Baseball Page 52 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Cards to open season with OF Lars Nootbaar on 60-day IL
The St. Louis Cardinals will be without outfielder Lars Nootbaar at least through the first two months of the season after he was placed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.,Nootbaar underwent surgery in October for bone spurs in both heels that affected the Achilles tendon. His recovery timetable ...

Embracing youth movement, Cardinals set for opener vs. Rays
The St. Louis Cardinals will look a lot younger when they host the Tampa Bay Rays on Opening Day on Thursday afternoon.,The Cardinals traded veterans Nolan Arenado (Arizona Diamondbacks), Willson Contreras (Boston Red Sox) and Brendan Donovan (Seattle Mariners) for prospects during the offseason, le...

Eugenio Suarez begins second stint with Reds vs. Red Sox
Two of the most historically rich teams in professional baseball will open the 2026 season Thursday as the Cincinnati Reds host the Boston Red Sox.,Both teams have loftier goals in 2026 after being eliminated in the wild-card round of the playoffs last season.,The Reds, who were swept by the eventua...

Tarik Skubal, confident Tigers set sights on Padres
Opening Day usually is about beginnings, hopes and dreams.,But for the Detroit Tigers in general and left-hander Tarik Skubal in particular, Thursday's season opener at the San Diego Padres might be about the beginning of the end as much as the start of a new season.,Unless Detroit breaks the bank a...

Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers massive MVP, World Series favorites
The Los Angeles Dodgers hit Opening Day 2026 as massive favorites to accomplish a feat not seen in Major League Baseball in more than a quarter century.,The two-time defending world champions are attempting to become the first team to three-peat since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees. Ironically, it's...

Twins place RHPs Travis Adams, David Festa on IL
The Minnesota Twins placed right-handers Travis Adams and David Festa on the 15-day injured list Wednesday.,The team also selected the contract of right-hander Cody Laweryson and designated catcher Alex Jackson for release or assignment to make room on the 40-man roster.,Adams, 26, has a right trice...

Astros carry high expectations into opener vs. Angels
The Houston Astros missed the playoffs last season for the first time in nine years, something with which the Los Angeles Angels have become familiar over the past 11 seasons.,Both teams will try to get the 2026 season off to a good start on Thursday when the Astros host the Angels in the opener of ...

Orioles, Twins hope new managers lead to contending seasons
There'll be a double dose of managerial debuts when the Minnesota Twins visit the Baltimore Orioles for Thursday's opener.,Derek Shelton will be in his first game in charge of the Twins. New Orioles skipper Craig Albernaz is in his first managerial role.,Shelton was fired by Pittsburgh last May and ...

Yankees option Luis Gil; OF Randal Grichuk on Opening Day roster
Yankees right-hander Luis Gil will begin the season at Triple-A, and outfielder Randal Grichuk was added to the New York roster ahead of Opening Day in San Francisco on Wednesday. ,Gil, 27, had an erratic spring but threw well on March 20 with seven strikeouts in five innings against the Baltimore O...

Cubs embrace expectations as Nationals visit for Opening Day
After ending a four-year playoff drought last season, the Chicago Cubs enter 2026 with added expectations.,In manager Craig Counsell's mind, that also should increase the clubhouse's penchant for staying in the moment.,"It's not easy to get to a place like this. It's not easy to get to a roster like...
Three MLB Teams Facing Regression in 2026
The Brewers, Guardians, and Blue Jays could be headed for regression in 2026—here’s why these playoff teams may fall short....
How MLB Is Getting Opening Day Wrong in a Crucial 2026 Season
MLB Opening Day draws criticism over streaming decisions and scheduling issues, leaving fans frustrated in a crucial season for baseball....

Brewers, White Sox entrust Opening Day to young All-Star flamethrowers
The Milwaukee Brewers will turn to hard-throwing right-hander Jacob Misiorowski when they open defense of their National League Central Division title against the visiting Chicago White Sox on Thursday afternoon.,Misiorowski (5-3, 4.36 ERA in 2025), an All-Star selection last season as a rookie afte...

Freddy Peralta vs. Paul Skenes headlines Mets-Pirates opener
The New York Mets were expected to overhaul their roster following a disappointing 2025.,The Pittsburgh Pirates responding to their latest sub-.500 finish in similar fashion qualified as a far bigger surprise.,A pair of retooled teams will open the season Thursday afternoon when the Mets host the Pi...

Reports: Cubs, Pete Crow-Armstrong agree on 6-year, $115M deal
A day after news broke that the Chicago Cubs and Pete Crow-Armstrong were finalizing a contract extension, multiple media outlets reported the specifics on Tuesday.,The center fielder reportedly is receiving a six-year, $115 million deal.,It's quite a present one day before Crow-Armstrong's 24th bir...

Spring training roundup: Gerrit Cole passes another test as Yankees rout Cubs
New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole passed another test against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday in his second start of the spring as he continued his return from Tommy John surgery last March.,Cole racked up three strikeouts in the first inning -- fanning Cubs regulars Pete Crow-Armstrong, Michael Busch an...

Spring training roundup: Ranger Suarez rocked as Twins rout Red Sox
Ranger Suarez completed a rocky spring training with his new squad, allowing eight earned runs over 4 1/3 innings on Tuesday as the Minnesota Twins routed the Boston Red Sox 15-6 in Fort Myers, Fla.,Suarez, who signed a five-year, $130 million contract in January, gave up a pair of home runs among n...

Brewers acquire RHP Jake Woodford from Rays
The Milwaukee Brewers acquired right-hander Jake Woodford from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for a minor league pitcher and cash on Tuesday.,Right-hander K.C. Hunt, 25, heads to the Rays after three seasons in the Brewers' farm system.,Woodford, 29, was a non-roster invite to Tampa Bay's spring tra...

Rays RHP Ryan Pepiot (hip) to begin season on IL
Tampa Bay Rays starter Ryan Pepiot will begin the season on the injured list with right hip inflammation, manager Kevin Cash confirmed Tuesday.,The 28-year-old right-hander had been scheduled to start Tuesday's spring finale against the Atlanta Braves. Pepiot made three starts in spring training, al...

AL Central capsules: Can Tigers pitch way back into playoffs?
Chicago White Sox,2025 record: 60-102 (5th place, AL Central),He gone: C Korey Lee, OF Luis Robert, OF Mike Tauchman,New faces: INF Luisangel Acuna, RHP Seranthony Dominguez, RHP Erick Fedde, RHP Jordan Hicks, LHP Anthony Kay, INF Munetaka Murakami, C Reese McGuire, LHP Sean Newcomb,Biggest question...