MLB

1:49 PM ET What happened in the exhibition game broadcasts last week on ESPN was the equivalent of dropping a shovel into the ground and touching off a fountain of oil. About a dozen players wore microphones for three dozen innings and generated viral moments that will last — and shape the game’s future. We

5:03 PM ET Associated Press PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — Baltimore outfielder/first baseman Trey Mancini has left the Orioles to undergo what the team is calling “a non-baseball-related medical procedure.” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde, who made the announcement after a game at Tampa Bay on Saturday, said Mancini “is going to miss some time” but didn’t

2:36 PM ET A stomach issue that prevented Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts from playing Friday is expected to keep him out of spring training games until at least Wednesday, manager Dave Roberts told reporters Saturday. The problem first popped up Friday night, when Betts was scratched from playing against the Seattle Mariners about

7:00 AM ET A team’s record in spring training doesn’t mean much, and that’s true for a player’s statistics as well. Factors such as small sample size, wildly varying talent levels of the opposition, and players working on specific aspects of their game muddy the picture in terms of spring stats. The same isn’t necessarily

Mar 6, 2020 Todd ZolaFantasy Close Writing on fantasy baseball game theory and player analysis since 1997 Winner of the 2013 Fantasy Sports Writer’s Association Best Baseball Article “Now you tell me.” — The proverbial famous last words said after finding out pertinent information when it’s too late to use it to your advantage. Unfortunately,

8:00 AM ET New rules. Robot umps. A reimagined postseason. As Major League Baseball attempts to tweak its formula for a new generation of fans, there have been some hits and some misses. We have an idea that could be a home run. While Players Weekend has been a big success for the league the

11:19 PM ET Additional tests on the ailing shoulder of prized young Athletics left-hander A.J. Puk revealed no structural damage, Oakland manager Bob Melvin told reporters Thursday. Puk, the sixth overall pick in the 2016 draft, had visited renowned orthopedist Dr. Neal ElAttrache this week after feeling some mild discomfort in the shoulder. He will

7:00 AM ET The days are growing brighter and moderately warmer even here along the western shore of Lake Michigan. Soon, I’ll be making my annual trip to spring training. This year, it’ll be to Arizona. And for that, I’m grateful, because it puts a buffer of a couple thousand miles between me and West

7:00 AM ET Sam Alipour | ESPN It’s 4:30 p.m. on a Wednesday, and, my mom would be thrilled to know, I’m getting my butt kicked in a beer-chugging contest at a Scottsdale bar — bringing up the rear in a three-horse race: 2018 NL MVP Christian Yelich, 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger and a

7:00 AM ET This case is not an episode of “Law & Order,” wrapped up in a nice tidy hour of television. The evidence is murky and inconclusive. Then again, maybe the evidence — such as it might be — doesn’t matter. The Houston Astros, after all, have admitted to cheating in 2017, offering apologies

7:11 PM ET It looks like Christian Yelich will be signing a contract extension that could keep him with the Milwaukee Brewers through 2028 (or 2029 if both side exercise a mutual option), for a total value for the deal at about $215 million. Nine-figure contracts in Major League Baseball aren’t that common, but in

8:00 AM ET LAKELAND, Fla. — The New York Yankees are heavy favorites to win the American League East, after adding Gerrit Cole. The Tampa Bay Rays won 96 games last year, and nearly derailed the Houston Astros‘ run to the World Series. The Boston Red Sox, on the other hand, traded their best player,

3:39 PM ET Tampa Bay Rays minor league outfielder Garrett Whitley was struck by a foul ball in the dugout Monday during the team’s spring training game with the Orioles. The team said Whitley has “a right facial injury” and will undergo further testing. Orioles infielder Renato Nunez fouled a ball off and sent it

7:00 AM ET Only one World Series favorite entering the season actually won the World Series in the decade we just completed. Wait, let’s put that another way: A team that was one of the top five favorites entering the season won the World Series only once over the past decade. The 2019 Washington Nationals

8:30 AM ET Sam MillerESPN.com Close ESPN baseball columnist/feature writerFormer editor-in-chief of Baseball ProspectusCo-author of “The Only Rule Is It Has To Work” Two years ago, before baseball had become consumed by the scandal of scurrilous teams trying too hard to win, we had the simmering crisis at the opposite end of the spectrum: teams

7:00 AM ET Kiley McDanielESPN Close ESPN MLB Insider Kiley McDaniel covers MLB prospects, the MLB Draft and more, including trades and free agency. Has worked for three MLB teams. Co-author of Author of ‘Future Value’ This is my first stab at a top 100 prospects list for Major League Baseball at ESPN after doing

8:00 AM ET First, a warning: Don’t print out this article and take it to Vegas. Our 2020 MLB O/U’s aren’t bookie-approved — they’re just some debates we’ve been having this spring as we eagerly await baseball games that count. Still, the answers could tell us a lot about how the upcoming season will play

7:00 AM ET MESA, Ariz. — What’s different about spring training for players compared to the regular season? How about everything. It starts with being in the same place for six weeks, getting up daily before dawn and then playing half of a game before heading to the pool or golf course. None of that