A near no-hitter leaves Cardinals' lineup searching for its upswing this spring  —  JUPITER, Fla.  • Before unveiling the lineup for Sunday's game against Miami, manager Mike Shildt and first baseman Paul Goldschmidt talked about the spot in the order that was going to be “a big deal” in that day's conversation.

A look at New York Yankees' week ahead as Florida spring training winds down  —  CC Sabathia pitches his first simulated game of the spring at Yankees camp, facing Troy Tulowitzki  —  TAMPA, Fla. — This is the final week of Yankees' spring training, save for one final exhibition game next Monday at Nationals Park in Washington.

MLB: Liam Hendriks, Oakland Athletics ready to prove doubters wrong  —  TOKYO — Amid all the hoopla surrounding Suzuki Ichiro's return to Japan with the Seattle Mariners, it's been easy to overlook something else: the Oakland Athletics are here, too.  —  The A's are used to being seen as the also-rans, and even relish it.

Avila, Escobar homer in Diamondbacks' win over White Sox  —  Diamondbacks (ss) 7, White Sox 3  —  At the plate: C Alex Avila and 3B Eduardo Escobar each connected for their first home run of the spring.  Avila hit his on a line to the opposite field in the third inning.

Padres expect a lot of Garrett Richards, including him helping out this season  —  The Padres almost certainly will have the youngest starting rotation in the majors this spring.  —  It is conceivable they begin the season with two rookies, two pitchers in their second season and an old man who has made eight big-league starts.

Phillies' makeover aimed at fixing fractured clubhouse  —  When the Philadelphia Phillies lost their ninth consecutive game toward the end of last September, veteran first baseman Carlos Santana felt like he needed to send a message to his teammates whom he said spent portions of the game …

Yasiel Puig homers twice in Cincinnati Reds' 9-9 tie against Cleveland Indians  —  GOODYEAR, Ariz. - Yasiel Puig hit a pair of home runs, including a fourth-inning grand slam, to highlight the Reds' offense in a 9-9 tie against the Cleveland Indians at Goodyear Ballpark on Sunday.

MLB Mad Libs: Well, Suzyn, now you CAN predict baseball!  —  Can the Red Sox repeat?  Will L.A. stumble?  Who is MLB's best player?  Pinch hit on this fill-in-the-blanks 2019 baseball forecast — but we'll have the last word.  —  You've heard that famous quote, usually attributed to …

What's it like to be a Miami Marlin?  *Rolls eyes, takes deep breath*  —  JUPITER, Fla. — Jarlin Garcia has been in the Marlins organization longer than almost any other player.  He's been there so long, fans in and around Miami refer to him as Jarlin the Marlin.

Pete Alonso proves he belongs in the big leagues  —  WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Other than a fundamental pursuit of forcing the Mets' hand, Pete Alonso had a personal goal he set out to accomplish in Mets camp.  —  Alonso said it was his intention to feel like he belonged with the team this spring.

Fulmer's spirits are up, but time is running out; Peterson among Tigers cuts  —  Tigers' 2019 preview with Chris McCosky, Bob Wojnowski and Tony Paul  —  Lakeland, Fla. - At least his sense of humor is intact.  —  Tigers starting pitcher Michael Fulmer, facing the strong possibility …

Bryce Harper's at-bats, Jake Arrieta's starts are big Phillies storylines in final week of spring training |  Extra Innings  —  The sigh of relief could be heard from Old Coachman Road in Clearwater all the way to Pattison Avenue in South Philly.  —  Bryce Harper took a fastball off …

Trevor Story: Rockies' offense will be more productive than 2018 version  —  SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Judging by the numbers — be they traditional statistics such as batting average and on-base percentage, or by deeper analytic measures — the Rockies' 2018 offense was bad.

Atlanta Braves' exit from Disney will cut Central Florida out of Grapefruit League  —  In their first regular-season game after moving from Milwaukee to Atlanta in 1966, the Braves hosted the Pittsburgh Pirates.  —  Six players in that game, a 3-2 Pirates victory, went on to the Hall of Fame, including Roberto Clemente and Hank Aaron.

Dodgers not panicking over Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler injuries  —  PHOENIX — It's 8:30 in the morning, and instead of sitting in front of his locker preparing for a spring-training start, Los Angeles Dodgers three-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw is shirtless, throwing a medicine ball against the wall in a hallway.