TORONTO (AP) — The Blue Jays figure a healthy Aaron Sanchez can lead them back into the playoffs.Sanchez was an All-Star in 2016, when the right-hander went 15-2 with an American League-leading 3.00 ERA. But blisters on the middle finger of his pitching hand caused four stints on the disabled list. He went 1-3 with a 4.25 ERA and didn't pitch after July 19.Sanchez resumed throwing in early December and is confident his finger has healed"I'll have to maintain it like I have in years past, but no more of the disaster that it had last year," he said.Toronto used a club-record 14 starters last season en route to a 76-86 record and fourth-place finish in the AL East. Only Marcus Stroman and Marco Estrada made 30 starts, and the fill-ins weren't enough to make a playoff run.Some things to watch ahead of Blue Jays spring training in Florida:NEW LOOK: Outfielders Randal Grichuk and Curtis Granderson and infielders Aledmys Diaz and Yangervis Solarte are Toronto's primary offseason additions. Grichuk... [More]

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Mike Trout, the best player in baseball, won't be the biggest attraction in spring training for the Los Angeles Angels.That distinction will fall to Japanese two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani, who chose to sign with the Angels in December following league-wide interest and years of intrigue about the 23-year-old with a powerful right arm and productive bat from the left side of the plate.The hope is that the arrival of Ohtani, a rebuilt infield and better health from its starting pitchers can get the two-time American League MVP and the Angels back into the postseason for the first time since 2014, their only appearance in the last eight seasons.And while he won't see as much hype off the field, Trout continues to deliver on it. He hit .306 with 33 home runs, 72 RBIs and 22 stolen bases despite spending time on the disabled list for the first time in his career with a thumb injury.Here's what to watch for when the Angels arrive in Tempe, Arizona, for spring training:NEW... [More]

A team-by-team look at the American League East entering spring training, including key players each club acquired and lost, and dates of the first workout for pitchers and catchers, and the full squad:___Boston Red SoxManager: Alex Cora (first season).2017: 93-69, first place, lost to Houston in ALDS.Training Town: Fort Myers, Florida.Park: JetBlue Park.First Workout: Feb. 14/19.He's Here: Manager Alex Cora.He's Outta Here: Manager John Farrell, RHP Doug Fister, INF Eduardo Nunez, OF Chris Young, RHP Addison Reed, OF Rajai Davis, LHP Henry Owens, LHP Fernando Abad, RHP Blaine Boyer.Going campin': The Red Sox won 93 games for the second straight season and claimed the franchise's first back-to-back AL East titles. But Farrell was fired after they failed to advance in the playoffs for the fourth year in a row. They are virtually the same team as last year; boss Dave Dombrowski said he was looking for a bat with power and still might add one of the free agents remaining on the market, including... [More]

A team-by-team look at the American League Central entering spring training, including key players each club acquired and lost, and dates of the first workout for pitchers and catchers, and the full squad:___Cleveland IndiansManager: Terry Francona (sixth season).2017: 102-60, first place, lost to New York Yankees in ALDS.Training Town: Goodyear, Arizona.Park: Goodyear Ballpark.First Workout: Feb. 15/19.He's Here: 1B-DH Yonder Alonso, OF Melvin Upton Jr., RHP Alexi Ogando.He's Outta Here: 1B Carlos Santana, OF Jay Bruce, RHP Bryan Shaw, RHP Joe Smith, OF Austin Jackson, LHP Boone Logan.Going campin': Poised to possibly end their 70-year-old World Series title drought, the Indians, who reeled off 22 straight victories in 2017, didn't even make it back to the AL Championship Series after squandering a 2-0 playoff lead against the Yankees. Unlike last winter, when the club signed DH Edwin Encarnacion in free agency, the Indians were relatively quiet, counting on their core to carry them in... [More]

A team-by-team look at the American League West entering spring training, including key players each club acquired and lost, and dates of the first workout for pitchers and catchers, and the full squad:___Houston AstrosManager: A.J. Hinch (fourth season).2017: 101-61, first place, won World Series.Training Town: West Palm Beach, Florida.Park: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.First Workout: Feb. 14/19.He's Here: RHP Gerrit Cole, RHP Joe Smith, RHP Hector Rondon.He's Outta Here: DH Carlos Beltran, RHP Luke Gregerson, RHP Joe Musgrove, RHP Mike Fiers, RHP Michael Feliz, INF Colin Moran.Going campin': This team is basically set after retaining almost every key player from last season's championship squad. The two strongest areas are the middle infield, where shortstop Carlos Correa and second baseman Jose Altuve, last year's AL MVP, return to anchor the middle of the order. Correa hit .315 with 24 homers — both career highs — and Altuve had his finest season, hitting a career-best and major... [More]

A team-by-team look at the National League East entering spring training, including key players each club acquired and lost, and dates of the first workout for pitchers and catchers, and the full squad:___Washington NationalsManager: Dave Martinez (first season).2017: 97-65, first place, lost to Chicago Cubs in NLDS.Training Town: West Palm Beach, Florida.Park: The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.First Workout: Feb. 16/21.He's Here: 1B-OF Matt Adams, C Miguel Montero.He's Outta Here: Manager Dusty Baker, LF Jayson Werth, C Jose Lobaton, 1B-LF Adam Lind, RHP Matt Albers.Going campin': It's become an all-too-familiar story for the Nationals and their fans: terrific regular season, followed by quick playoff exit, followed by a managerial change. Martinez will be the latest skipper to try to lead the club to postseason success — and GM Mike Rizzo has made it clear that ownership expects nothing less than a World Series championship. Martinez has been Joe Maddon's right-hand man with the Chicago... [More]

A team-by-team look at the National League West entering spring training, including key players each club acquired and lost, and dates of the first workout for pitchers and catchers, and the full squad:___Los Angeles DodgersManager: Dave Roberts (third season).2017: 104-58, first place, lost to Houston in World Series.Training Town: Glendale, Arizona.Park: Camelback Ranch.First Workout: Feb. 14/19.He's Here: OF Matt Kemp, RHP Tom Koehler.He's Outta Here: 1B Adrian Gonzalez, RHP Yu Darvish, LHP Scott Kazmir, RHP Brandon McCarthy, INF Charlie Culberson, OF Curtis Granderson, 2B Chase Utley, OF Andre Ethier.Going campin': The Dodgers returned to the World Series for the first time since winning it in 1988, only to lose to Houston in seven games. They topped 100 wins while earning a fifth straight NL West title. Clayton Kershaw is one of the elite pitchers in the game, a seven-time All-Star and three-time Cy Young Award winner. He begins the season with 144 career victories, 21 shy of Sandy... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Rays will have a new look in 2018.A lingering question entering spring training is to what extent.Evan Longoria is gone. So are Alex Cobb, Logan Morrison and Lucas Duda.Jake Odorizzi, and maybe even two-time All-Star Chris Archer or closer Alex Colome, could be on the way out, too, with the budget-minded team committed to trimming payroll while also trying to remain competitive in the tough AL East.Closing the gap on defending division champion Boston and the big-spending New York Yankees, who've added Giancarlo Stanton after coming within one victory of reaching the World Series, won't be easy.The Rays finished 80-82 in 2017, their fourth consecutive losing record on the heels of a stretch in which they made the playoffs four times in six seasons."It's a challenge. You can't sugarcoat it," manager Kevin Cash, entering his fourth season, said of the Yankees adding Stanton, baseball's home run leader, to an already potent batting order."I've already... [More]

BOSTON (AP) — The New York Yankees, Boston's biggest rival, added NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton to a lineup that already included fellow 50 home run-hitter and AL Rookie of the Year Aaron Judge.The Houston Astros added Gerrit Cole to a pitching rotation that was already good enough to win the World Series (knocking the Red Sox out of the playoffs along the way).And what did Boston do to improve this offseason, knowing that its top competition has only gotten better?(Awkward silence.)Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski made it his goal this offseason to add power to a lineup that was last in the AL in homers in 2017. But while several potential free agents remain on an unprecedentedly slow market, the only move Boston has made to fill that hole is re-signing first baseman Mitch Moreland.And it's not just a slugger.The Red Sox haven't really changed much of anything this winter.Dombrowski and new manager Alex Cora like to point out that the team won 93 games last year and... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Once the pain from their postseason elimination eased, the Cleveland Indians didn't panic.Instead, they stayed mostly intact — and confident — this winter.Determined to end their World Series title drought in 2017 after coming so close the previous season, the AL Central champions were bounced in the playoffs by the New York Yankees despite taking a 2-0 series lead.It was a bitter finish for a team that won 102 games and reeled off 22 straight victories. But while there was a sense of finality for some Cleveland fans, manager Terry Francona said these Indians aren't done."I don't think anybody should be pessimistic right now," Francona said last month. "My goodness, we have the best record in the American League the last five years. This has been a good run of baseball, and I don't see that going anywhere."With one of baseball's top rotations, anchored by two-time Cy Young winner Corey Kluber, the Indians are aiming to win their first Series since 1948 and end the majors'... [More]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Carrying their bats and gloves, they leave the weight room and walk the palm tree-lined path past the baseball diamonds to the track.Weight sleds and tires await the boys of summer for the kind of workouts typically reserved for men who make their living on the gridiron in the fall. At the Coach Tom Shaw Performance camp at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, it's common to see Carlos Gonzalez, Martin Prado, Ender Inciarte and several other major leaguers working out alongside football players preparing for the NFL combine and doing the same kind of drills.Players believe these nontraditional winter workouts, a mix of strength- and endurance-training, football cutting drills and some more common baseball moves, make them quicker, more prepared for spring training and better equipped to stay healthy for the 162-game season."Quickness, footwork, all the stuff you use in baseball he perfectly adapted to our workouts," said Prado, an infielder for the Miami... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Right-hander Zack Wheeler beat the New York Mets in salary arbitration on Thursday and reliever Justin Grimm lost to the Chicago Cubs, leaving players with a 7-4 record about halfway through this year's hearings.Wheeler gets a raise from $800,000 to $1.9 million instead of New York's $1.5 million offer. Arbitrators John Skonier, Andrew Strongin and Phillip LaPorte made the decision, one day after hearing arguments.Grimm was given a hike from $1,825,000 to $2.2 million by Mark Burstein, Gary Kendellen and James Darby. He had asked for $2,475,000.A 27-year-old right-hander, Wheeler had Tommy John surgery on March 25, 2016, made one minor league appearance that August and returned to the Mets last spring. He went 3-7 with a 5.21 ERA in 17 starts.Wheeler was sidelined by biceps tendinitis in June, went 0-2 in four starts when he returned while allowing 24 hits and 11 walks in 20 innings, then went on the DL for the rest of the season with what the team said was a stress reaction... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The young core of the Chicago Cubs is learning with each long playoff run.Coming off their first World Series title since 1908, the Cubs got off to a slow start last year and had to push themselves in the second half to overcome Milwaukee and win the NL Central. But they lined up with Washington in the first round of the playoffs and the grueling series with the Nationals took its toll, sending the Cubs on to a lopsided loss to rested Los Angeles in the next round.The grind of a third straight trip to the NL Championship Series left an impression."I think it just teaches you how every year is so different," pitcher Kyle Hendricks said, "not just the season, but the offseason too, and how you get your body ready. For a lot of us young guys, I think we learned a lot between the 16-17 year and that offseason and I think we're using it to our advantage this year; just how much to rest, how much to work out, what you need to get ready."The division is much improved, but the Cubs... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — There isn't a lot new to the Arizona Diamondbacks this spring, with a couple of notable exceptions.J.D. Martinez won't be in the outfield and the Diamondbacks need a closer.Still, there should be plenty of optimism when the team reports to the Scottsdale, Arizona, training facility, with the entire rotation and pretty much every position player returning from the team that won 93 games, earned the top NL Wild Card spot and beat Colorado in the Wild Card game before being swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS.The glaring omission from last year's team is Martinez, who probably slugged his way well out of the Diamondbacks' price range with his half-season in Arizona following a trade with Detroit. Martinez is among the many free agents yet to sign a deal.Lovullo, named National League manager of the year for his work in his first season in Arizona, has to determine who his team's closer will be. Fernando Rodney is gone, and an intriguing possibility is for the team's... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — A group of Miami Marlins fans angered by new CEO Derek Jeter's offseason salary dump wants to protest by not attending games.Wait. Hasn't South Florida been boycotting the Marlins for years?A franchise notorious for poor attendance and losing records might achieve new lows in both categories this year under Jeter. He gutted the lineup by trading four starters, including major league home run champion Giancarlo Stanton, antagonizing an already small fan base.The result will likely be another long season, but spring training should actually be interesting as manager Don Mattingly sorts out the numerous prospects acquired for Stanton, stolen base champ Dee Gordon, All-Star left fielder Marcell Ozuna and center fielder Christian Yelich.___Some things to know as the Marlins report to spring training in Jupiter, Florida:NEW LOOKPayroll paring was the primary motive for the trades, and the only established player the Marlins obtained was infielder Starlin Castro in the Stanton deal... [More]

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Mike Matheny is well aware that he has yet to earn a World Series championship ring during his six seasons as the manager of the Cardinals. It's not like St. Louis, an 11-time World Series champion, would let him forget.When the Cardinals begin spring training next week in Jupiter, Florida, they'll do so as an underdog behind NL rivals Chicago and Milwaukee. Both the Cubs and Brewers finished ahead of St. Louis last year. The Cardinals have missed the playoffs in consecutive years for the first time since 2007 and '08."The World Series is what we're paid to chase and what our fans expect, and that's exactly what we want to chase and what we expect of ourselves," said Matheny, who replaced Tony La Russa.The Cardinals were 83-79 last season after injuries to top pitching prospect Alex Reyes and free agent signing Dexter Fowler.Reyes is expected to return this season, Fowler is healthy and St. Louis acquired left fielder Marcell Ozuna from Miami in one of the offseason's bigger... [More]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Playing meaningful games in September seems attainable for the Philadelphia Phillies.That's a big step forward for a team with five straight losing seasons. Philadelphia won only 66 games in 2017 and finished last in the NL East for a third time in four years.A decade after winning the franchise's second World Series title, the Phillies have a solid group of young players ready to make summers at the ballpark fun again the way Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins did from 2007-11.Slugger Rhys Hoskins, shortstop J.P. Crawford, outfielder Nick Williams and catcher Jorge Alfaro proved they belonged in the majors and will get a chance to showcase their talent over a full season.Outfielders Odubel Herrera and Aaron Altherr and second baseman Cesar Hernandez have been productive for a few years. Veteran first baseman Carlos Santana got big money in free agency to complete a lineup that has a chance to be dynamic.It will be up to new manager Gabe Kapler to maximize their... [More]

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The rebuilding plan for the Milwaukee Brewers is a smashing success, so much so that they're not really rebuilding anymore.Bold moves to trade for Christian Yelich and sign free agent Lorenzo Cain sent a message."We decided winning in 2018 was as important as to win in 2020," owner Mark Attanasio said.A surprising 2017 season that left Milwaukee a win short of the playoffs raised hopes in what was supposed to be just the second full season of a rebuild. Rising expectations accompanied the acquisitions of Yelich and Cain.Those NL Central meetings with the two-time division champion Chicago Cubs should be fun this year."Last year, I got asked where we were and if we were ahead of schedule," Attanasio said at the team's winter fan event in downtown Milwaukee. "I think we can say now we're ahead of schedule."Some things to watch ahead of the start of spring training:NEW LOOK: The slick-fielding Cain and Yelich improve the outfield defense, which should help the pitching staff... [More]

SAN DIEGO (AP) — With the San Diego Padres still in deep rebuilding mode, the player a lot of fans are interested in seeing the most is a 19-year-old shortstop who has yet to spend a day in the big leagues.Fernando Tatis Jr., the son of the former major leaguer, earned an invitation to spring training with the big league club. So did some other top prospects, including second baseman Luis Arias and pitchers Cal Quantrill — also the son of a former big leaguer — Eric Lauer, Joey Lucchesi and Jacob Nix.Tatis is the crown jewel of the Padres' highly rated farm system. Once he reaches the big leagues, the organization hopes he can stop the years-long turnstile at shortstop.Manager Andy Green is looking forward to working with Tatis and other young players who will form the next waves of callups for a franchise that hasn't been to the playoffs since 2006."These are guys we've been talking about for a while and now they're here," Green said, "For me, that's exciting."Here are some things to look... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — By the end of last season, the New York Mets' vaunted pitching staff was broken. So they brought in rookie manager Mickey Callaway as Mister Fix-it.The former Cleveland Indians guru begins his first managerial job at any level next week when New York opens spring training in Port St. Lucie, Florida. The primary task for Callaway and first-year Mets pitching coach Dave Eiland: rebuild the same rotation with their own set of tools.Callaway, the lauded pitching coach of a highly successful group in Cleveland, has already hinted at implementing unorthodox tactics such as summoning his closer in the middle innings and occasionally using six starters. He plans to keep the brittle arms sharp with throwing and conditioning programs."Our season is going to turn on the health of our pitching," general manager Sandy Alderson said last month. "If we have a reasonably healthy season out of our pitching, particularly our starting pitching, we're going to be pretty good."New York rode... [More]