TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Patiently monitoring baseball's slow-moving market, the Minnesota Twins made several significant improvements to the team that made a surprise run last season to the AL wild card game.Right-hander Lance Lynn became the latest addition when the Twins finalized a $12 million, one-year contract on Monday, another low-risk move to strengthen a pitching staff that ranked 19th in the major leagues last year with a 4.59 ERA."I think there was at least, my take on it, a real interest of the player to make this a marriage and I think that helped our cause," Twins manager Paul Molitor said.Lynn, who joined his new teammates on the field for an afternoon workout in Fort Myers, will be introduced at a news conference on Tuesday before taking the mound for an exhibition against Baltimore.Molitor thinks there's a chance that Lynn could be ready to pitch the first time through the regular-season rotation."I told him this is different circumstances, if you're not ready to throw 100 pitches... [More]

Neil Walker became the latest free agent to take a big pay cut as opening day approaches, joining the New York Yankees on Monday with a one-year deal for $4 million.The veteran infielder made $17.2 million last season while playing for the New York Mets and Milwaukee. He can make $1 million in performance bonuses this year.The 32-year-old Walker hit .265 with 14 home runs and 49 RBIs last season, then became a free agent. He will likely start at second base, giving prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar more time to mature in the minor leagues."It's certainly a crazy offseason, but more than anything my hope was that I'd land somewhere that's going to be competitive and have a chance to win," Walker said. "I'm happy to be here, happy to be on a contending team."Pitcher Lance Lynn got right to work with Minnesota after finalizing his $12 million, one-year deal. He turned down a $17.4 million offer to stay with St. Louis, and looked for a richer contract in free agency.Lynn limbered... [More]

The Colorado Rockies added another charismatic leader to their 2018 clubhouse.They certainly didn't have to look very far, either.Colorado finalized a $5 million, one-year contract with three-time All-Star outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, who always has been popular with teammates in part because he rarely loses his sense of humor or perspective.Not even last season, when he was in the midst of a prolonged slump. His agreement announced Monday includes another $3 million in bonuses based on days on the active roster.Gonzalez had a $20 million salary last year in the final season of an $80 million, seven-year contract and became a free agent after nine seasons with the Rockies. The three-time Gold Glove winner struggled for most of the year as the Rockies returned to the postseason for the first time since 2009. He showed signs of breaking out of his funk down the stretch, hitting six of his 14 homers in September.His reawakening bat happened to coincide with his ability to get some restful sleep.... [More]

The Colorado Rockies finalized a $5 million, one-year contract to bring back three-time All-Star and popular clubhouse leader Carlos Gonzalez.His agreement was announced Monday and includes $3 million in bonuses based on days on the active roster.Gonzalez had a $20 million salary last year in the final season of an $80 million, seven-year contract and became a free agent after nine seasons with the Rockies. The three-time Gold Glove outfielder struggled for most of last season as the Rockies returned to the postseason for the first time since 2009. He showed signs of breaking out of his funk down the stretch, though, hitting six of his 14 homers in September.His reawakening bat happened to coincide with his ability to get some restful sleep. CarGo struggled with insomnia last summer and the more he slumped on the field — he was hitting .214 in mid-July — the worse his sleeping habits became. The pattern was all-too-familiar each night — get home from a game, think about it, watch movies... [More]

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — The idea of beginning a season with four regular pitchers unavailable could be anywhere from daunting to devastating for many teams.But that is what the Boston Red Sox could be facing.The Red Sox have four pitchers who might be out for opening day. Three potential starters — left-handers Drew Pomeranz and Eduardo Rodriguez and knuckleballer Steven Wright — could start the season on the disabled list for the AL East champions.Closer Craig Kimbrel has been in Boston since Feb. 28, when 4-month-old daughter Lydia, who was born with heart ailments, underwent her second surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital.Kimbrel has been working out in the Boston area but has not been able to pitch to hitters, and there's no timetable for his return.New manager Alex Cora and the organization have been completely supportive of Kimbrel staying with his family. But with opening day little more than two weeks away, they might have to get creative."We've got a few things set up for... [More]

SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Bartolo Colon could be pitching his way into the Texas Rangers' rotation at age 44 as he continues to shut down hitters half his age in spring training.The Rangers also ended their try to move Matt Bush from the bullpen into the rotation."I'm very happy and I get to go back to doing what I know how to do," Bush said Monday. "There are plenty of good starters and this is a role they need me to go back to. They know what they are doing and I feel like it is the right decision."The Rangers' rotation has a lot of moving parts.Cole Hamels, Matt Moore and Doug Fister appear to be locks for the top three spots. Mike Minor remains a candidate, but could be switched to closer, a role he was effective in at the end of last season with Kansas City.Left-hander Martin Perez threw 69 pitches in a minor league game Monday, allowing six runs, three earned, in four innings. He has been set back in spring training after breaking his right (non-pitching) elbow in December in an incident... [More]

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Tommy Hunter's biggest pitch for the Philadelphia Phillies came before he even took the mound for his new team.Since he signed a two-year deal in December, the reliever had been pushing Jake Arrieta to follow him to Philadelphia.Done deal.Arrieta and the Phillies finalized a $75 million, three-year contract on Monday, a deal that could be worth up to $135 million over five seasons. Arrieta was to be introduced at spring training during a news conference on Tuesday."I've been on the phone with him this whole entire offseason to see if it can work out," Hunter said Monday. "I was coming hard. It's not up to you as a player or a friend. Ultimately it's up to the people in charge to get this done and they did it."General manager Matt Klentak called it an "exciting day for the Phillies organization and our fans.""Jake is among the best pitchers in baseball and his list of accomplishments is exceptional," Klentak said in a press release. "He is an elite competitor, a tireless... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Free agent Neil Walker and the Yankees agreed to a $4 million, one-year contract, a 75 percent paycut for the infielder in a deal that allows New York prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar more time to mature in the minor leagues.Walker likely will start at second base and Brandon Drury, acquired from Arizona last month, will play third. Walker can make $1 million in performance bonuses: $125,000 each for 425, 450, 475 and 500 plate appearances.Walker is among the victims of a historically slow free agent market. He earned $17.2 million last season, when he accepted a qualifying offer from the New York Mets. The 32-year-old hit .265 with 14 homers and 49 RBIs last year for the Mets and Milwaukee, who acquired him Aug. 12.An agreement with Walker at that price would raise the Yankees' projected luxury tax payroll to approximately $181 million, about $16 million below the luxury tax threshold.He had been working out at the camp for free agents in Bradenton, Florida, organized by the players' association.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — By patiently monitoring baseball's slow-moving market this winter, the Minnesota Twins have made several significant improvements to the team that made a surprise run last season to the AL wild card game.The Twins finalized a $12 million, one-year contract on Monday with right-hander Lance Lynn, another low-risk move toward strengthening their pitching staff that ranked 19th in the major leagues in 2017 with a 4.59 ERA.Lynn, who joined his new teammates on the field for an afternoon workout in Fort Myers, Florida, will be introduced at a news conference on Tuesday before taking the mound for an exhibition against Baltimore.After missing the 2016 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Lynn went 11-8 with a 3.43 ERA in 33 starts for St. Louis in 2017 last year. The 6-foot-5, 280-pound Lynn was an All-Star in 2012, his first full season in the majors. He was the 39th overall draft pick in 2008 by the Cardinals out of Mississippi.With the Twins, Lynn will join fellow... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — Striking the right balance could help the Milwaukee Brewers reach new heights this season.That means striking out less and using the team's upgraded left-handed options to counter opponents. The Brewers added lefty-swinging Christian Yelich from Miami in the offseason to balance a lineup that also boasts power-hitting lefties Eric Thames and Travis Shaw."That's part of building a team that can compete against whatever another team throws against us," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. "I thought last year we took a step, adding Eric and Travis, and now we've taken another step in adding Yelich to make us a really balanced offensive team.""We want that to lead to runs," Counsell added. "We need to improve on what we did last year from a run-scoring perspective."The Brewers ranked 21st among 30 major league teams while averaging 4.52 runs per game last season, and they were the league's worst in average strikeouts (9.7 per game)."I consider myself more of a double guy than... [More]

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Oakland Athletics landed a new starting catcher, finalizing a $6.5 million, one-year contract with free agent Jonathan Lucroy.The team announced the deal Monday and Lucroy was in spring camp at Mesa, Arizona. The 31-year-old two-time All-Star batted .265 with six home runs and 40 RBIs in 123 games last season for Texas and Colorado, which acquired him on July 30.Bruce Maxwell, the first major leaguer to kneel for the national anthem last year following NFL players' leads, had been the projected starter before the acquisition of Lucroy.Oakland designated left-hander Jairo Labourt for assignment to create roster space for Lucroy.___More AP baseball coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

NEW YORK (AP) — Free agent infielder Neil Walker and the New York Yankees are close to a one-year contract worth about $5 million, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Monday because any agreement is subject to a successful physical.Yankees manager Aaron Boone said before Monday night's against Minnesota that general manager Brian Cashman is working through the details."He's a good player," Boone said. "But until something like that is finalized, I don't want to get into it."Walker likely would start at second base and Brandon Drury, acquired from Arizona last month, would play third. That would mean touted prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar probably would start the season in the minor leagues.Walker is among the victims of a historically slow free agent market and will take a huge cut from the $17.2 million he earned last season, when he accepted a qualifying offer from the New York Mets. The 32-year-old hit .265 with 14 homers and 49 RBIs last year for the Mets and Milwaukee, who acquired him Aug. 12.An agreement with Walker at that price would raise the Yankees' projected luxury tax payroll to approximately $182 million, about $15 million below the luxury tax threshold.He had been working out at the camp for free agents in Bradenton, Florida, organized by the players' association.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Tommy Hunter's biggest pitch for the Philadelphia Phillies came before he even took the mound for his new team.Since he signed a two-year deal in December, the reliever has been pushing Jake Arrieta to follow him to Philadelphia. Mission accomplished.Arrieta and the Phillies agreed Sunday to a $75 million, three-year contract, a deal that could be worth up to $135 million over five seasons, three people familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was pending a successful physical."I've been on the phone with him this whole entire offseason to see if it can work out," Hunter said Monday. "I was coming hard. It's not up to you as a player or a friend. Ultimately it's up to the people in charge to get this done and they did it."Hunter and Arrieta have been friends since their college days. They spent four years together in Baltimore and have remained close. Hunter said their wives have been texting each... [More]

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Washington Nationals catcher Matt Wieters entered camp hoping a weight reduced to 225 pounds will help rectify last year's .225 batting average.Healthy for the entire offseason, Wieters dropped 15 pounds between the end of the 2017 season and the start of spring training.He's swinging more freely this spring, and it's showing. After hitting a career low at the plate, the 32-year-old switch-hitter is off to a .357 (5 for 14) start to Grapefruit League play that includes a home run and five RBIs."I'm able to feel a lot of the things we've been working on and take them into the game," Wieters said. "It's a good feeling to be able to carry over what you put some time and effort into into some live at-bats."After spending the first eight years of his career with Baltimore, Wieters signed a two-year contract worth $21 million with Washington. A severe cut to his wrist suffered that offseason hampered his work prior to last spring and contributed to Wieters' slow start.He... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The Minnesota Twins have finalized a $12 million, one-year contract with right-hander Lance Lynn, another patient, low-risk move toward strengthening their pitching staff.The deal was announced by the Twins on Monday, and Lynn will be introduced at a news conference on Tuesday before taking the mound against the Baltimore Orioles inb Fort Myers.After missing the 2016 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Lynn went 11-8 with a 3.43 ERA in 33 starts for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2017 last year. The 6-foot-5, 280-pound Lynn was an All-Star in 2012. He will join fellow newcomer Jake Odorizzi in the rotation, likely with Jose Berrios, Ervin Santana and Kyle Gibson.To make room on the roster, the Twins released right-hander Anibal Sanchez on Sunday after a three-week stint with the club. Sanchez gets $403,226 in termination pay rather than his $2.5 million salary.___For more AP baseball coverage: https://www.apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Oakland Athletics landed a new starting catcher, finalizing a $6.5 million, one-year contract with free agent Jonathan Lucroy.The team announced the deal Monday and Lucroy was in spring camp at Mesa, Arizona. The 31-year-old two-time All-Star batted .265 with six home runs and 40 RBIs in 123 games last season for Texas and Colorado, which acquired him on July 30.Bruce Maxwell, the first major leaguer to kneel for the national anthem last year following NFL players' leads, had been the projected starter before the acquisition of Lucroy.Oakland designated left-hander Jairo Labourt for assignment to create roster space for Lucroy.___More AP baseball coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Tommy Hunter's biggest pitch for the Philadelphia Phillies came before he even took the mound for his new team.Since he signed a two-year deal in December, the reliever has been pushing Jake Arrieta to follow him to Philadelphia. Mission accomplished.Arrieta and the Phillies agreed Sunday to a $75 million, three-year contract, a deal that could be worth up to $135 million over five seasons, three people familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was pending a successful physical."I've been on the phone with him this whole entire offseason to see if it can work out," Hunter said Monday. "I was coming hard. It's not up to you as a player or a friend. Ultimately it's up to the people in charge to get this done and they did it."Hunter and Arrieta have been friends since their college days. They spent four years together in Baltimore and have remained close. Hunter said their wives have been texting each... [More]

PHOENIX (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers have picked right-hander Chase Anderson to start on opening day on March 29 at San Diego.The 30-year-old Anderson had the best season of his four-year career in 2017, going 12-4 with a 2.74 ERA in 25 starts. He will be making his first career opening day start when he takes the mound in San Diego.Anderson will be the fifth different opening day starter for the Brewers in the last five seasons. Junior Guerra got the honor last year, and he was preceded by Wily Peralta, Kyle Lohse and Yovani Gallardo.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Expectations are already high for prized youngster Yoan Moncada of the Chicago White Sox. And as he prepares for his first full season in the major leagues, he could find himself in an important role on opening day.The 22-year-old from Cuba has spent this month as the leadoff hitter for the rebuilding White Sox after he began spring training batting fifth, sixth and seventh. Moncada welcomes being in the top spot, and the White Sox hope to take advantage of his speed and potential to reach base on a consistent basis."I like being the first batter. I can show more of my skills. Getting on base, I'll see more pitches, and that's what I prefer," Moncada said, speaking in Spanish.Moncada showed flashes of speed and power in 54 games after being called up from the minors last season. The .231 batting average and 74 strikeouts in 231 plate appearances are things he is working on improving. But being a switch-hitter able to set the table for the big bats of Jose Abreu and... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Free-agent infielder Neil Walker and the New York Yankees are close to a one-year contract worth about $5 million, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Monday because any agreement is subject to a successful physical.Walker likely would start at second base and Brandon Drury, acquired from Arizona last month, would play third. That would mean touted prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar probably would start the season in the minor leagues.Walker is among the victims of a historically slow free agent market and will take a huge cut from the $17.2 million he earned last season, when he accepted a qualifying offer from the New York Mets. The 32-year-old hit .265 with 14 homers and 49 RBIs last year for the Mets and Milwaukee, who acquired him Aug. 12.An agreement with Walker at that price would raise the Yankees' projected luxury tax payroll to approximately $182 million, about $15 million below the luxury tax threshold.He had been working out at the camp for free agents in Bradenton, Florida, organized by the players' association.___More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball