Bryce Harper meets with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the very next day, a Brinks truck is parked right outside the team's spring training complex.Coincidence or correlation?With the first full week of exhibition games on deck, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed he joined club executives in meeting with Harper in Las Vegas on Sunday night.Roberts said it was a good session and gave the sides a chance to "get to know each other." Roberts says the Dodgers were "vetting a certain process."Harper has been connected to the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Francisco Giants during a second consecutive slow free-agent market for the sport. Manny Machado, the other top free agent this winter, signed a $300 million, 10-year deal with the San Diego Padres on Thursday.The 26-year-old Harper was the 2015 NL MVP and made six All-Star teams in seven big league seasons with the Washington Nationals. He batted .249 with 34 home runs, 100 RBIs and an .889 OPS last season.FROM AROUND THE GRAPEFRUIT AND... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — No more practice runs for Mickey Callaway.Opening day has arrived for the rookie manager of the New York Mets, and his heart probably will be pounding at a mile a minute by the time Noah Syndergaard fires his first 100 mph fastball Thursday against the St. Louis Cardinals."I usually go out in the dugout about an hour before the game because I like to watch the fans come in and feel the ballpark come alive," Callaway said. "I've never been able to do that here at Citi Field. I can only imagine what it's going to be like, so that's when I'm going to get the goose bumps."Yoenis Cespedes, Jay Bruce and the rest of Callaway's club worked out Wednesday under overcast skies in Queens as they got ready to face Carlos Martinez and the Cardinals in their opener. Traditional bunting was already draped around the stands, while painters and other workers put the finishing touches on some spruced-up clubs and corridors inside.Syndergaard will get the ball for his second consecutive opening-day... [More]

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — Patience was key for Brandon Nimmo.The 24-year-old outfielder hit .260 with five homers and 21 RBIs in 177 at-bats last year, fighting for playing time behind Yoenis Cespedis, Michael Conforto, Jay Bruce, Curtis Granderson and Juan Lagares.During the offseason, there were rumors he could be traded, perhaps in a deal that would have brought the Mets outfielder Andrew McCutchen and second baseman Josh Harrison.New York kept Nimmo, a former first-round draft pick who could start Thursday's opener in center field as Conforto recovers from shoulder surgery that figures to keep him from major league games for a few more weeks."They had the opportunity to go with a year of an All-Star outfielder in McCutchen and Harrison," Nimmo said. "To be able to be in those conversations is good because it means other teams want you, and it also means the Mets really like you enough to keep you around."I did take some confidence from that. This is the organization I grew up with.... [More]

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — The Boston Red Sox didn't commit $110 million for J.D. Martinez to be a part-timer.When he lands in the middle of the order, some of the everyday hitters will have to get used to fewer at-bats each week. New manager Alex Cora must navigate the complexities of lineup construction and defensive arrangements while watching for streaks and slumps and maintaining a harmonious and engaged clubhouse.Ah, what good problems to have. The Red Sox were more than ready for the arrival of Martinez and his 45 home runs in 119 games last season, no matter the minor complications of making room for him."He's definitely a force," first baseman Mitch Moreland said, "and it's good to have him on our side."After reaching a long-awaited five-year agreement with Martinez on Monday afternoon, the Red Sox took the field on Tuesday morning under picturesque blue skies with the temperature surging into the high 80s. The atmosphere at the beginning of spring training is always sunny, of course,... [More]

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — The Boston Red Sox have traded outfielder Bryce Brentz to the Pittsburgh Pirates for cash.The teams made the deal Tuesday.Brentz played a total of 34 games for Boston in 2014 and 2016, hitting .287 with one home run and nine RBIs. He spent all of last season at Triple-A Pawtucket, hitting 31 homers with 85 RBIs.The 29-year-old Brentz won the Triple-A All-Star Home Run Derby last July, and has 127 career homers in the minors.Pittsburgh put right-handed pitcher Nick Burdi on the 60-day disabled list to make roster room for Brentz.

OF Bryce Brentz was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday. Brentz, batting .279 with a home run and seven RBIs in 25 games with the Red Sox this season, pinch hit for slugger David Ortiz in Wednesday's ninth inning after Ortiz fouled a ball off his right shin, but promptly struck out.

OF Bryce Brentz was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday.

LF Bryce Brentz replaced Brock Holt as a runner, scored a run and then singled home the go-ahead run in the sixth inning -- and then singled to help build an insurance run in the eighth.

NEW YORK -- Stephen Strasburg completed an unbeaten first half of the season Friday night, when the right-handed pitcher allowed one run over seven strong innings to earn the win as the Washington Nationals beat the New York Mets 3-1 at Citi FieldThe Mets lost for just the second time in nine games, but it was a costly defeat. A pair of All-Stars, outfielder Yoenis Cespedes and right-handed pitcher Noah Syndergaard, left with injuries. Cespedes exited after the third inning with a strained right quad while Syndergaard left with two outs in the fifth due to arm fatigue.Clint Robinson hit a two-run homer in the second for the Nationals while Daniel Murphy continued to dominate his former team with an RBI double in the third. Murphy is batting .409 with five homers and 15 RBIs this season against the Mets, with whom he played the first seven seasons of his career before signing with Washington in December.Angels 9, Orioles 5BALTIMORE -- Daniel Nava had a pair of RBIs and leaping grab to rob... [More]

--LF Bryce Brentz got the start against LHP Martin Perez. He reached on an error and scored in the second inning, singled home a run and scored in the third and broke his bat and singled home two runs in the fourth for a career-high three RBIs.

LB Bryce Brentz went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs, continuing his promising start. He has six hits in his first four games, including a home run in Sunday's loss to the Rangers. The Red Sox have struggled to replace Brock Holt in left, but as Holt prepares to return from the DL, Brentz is making a case to stay in the majors.

OF Bryce Brentz made the most of the series in Texas after being promoted from Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday. Brentz hit his first career homer in the sixth inning Sunday. He had hits in each of the three games and went 4-for-11 in his first big-league action since 2014. He already has plans for the home-run ball. "My dad's got a place," Brentz said. "Maybe give it to him."

OF Bryce Brentz was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday and started for the Red Sox in left field. It was the first major league game for Brentz since he played nine games for Boston during the 2014 season. Brentz singled in the fourth inning and went 1-for-4.

OF Bryce Brentz was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday when OF Chris Young was placed on the disabled list.

Brentz (thumb) underwent surgery on his thumb Tuesday and will likely be out for three months, Brain MacPherson of The Providence Journal reports.

Brentz reportedly injured his thumb sliding into second base last week. He was batting .233 with 74 strikeouts at Triple-A this season prior to the thumb injury.

Brentz went 3-for-4 with a double, three runs scored and a walk-off homer for Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday. Through eight games, the 26-year-old corner outfielder has two homers and is slashing .294/.375/.500 in 40 plate appearances.

Brentz is Boston's best power-hitting prospect at the upper levels of the system, but has experienced injuries each of the last two seasons. He has an aggressive approach, which can lead to high strikeouts and bad at-bats, though he's improved his selectivity some since the start of 2014. With no room for him in Boston, Brentz will likely take the path of Brandon Moss, a former Red Sox power prospect who has carved out a nice major-league career in less moneyed markets.

Brentz went 3-for-5 with three runs scored a homer for Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday.

Through two games, Brentz is 4-for-7 with three walks. He plays both corner outfield spots and represents the organization's best power prospect at the higher levels. But there's little room on the roster in Boston and may find his path to the major in another organization.

Brentz was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.

Brentz had found himself at the bottom of the depth chart in a crowded outfield at the Major League level, so as expected, will provide outfield depth in the minors. He hit .308 over 26 plate appearances in the majors last year (buoyed by a .471 BABIP), but managed to slash .243/.341/.465 over 63 games at Pawtucket. Though scouts have praised his talent level, the 26-year-old will be hard-pressed to earn regular playing time in the bigs in 2015.

Brentz could help a major league team in 2015, according to one talent evaluator currently employed by a major-league team, CSN New England reports. The right-handed hitting outfielder leads Boston with 12 games played during spring training, suggesting he's been showcased.

Brentz is buried in the outfield behind six or seven players currently on the 40-man roster and will be seeing prospect Manuel Margot and maybe Yoan Moncada in his rear-view mirror soon enough. He's a right-handed power hitter that showed some growth in his plate approach last season. If he continues to lay off the breaking stuff outside the zone, teams would certainly be interested in a player that projects as a power hitter (29 HRs in 145 games at Triple-A level).

Brentz, who had some right-knee inflammation, has been fully cleared, the Boston Globe reports.

Brentz had missed a couple of days of practice last week before returning over the weekend.