Phillies, a prominent Las Vegas betting website installed him as a 4-1 favorite …

Pete Alonso still finds ways to stun the Mets  —  Pete Alonso showed the sold-out crowd at JetBlue Park that his barrel is more than a match for the replicated Fenway Park Green Monster.  Alonso annihilated a fastball from reliever Tyler Thornburg well beyond the towering left-field wall for his third homer of spring.

Searching for his A-swing, Clint Frazier finds his way again in Yankees' camp  —  Yankees' Clint Frazier takes BP before game against the Orioles on Saturday night at Sarasota  —  SARASOTA, Fla. - Clint Frazier's boundless energy has returned, and now he's darted over to Aaron Judge's corner locker …