Marlins CEO Derek Jeter blames covid-19 outbreak on ‘lax’ playersVideo
MIAMI — Miami Marlins CEO Derek Jeter blamed the team’s coronavirus outbreak on a collective false sense of security that made players lax about social distancing and wearing masks. Infected were 21 members of the team’s traveling party, including at least 18 players. None is seriously ill, Jeter said Monday,...
7 Cardinals players, 6 staff test positive; series at Detroit offVideo
NEW YORK — Seven St. Louis Cardinals players and six staff members tested positive for covid-19, causing MLB to postpone the team’s four-game series at Detroit. The series was to have been played at Comerica Park from Tuesday through Thursday. Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said Monday five of those...
Mets slugger Cespedes leaves team, opts out of 2020 seasonVideo
ATLANTA — New York Mets slugger Yoenis Cespedes opted out of the 2020 season on Sunday because of the coronavirus pandemic, providing some clarity after the team said it was unable to locate him. Cespedes did not report to the ballpark for the Mets’ game at Atlanta, and the team...
Rob Manfred confident MLB can get through playoffs despite virus
NEW YORK — Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says he’s confident his sport can get through the regular season and postseason without being stopped by the coronavirus, though not every club might play all 60 games and winning percentage could be used to determine playoff teams. During an interview Saturday with...
Column: Let’s make MLB weirder with even more new rulesVideo
The stat geeks are all excited, even if no one else seems to be. They’ve spent the first days of the baseball season analyzing a bunch of new numbers that show the possibilities — and probabilities — of runners scoring after being put on second base to open extra innings....
Brewers outfielder Lorenzo Cain opts out of 2020 seasonVideo
Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Lorenzo Cain has decided not to play the remainder of the 2020 season. The Brewers announced the two-time All-Star’s decision Saturday hours after news broke their scheduled home opener would be postponed for a second straight day because multiple members of the St. Louis Cardinals have tested...
No new positive tests for Marlins; 2B Isan Diaz opts out
MIAMI — The Miami Marlins received no new positive results in their latest round of coronavirus testing, a person familiar with the situation said Saturday, but second baseman Isan Diaz decided to opt out of the season. The person confirmed the test results to The Associated Press on condition of...
Vagabond Blue Jays stuck on the road with no one to playVideo
Toronto general manager Ross Atkins says life has been difficult for the vagabond Blue Jays at the beginning of a baseball season like no other. The Blue Jays haven’t had a real home game yet and still don’t have a stadium fit to host them. They played twice as the...
Cardinals-Brewers game off after St. Louis positives
NEW YORK — The coronavirus forced another change in Major League Baseball’s schedule, bringing the league’s total to eight teams affected in the first nine days of the season. Friday’s game between St. Louis and Milwaukee was postponed after two Cardinals players tested positive for the coronavirus. The league announced...
Blue Jays manager: Series at Phillies off because of covid-19Video
NEW YORK — Toronto Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said Thursday his team’s series at Philadelphia scheduled for this weekend was called off because of concerns about the coronavirus after two Phillies staffers tested positive. “Our plans right now are to stay put and let MLB work through whatever they’re...
17th Marlins player tests positive for virusVideo
NEW YORK — Another player with the Miami Marlins has tested positive for coronavirus, bringing the team’s outbreak total to 17 players, according to a person familiar with the situation. The person spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because test results were not announced. The Marlins...
MLB hitters slow out of the box to start 60-game season
NEW YORK — Two-time defending NL batting champion Christian Yelich has a long way to go if he wants a three-peat. The Milwaukee Brewers star is 1 for 28 to start the season, an .037 average that’s worst among qualified hitters. Not by much. Houston’s George Springer is batting .048,...
MLB doubleheaders could get shortened to 7-inning gamesVideo
NEW YORK — Ernie Banks famously said, “Let’s play two.” Baseball players just might not want to play nine innings twice in one day during this pandemic-delayed season. While Cleveland swept the Chicago White Sox in the first doubleheader of the season Tuesday, union head Tony Clark called deputy commissioner...
John McNamara, manager of ill-fated ’86 Red Sox, dies at 88Video
BOSTON — John McNamara, who managed the Boston Red Sox to within one strike of a World Series victory in 1986 before an unprecedented collapse on the field extended the team’s championship drought into the new millennium, died. He was 88. McNamara died Tuesday at his home in Tennessee, his...
Dodgers’ Kelly suspended 8 games for buzzing, mocking AstrosVideo
HOUSTON — Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Joe Kelly was suspended for eight games by MLB on Wednesday, a day after throwing a fastball near the head of Houston’s Alex Bregman and taunting Astros star Carlos Correa. Benches cleared after Kelly’s actions during the sixth inning of Los Angeles’ 5-2 win...
Mark Madden: Covid-19 chaos is spreading from MLB to NFLVideo
MLB is imploding, and not just the Pittsburgh Pirates’ bullpen. As of this writing, 18 Miami Marlins have tested positive for covid-19. This past Sunday, when the outbreak began via three players testing positive, the Marlins players voted to play that day anyway. Memo to morons: You can’t rub dirt...
In wake of Houston’s sign-stealing scandal, benches clear as Dodgers beat Astros
HOUSTON — The Houston Astros are trying to put their sign-stealing scandal behind them. It seems as if the Los Angeles Dodgers have their own thoughts on the matter. Benches cleared Tuesday night during the Dodgers’ 5-2 victory over the Astros in the first game between the teams since it...
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes becoming part owner of Kansas City RoyalsVideo
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes is joining the ownership group of the Kansas City Royals. The Royals announced the addition of Mahomes, the star quarterback who led the Kansas City Chiefs to a Super Bowl title last season, Tuesday. Mahomes is a former baseball prospect and...
AP source: Yankees-Phillies postponed for 2nd straight day
PHILADELPHIA — The New York Yankees-Philadelphia Phillies games was postponed Tuesday for the second straight day, according to a person familiar with the league’s decision. The Phillies were waiting for complete results from their covid-19 tests following an outbreak among the Miami Marlins, who played a weekend series in Philadelphia....
MLB temporarily suspends Marlins season through the weekend
MIAMI — MLB temporarily suspended the Miami Marlins’ season through Sunday because of their worsening coronavirus outbreak, and the three remaining games in this week’s New York Yankees-Philadelphia Phillies series were postponed Tuesday. In a statement, MLB said it wanted to allow the Marlins time to focus on providing care...
Rangers’ Kluber could be done for year with shoulder injuryVideo
Two-time AL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber could be done for the season. He is headed to the injured list after working just one inning in his debut as a Texas Rangers starter. He has a tear in a small muscle in his right shoulder and is not expected to...
Josh Harrison signs with Nationals after release by Phillies
WASHINGTON — Utility player Josh Harrison signed a one-year contract with the Washington Nationals and was added to their 30-man active roster Monday, less than a week after he was released by the Philadelphia Phillies. The 33-year-old Harrison is a two-time All-Star and a right-handed hitter who has started games...
2 MLB games postponed as Marlins deal with virus outbreak
MIAMI — Two major league games scheduled for Monday night were postponed after more than a dozen Miami Marlins players and staff members tested positive for the coronavirus in an outbreak that stranded the team in Philadelphia. The Marlins’ home opener against Baltimore was called off, as was the New...
MLB returns with thrills; red flags remain after 1st weekend
NEW YORK — The World Series champion Washington Nationals stood six feet apart along the first base line and watched as a banner commemorating their title was raised, then took a knee alongside the New York Yankees in a call for social justice. Star slugger Juan Soto wasn’t there —...
Astros’ Verlander out at least two weeks with forearm strainVideo
HOUSTON — Reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander has a strained right forearm and will be shut down for at least two weeks. Astros manager Dusty Baker announced the injury after Houston’s 7-6 loss to the Mariners on Sunday. Baker denied a report that said the injury would...
