CINCINNATI (AP) — Mike Moustakas watched the Reds from the visiting dugout and saw a team on the rise. He decided to become a key part in the franchise's attempt to become a winner again.The All-Star infielder completed a $64 million, four-year contract with Cincinnati on Thursday, the biggest free agent deal in franchise history.They agreed to the deal earlier in the week. Moustakas was in town to sign it and get introduced at the team's annual fan festival this weekend.“Being on the other side, playing in Milwaukee, I was able to see what these guys had and what they were bringing to the table," Moustakas said after pulling on a No. 9 Reds uniform. “I want to make this team a little better and get to the postseason. The most addictive thing is postseason baseball."Moustakas becomes the second-highest paid player on the roster behind Joey Votto, who makes $25 million each of the next four seasons. Moustakas gets $12 million next year, $14 million in 2021, $16 million in 2022 and $18 million... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — Mike Moustakas watched the Reds from the visiting dugout and saw a team on the rise. He decided to become a key part in the franchise's attempt to become a winner again.The All-Star infielder completed a $64 million, four-year contract with Cincinnati on Thursday, the biggest free agent deal in franchise history.They agreed to the deal earlier in the week. Moustakas was in town to sign it and get introduced at the team's annual fan festival this weekend.“Being on the other side, playing in Milwaukee, I was able to see what these guys had and what they were bringing to the table," Moustakas said after pulling on a No. 9 Reds uniform. “I want to make this team a little better and get to the postseason. The most addictive thing is postseason baseball."Moustakas becomes the second-highest paid player on the roster behind Joey Votto, who makes $25 million each of the next four seasons. Moustakas gets $12 million next year, $14 million in 2021, $16 million in 2022 and $18 million... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — All-Star infielder Mike Moustakas completed a $64 million, four-year contract Thursday with the Cincinnati Reds, the biggest free agent deal in franchise history.They agreed to the deal earlier in the week. Moustakas was in town to sign it Thursday and get introduced at the team's annual fan festival.He gets $12 million next year, $14 million in 2021, $16 million in 2022 and $18 million in 2023. Cincinnati has a $20 million option for 2024 with a $4 million buyout.Moustakas has a $250,000 bonus for winning an MVP award, $200,000 for finishing second and $150,000 for third. He would receive $100,000 for winning a Gold Glove, and $75,000 apiece for becoming an All-Star or winning a Silver Slugger. He will donate 1% of his base salary to the Reds' charity. The Reds have become active in free agency the last two years, trying to escape a rut of six straight losing seasons. They signed Moustakas from the NL Central-rival Brewers. The 31-year-old infielder will plug the Reds'... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — All-Star infielder Mike Moustakas completed a $64 million, four-year contract Thursday with the Cincinnati Reds, the biggest free agent deal in franchise history.They agreed to the deal earlier in the week. Moustakas was in town to sign it Thursday and get introduced at the team's annual fan festival.The Reds have become active in free agency the last two years, trying to escape a rut of six straight losing seasons. They signed Moustakas from the NL Central-rival Brewers. The 31-year-old infielder will plug the Reds' hole at second base, which opened when Scooter Gennett got hurt and then was traded at midseason.Cincinnati scored the fourth-fewest runs in the NL last season despite one of the league’s most hitter-friendly ballparks. Bulking up on offense is their top priority in the offseason.“Mike is a proven performer on winning teams, and we are excited to add his power and experience to our roster," Reds owner Bob Castellini said.Moustakas hit .254 with 35 homers and... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — All-Star infielder Mike Moustakas and the Cincinnati Reds have agreed to a $64 million, four-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press, the team’s first move to upgrade a lineup that struggled to score.The person spoke on condition of anonymity Monday because the agreement had not been announced.For the second consecutive offseason, the active Reds are splurging as they try to shake themselves out of a rut of six straight losing seasons. Their first move involves getting a player from the NL Central-rival Milwaukee Brewers. The 31-year-old Moustakas could fill the Reds’ hole at second base that opened when Scooter Gennett got hurt and then was traded last season.Cincinnati scored the fourth-fewest runs in the NL last season despite one of the league’s most hitter-friendly ballparks. Bulking up on offense, stabilizing the outfield and overhauling the bullpen are the Reds’ priorities in the offseason.Moustakas is a first step toward... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — All-Star infielder Mike Moustakas and the Cincinnati Reds have agreed to a $64 million, four-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press, the team’s first move to upgrade a lineup that struggled to score.The person spoke on condition of anonymity Monday because the agreement had not been announced.For the second straight offseason, the Reds are making a splurge in free agency as they try to shake themselves out of a rut of six straight losing seasons. Their first move involves getting a player from the NL Central-rival Milwaukee Brewers. The 31-year-old could fill the Reds’ hole at second base that opened when Scooter Gennett got hurt and then was traded last season.Cincinnati scored the fourth-fewest runs in the NL last season despite one of the league’s most hitter-friendly ballparks. Bulking up on offense, stabilizing the outfield and overhauling the bullpen are the Reds’ priorities in the offseason.Moustakas is a first step toward... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — All-Star infielder Mike Moustakas and the Cincinnati Reds have agreed to a $64 million, four-year contract, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press, the team’s first move to upgrade a lineup that struggled to score.The person spoke on condition of anonymity Monday because the agreement had not been announced.For the second straight offseason, the Reds are making a splurge in free agency as they try to shake themselves out of a rut of six straight losing seasons. Their first move involves getting a player from the NL Central-rival Milwaukee Brewers. The 31-year-old could fill the Reds’ hole at second base that opened when Scooter Gennett got hurt and then was traded last season.Cincinnati scored the fourth-fewest runs in the NL last season despite one of the league’s most hitter-friendly ballparks. Bulking up on offense, stabilizing the outfield and overhauling the bullpen are the Reds’ priorities in the offseason.Moustakas is a first step toward... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — The bases were loaded and the 27,774 fans were on their feet begging for a hit that would allow retiring broadcaster Marty Brennaman to proclaim one final, glorious time: "This one belongs to the Reds!"It never happened. Jose Peraza flied out routinely to end the eighth-inning rally, leaving fans crestfallen over yet another wasted opportunity in a season full of them. The Reds lost their final home game 5-3 to the Brewers."And that has been the essence of this ballclub the entire season," Brennaman summed up.Marty nailed it.The Reds tried an unorthodox strategy to become relevant in 2019. Rather than keeping with their plan of rebuilding with young players, they became movers and shakers in the offseason, bringing in veterans who were in the final years of their deals.Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp, Alex Wood, Tanner Roark and Sonny Gray came aboard, with Gray agreeing to a contract extension while the others were a season away from free agency. The Reds accomplished their overriding... [More]

Pirates third. Jacob Stallings singles to center field. Erik Gonzalez flies out to right field to Aristides Aquino. Trevor Williams out on a sacrifice bunt to shallow infield, Derek Dietrich to Freddy Galvis. Jacob Stallings to second. Kevin Newman walks. Bryan Reynolds doubles to right field, advances to 3rd. Kevin Newman scores. Jacob Stallings scores. Fielding error by Derek Dietrich. Starling Marte grounds out to shallow infield, Alex Wood to Derek Dietrich.2 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 1 left on. Pirates 2, Reds 0.Pirates sixth. Kevin Newman walks. Bryan Reynolds walks. Kevin Newman to second. Starling Marte reaches on a fielder's choice to shortstop. Bryan Reynolds out at second. Kevin Newman to third. Josh Bell hit by pitch. Starling Marte to second. Jose Osuna singles to second base. Josh Bell to second. Starling Marte to third. Kevin Newman scores. Colin Moran pinch-hitting for Pablo Reyes. Colin Moran homers to right field. Jose Osuna scores. Josh Bell scores. Starling Marte scores.... [More]

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — José Quintana pitched seven crisp innings, Anthony Rizzo hit a two-run homer and the Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-1 on Sunday night in the MLB Little League Classic.Nicholas Castellanos and Jason Heyward also connected as Chicago earned its second straight win since consecutive heartbreaking losses to the Phillies and Pirates.The Cubs took two of three in the unusual weekend set and remain in a virtual tie with St. Louis for the top spot in the NL Central.Starling Marté had three hits for Pittsburgh, including his 21st homer in the ninth. Mitch Keller (1-2) allowed six runs in 4 1/3 innings.With grinning Little Leaguers dressed in their uniforms filling the stands at BB&T Ballpark, Quintana (11-7) allowed five hits and walked none. The left-hander improved to 7-0 in nine starts since his last loss June 22.ASTROS 4, ATHLETICS 1OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Zack Greinke threw seven smooth innings for his 200th win, helping the AL West-leading Astros avoid... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Zack Greinke threw seven smooth innings for his 200th win, pitching the first-place Houston Astros past the Oakland Athletics 4-1 on Sunday to avoid a four-game sweep.Alex Bregman had a three-run homer among his four hits to back Greinke, who won his third straight start since joining the Astros from the Arizona Diamondbacks at the July 31 trade deadline.Greinke (13-4) went nine up, nine down on 25 pitches to start the game before giving up Marcus Semien's 21st homer. The right-hander allowed four hits with three walks and six strikeouts. He became the 115th pitcher in major league history to reach 200 career wins, and the second in Houston's rotation along with Justin Verlander.Roberto Osuna finished for his 27th save as the Astros stopped a five-game slide.Yuli Gurriel added an RBI double for Houston, which snapped Oakland's four-game winning streak. The Astros went back ahead of the A's by 7 1/2 games in the AL West race.Athletics lefty Brett Anderson (10-9) allowed... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors today:TARGET TIMEA couple months ago, Cleveland trailed the Twins by 11 ½ games in the AL Central and was being written off as too old and too banged-up. But by going a baseball-best 38-16 since June 4, the Indians have closed within two games of Minnesota heading into this four-game series at Target Field.Mike Clevinger (6-2, 3.07 ERA) starts the opener for the Indians against Kyle Gibson (11-4, 4.02). Clevinger is 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in his last three road starts."Guys are in a good mood, feeling good and excited to get to Minnesota," Cleveland second baseman Jason Kipnis said.HOT AS COLECubs lefty Cole Hamels (6-3, 2.84 ERA) looks to stay on track against Alex Wood (1-0, 3.18) at Cincinnati. Hamels pitched five shutout innings versus Milwaukee last Saturday in his return from a five-week stint on the injured list with a strained oblique, and is 2-2 with a 1.07 ERA in his last seven starts.Two-time All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy is expected... [More]

A look at what's happening around the majors Thursday:TARGET TIMEA couple months ago, Cleveland trailed the Twins by 11 1/2 games in the AL Central and was being written off as too old and too banged-up. But by going a baseball-best 38-16 since June 4, the Indians have closed within two games of Minnesota heading into this four-game series at Target Field.Mike Clevinger (6-2, 3.07 ERA) starts the opener for the Indians against Kyle Gibson (11-4, 4.02). Clevinger is 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in his last three road starts."Guys are in a good mood, feeling good and excited to get to Minnesota," Cleveland second baseman Jason Kipnis said.HOT AS COLECubs lefty Cole Hamels (6-3, 2.84 ERA) looks to stay on track against Alex Wood (1-0, 3.18) at Cincinnati. Hamels pitched five shutout innings versus Milwaukee last Saturday in his return from a five-week stint on the injured list with a strained oblique, and is 2-2 with a 1.07 ERA in his last seven starts.Two-time All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy is expected... [More]

July 141916 — St. Louis Browns pitcher Ernie Koob went the distance in a 17-inning 0-0 tie with the Boston Red Sox. Carl Mays went the first 15 innings for the Red Sox and Dutch Leonard finished.1946 — Cleveland player-manager Lou Boudreau hit four doubles and a home run in the first game of a doubleheader against Boston, but Ted Williams connected for three home runs and drove in eight runs for an 11-10 Red Sox victory.1956 — Mel Parnell of the Boston Red Sox pitched a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox for a 4-0 victory at Fenway Park.1967 — Eddie Mathews of the Astros hit his 500th home run off San Francisco's Juan Marichal at Candlestick Park. Houston beat the Giants 8-6.1968 — Hank Aaron got his 500th home run off Mike McCormick as the Atlanta Braves beat the San Francisco Giants 4-2.1968 — Don Wilson of the Houston Astros struck out 18 Reds in a 6-1 victory over Cincinnati in the nightcap of a doubleheader.1969 — Oakland's Reggie Jackson knocked in 10 runs in a 21-7 win over... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — Scooter Gennett began a rehab assignment Monday, the final step in returning from a severe groin injury in spring training that has sidelined the Cincinnati Reds second baseman all season.Gennett will play five days with Single-A Daytona and move up to Triple-A Louisville to continue the rehab, which will last until he feels ready to come off the injured list. Manager David Bell said Gennett will be back in the starting lineup as soon as he's able."We all know he's going to play," Bell said. "He's been a big part of our offense the last few years. There's no reason that would change."There may be some limitations at the beginning, to make sure he's healthy and all that."In the last two years, Gennett has 50 homers and 189 RBIs, joining Dave Parker and Deron Johnson as the only Reds to put up such numbers in their first two seasons with Cincinnati. He was an All-Star for the first time last year, when he finished second to Milwaukee's Christian Yelich for the batting title... [More]

Using the search engine at Baseball-Reference.com, The Associated Press evaluated each team's draft performance from 1996 through 2018, adding up wins above replacement (WAR) figures for drafted players.For each pick, the player's career WAR was added to the appropriate total for the team, depending on whether or not the player signed with the team after being drafted. Some players had their WAR totals included multiple times, if they were drafted more than once.Stats are through May 25. Compensation picks were considered part of the first round where applicable.___ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKSTotal WAR for all drafted players: 581.8 (MLB rank: 4th)Total WAR for drafted players who signed: 440.1 (rank: 5th)Total WAR for drafted players who did not sign: 141.7Impact players (10 WAR or more) drafted: 17 (rank: tie-9th)Impact players drafted and signed: 13 (rank: 12th)Most recent impact player drafted and signed: Trevor Bauer, 2011, first round, pick No. 3 (15.2 WAR)Lowest pick for impact player drafted... [More]

CINCINNATI (AP) — The Reds have released injured outfielder Matt Kemp just over four months after acquiring the 2018 All-Star from the Los Angeles Dodgers.Cincinnati announced the move Saturday.Kemp hit .200 with one homer and five RBIs before Cincinnati placed him on the injured list April 23 with a broken left rib. Kemp was injured colliding with an outfield wall in San Diego.The 34-year-old was among four players acquired from Los Angeles in a seven-player trade in December along with outfielder Yasiel Puig, infielder Kyle Farmer and left-hander Alex Wood. Kemp is in the final season of a $160 million, eight-year contract.The Reds also optioned OF Scott Schebler to Triple-A Louisville and recalled LHP Cody Reed from Louisville. Schebler was hitting .123 with two home runs and seven RBIs in 30 games and had lost his starting job to top prospect Nick Senzel, who made his major league debut Friday.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Yasiel Puig was late arriving to Dodger Stadium Monday in his first game since being traded to Cincinnati.He turned up with a bang once the game began.Puig hammered a two-run homer in the first inning off Clayton Kershaw, who was making his season debut for the Dodgers.Puig was greeted with a mix of boos and cheers as he rounded the bases to put the Reds ahead 2-0.The Dodgers honored Puig, Matt Kemp, Alex Wood and Kyle Farmer in a pregame video that highlighted their time in LA. Puig, Kemp and Farmer doffed their caps in appreciation. Wood just rejoined the Reds after being injured.Puig, from Cuba, awed fans with his cannon of an arm and infuriated management with his inconsistent efforts on the field during his six years with the Dodgers.He missed receiving his National League Championship Series ring in person from Dodgers owner Mark Walter and other front-office personnel.They presented the jewelry to Kemp, Wood and Farmer during an informal gathering outside the visitors'... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Old habits apparently die hard when Yasiel Puig is back in Los Angeles.He was late arriving to Dodger Stadium Monday in his return to the city where he awed fans with his cannon of an arm and infuriated management with his inconsistent efforts on the field.The Cuban star who now plays for the Cincinnati Reds missed receiving his National League Championship Series ring in person from Dodgers owner Mark Walter and other front-office personnel.They presented the jewelry to former Dodgers Matt Kemp, Alex Wood and Kyle Farmer during an informal gathering outside the visitors' clubhouse."Just the six of us sharing some stories, saying hello and more so us thanking them for what they did to help us accomplish what we accomplished last year and wishing them well," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.Asked about missing the gathering, Puig said, "He can send the ring to my locker or give it to me at batting practice. He can give it to me in person, I don't care."Roberts chuckled... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Yasiel Puig was late arriving to Dodger Stadium Monday in his return to Los Angeles for the first time since being traded to the Cincinnati Reds.The Cuban star missed receiving his National League Championship Series ring in person from Dodgers owner Mark Walter and other front-office personnel.They presented the jewelry to former Dodgers Matt Kemp, Alex Wood and Kyle Farmer during an informal gathering outside the Reds clubhouse."Just the six of us sharing some stories, saying hello and more so us thanking them for what they did to help us accomplish what we accomplished last year and wishing them well," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.Asked about missing the gathering, Puig said, "He can send the ring to my locker or give it to me at batting practice. He can give it to me in person, I don't care."Roberts chuckled when asked if he was happy to be on the other team now when Puig's name comes up."Yeah, I am happy," he said, smiling.Roberts said he and Puig "are good,"... [More]