MLB report pins Red Sox violations on staffer, issues suspension, takes draft pick  —  Major League Baseball's ruling on the Boston Red Sox's illegal sign stealing in 2018 determined the primary culprit was not the front office, manager Alex Cora or the players, but the team's video replay system operator.

Alex Rodriguez, Jennifer Lopez Retain JPMorgan to Raise Money for Mets Bid (EXCLUSIVE)  —  Retired baseball star Alex Rodriguez and his fiancé, recording artist and actor Jennifer Lopez, have retained JPMorgan Chase to raise capital for a possible bid on the New York Mets, people familiar with the matter said.

Sources: MiLB Ready To Agree To Significant Reduction In Teams  —  When MLB proposed to MiLB last year its plan to cut the minor leagues from 160 teams to 120 affiliated teams in negotiations for a new Professional Baseball Agreement, such a proposal was greeted by many MiLB teams as unthinkable.

Sources: Majority of MLB teams to pay baseball ops staff through May  —  On the day Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred told a wide swath of the sport's staffers that “I fully anticipate baseball will return this season,” more than half the teams in the league pledged …

ESPN seeking free rights to broadcast S. Korean baseball games: sources  —  U.S. sports media giant ESPN was seeking free rights to broadcast South Korean professional baseball games, leading to a stalemate in its negotiations with its counterpart in Seoul, informed sources told Yonhap News Agency on Thursday.

Fans sue over ticket refunds, ask for class action  —  A pair of fans from New York are suing Major League Baseball, each individual club and ticket resellers over tickets purchased for MLB games that haven't been played due the coronavirus pandemic.  —  The complaint, filed Monday in California …

Former Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully hospitalized after taking a fall at his home  —  Vin Scully took a fall in his home Tuesday and was taken to the hospital, where he was “resting comfortably,” the Dodgers announced Thursday.  —  “I won't be doing anymore headfirst sliding, I never liked it …

Jordan to the A's?  His Airness had MLB offer  —  Rickey Henderson, Mark McGwire, Dennis Eckersley ... and Michael Jordan?  —  It could have happened on the 1994 A's.  —  When Air Jordan made his bold and bizarre jump from basketball to baseball that year, it was only natural …

Legendary baseball agent Scott Boras has a plan to bring the game back  — Baseball could serve as a great unifier during this time of crisis  — Boras envisions players wearing rubber gloves in dugouts, masks during batting practices  — Games would return spectator free to record ratings

Elizabeth Warren's oldest brother dies of coronavirus in Oklahoma  —  Donald Reed Herring, the oldest brother of Senator Elizabeth Warren, died on Tuesday night in Norman, Okla., about three weeks after testing positive for coronavirus.  —  Herring, a 20-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force, was 86.

CDC director warns second wave of coronavirus is likely to be even more devastating  —  Even as states move ahead with plans to reopen their economies, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Tuesday that a second wave of the novel coronavirus will be far more dire …

Offseason In Review: Chicago White Sox  —  The White Sox made clear their three-year rebuild is over, aggressively pursuing veteran free agents and landing several of them.  They also locked up multiple core pieces with extensions.  —  Major League Signings  — Yasmani Grandal, C: four years, $73MM

A's and Blue Jays Have a Frequent Trading Partnership That's Unrivaled  —  When the A's picked up pitcher Burch Smith in a Feb. 15 trade, it was a big deal.  —  Why was it a big deal?  Smith pitched for three teams last year and before than hadn't pitched in the big leagues since 2013 while fighting a series of injuries.

Source: Marlins CEO Derek Jeter forgoing $5M salary  —  MIAMI — Marlins CEO Derek Jeter told team employees during a conference call Monday that he is indefinitely forgoing his salary during the coronavirus pandemic, a source told ESPN confirming multiple reports.