Rangers place LHP Martin on COVID-19 injured list
ARLINGTON — Texas Rangers reliever Brett Martin has been placed on the injured list because of his positive test for the coronavirus before the start of their summer camp.
The move came eight days before the Rangers open their season at home against Colorado.
Martin, already at higher risk for COVID-19 because he has Type 1 diabetes, had a positive test during intake testing two weeks ago. He experienced mild symptoms of the disease including congestion and fatigue.
Rays OF Meadows positive for virus
Tampa Bay outfielder Austin Meadows was placed on the injured list Thursday after testing positive for the coronavirus.
Left-handed reliever Aaron Loup was added to the 40-man roster in place of Meadows, who was a first-time All-Star and batted .291 with 33 homers and 89 RBIs last season.
MLB to pipe in noise from its video game
Major League Baseball will play crowd noise from its official video game through ballpark sound systems during games. Stadium sound engineers will have access to around 75 different effects and reactions, according to MLB, which provided teams with crowd sounds captured from “MLB The Show.”
San Diego Studios, a branch of Sony Interactive Entertainment, compiled the noise during games over several seasons.
Cano joins Mets camp after personal leave
New York Mets second baseman Robinson Cano is back with the team after missing a couple days because of personal issues.
The 37-year-old Cano said he wants to keep the reasons for his absence to himself. He is hoping to be ready for opening day.
A-Rod wants pay cap; hoping to buy Mets
Alex Rodriguez, among four groups of bidders for a possible purchase of the New York Mets, called for baseball players accept the type of revenue-sharing system that is tied to a salary cap and sparked quick opposition from the union.
Following the collapse of labor talks dealing with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic, relations between Major League Baseball and the players’ association are at the lowest point in a quarter-century. The sides appear headed to a spring training lockout in 2022.
Ross picks Hendricks to start opening day
Kyle Hendricks was selected by manager David Ross to start on opening day for the Chicago Cubs, getting the nod over Yu Darvish. Ross, who is beginning his first year as a major league manager, finalized the decision on Thursday.
Ross said Darvish will start the second game, and Jon Lester and Tyler Chatwood will follow Darvish, but he did not reveal how the rest of his rotation will line up.
Soto and Kendrick join Nationals camp
Juan Soto and Howie Kendrick joined the Washington Nationals for summer camp and played in an intrasquad scrimmage Thursday night, after missing nearly two weeks of workouts.
Center fielder Victor Robles is still missing from camp.
The Nationals are unsure if they will begin this season playing at their home field because of city rules mandating that anyone coming into contact with someone who had the coronavirus needed to self-quarantine for 14 days, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation, and the team is actively exploring alternate sites.
Phillies stalwart Taylor dies at 84
Tony Taylor, a longtime Phillies infielder and coach, died Thursday. He was 84.
The Phillies said in a statement that Taylor died from complications of a stroke suffered in 2019.