Harper walks twice in 1st spring ABs with Phillies  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. — Bryce Harper drew two five-pitch walks on Saturday in his first two spring training plate appearances since signing a record contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.  —  The six-time All-Star outfielder signed a $330 million …

Why Rougned Odor's hitless game has Chris Woodward thrilled  —  Rougned Odor has walked three or more times in a regular-season game only twice in his five-year career.  —  The Texas Rangers second baseman walked five times against the Orioles on Aug. 2 (he also homered) and walked three times in a game in 2017.

Billy Hamilton has no hard feelings toward the Cincinnati Reds: ‘I still want them to do well’  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. - Playing against many of his former teammates Friday, Billy Hamilton couldn't stop smiling throughout the afternoon.  —  When players were stretching before the game …

Cubs seek to catch Brewers in homegrown pitching department  —  Chicago Tribune  —  As the Cubs try to bounce back from last year's second-place finish in the NL Central, there's other ground they need to gain to overtake the Brewers and achieve their goal of sustained success.

Unable to reach agreements, Cardinals renew contracts for Hicks, Flaherty  —  JUPITER, Fla.  • Unable to reach an agreement with two of their youngest and most prominent pitchers, the Cardinals imposed salaries on starter Jack Flaherty and reliever Jordan Hicks as part of finalizing contracts with 20 players Saturday.

Tanaka named Yankees' Opening Day starter  —  SARASOTA, Fla. — Masahiro Tanaka will be the New York Yankees' Opening Day starter March 28 against Baltimore, taking the spot left open by Luis Severino's shoulder trouble.  —  Yankees manager Aaron Boone announced the decision …

Detroit Tigers observations: Michael Fulmer's velocity still down  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — As far as Michael Fulmer's three Grapefruit League starts have gone, this one was the most worrisome.  —  Not just because of his fastball velocity - which sat between 88-92 m.p.h. …

Cover-up: Lake Superior 90% ice-covered for just 5th time in past 20 years  —  Drone footage of the blue ice stacked at the Straits of Mackinac, near the Mackinac Bridge.  Captured by Dustin Dilworth of D3 Imagery.  —  CONNECT  —  It's a far icier winter than last year's for the Great Lakes.

Cards cut 10, including SS Sosa, who had shown pop  —  JUPITER, Fla.  • The Cardinals cut their number of players in camp from 65 to 55 Saturday by optioning five players to Class AAA Memphis and sending five non-roster players to the minor-league complex.

Takeaways from Braves' road win over Tigers on Saturday  —  The Braves took on the Tigers in Lakeland on Saturday afternoon, their fourth meeting this spring.  —  Here are the takeaways from the Braves' 6-4 win:  —  1. Sean Newcomb was hit for three runs in 2-2/3 innings.

Astros' Jose Altuve scratched from lineup again with continued left side soreness  —  JUPITER, Fla. — For the second time in three days, Jose Altuve was scratched from the Astros' Grapefruit League lineup on Saturday with continued left side soreness.  —  “It's the same, tightness I'd say …