Harper looking good as Phillies' 1B
Bryce Harper is getting settled in as full-time first baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Harper hit a hard single in his first spring training at-bat Wednesday, but the two-time NL MVP also flashed some leather at first base in a 7-7 tie against Atlanta. Harper made a diving catch on Jarred Kelenic's grounder in the first inning, and started nifty 3-6-3 on a 105-mph grounder by Kelenic in the third.
“Both of them were real good,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “He looks very comfortable and he's improving every day.”
Harper had Tommy John surgery in November 2022 and made his season debut last May 2 as a designated hitter. An outfielder the previous 11 seasons, his return to the field July 21 was at first base, where he started 36 times in the regular season and 13 in the playoffs.
“The sky's the limit for me because he's athletic,” Thomson said. “He's calm, poised. A lot of a lot of good things can happen.”
Former Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins tore his left ACL in a spring training game last March, and left in free agency after the season.
GRAY WILL PITCH OPENER FOR CARDINALS >> Sonny Gray will be the first Cardinals pitcher since Kyle Lohse in 2008 to make his debut for the Cardinals with a start on Opening Day.
“I don't take that lightly at all,” said Gray, the veteran right-hander who signed a $75 million, three-year deal in November. “I appreciate the opportunity and what that shows.”
Gray finished second in the AL Cy Young Award voting last season, when he was 8-8 with a 2.79 ERA in 32 starts for Minnesota. The Cardinals also added former All-Stars Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn to their rotation in free agency.
Injury concern
Third baseman Max Muncy was hit by a Cody Bradford pitch in the first inning and even though he remained in the game, it was only temporary as he departed before his next at-bat.
The Dodgers diagnosed Muncy with a left-hand contusion and Roberts said it was along one of Muncy's knuckles. An X-ray is scheduled for today.
“He was scheduled to be down (today), regardless,” Roberts said. “He wanted to keep playing defense . ... It just started to swell up so he started to lose a little strength in the hand, but I'm hopeful it's not going to be too serious.”
Freeway-bound
Encouraged after pitching in a live batting practice session Tuesday, right-hander Walker Buehler estimated that he might make his first game appearance during the March 24-26 Freeway Series against the Angels.
Buehler had Tommy John surgery in 2022, had hoped to return late last season and then got off to a slow start this spring.
“I want to be ready at the end of the year, and if that means I can't be ready at the beginning, that's kind of the option or the choice we have to make,” Buehler said Wednesday. “I've seen a lot lately. Everything that's been written about me is that it's not going well, and I don't think that's true. There's just boxes I gotta check. I feel good about it.”
No timetable for a return to a regularseason game has been set. With Buehler making his first spring appearance in late March, a normal spring ramp up means he likely would not pitch in a game until May at the earliest.
Also
St. Louis, coming off its first losing season since 2007, opens March 28 at the Dodgers.
ORIOLES GIVE MINOR-LEAGUE DEALS TO TEHERAN, WONG >> The Orioles have agreed to minor-league contracts with right-hander Julio Teheran and infielder Kolten Wong, with invites to major league spring training.
Both are veterans with more than a decade of big-league experience.
The 33-year-old Teheran is a twotime All-Star. He spent last season with Milwaukee and went 3-5 with a 4.40 ERA, making 11 starts.
Wong is also 33. He played for Seattle and the Dodgers last year, hitting .183 in 87 games.
ALSO >> The Yankees claimed infielder Jahmai Jones off waivers from the Brewers . ... Sam Hilliard is back with Colorado after being claimed off waivers from Baltimore . ... San Diego agreed to a minor-league contract with 31-year-old outfielder Tim Locastro.
DODGERS GAME REPORT Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto went two scoreless innings and Andy Pages hit a home run with a triple, but the Dodgers lost their first game of the spring, 6-4, to the Texas Rangers on Wednesday in Surprise, Ariz. PITCHING: Yamamoto struck out Marcus Semien on six pitches to begin his outing, allowed one hit but faced the minimum six batters in two innings. The right-hander had three strikeouts . ... Right-hander Daniel Hudson had two strikeouts and a walk in two-thirds of an inning and right-hander Evan Phillips pitched a perfect fourth inning with two strikeouts . ... Right-hander Joe Kelly gave up two runs (one earned) in an inning of work. HITTING: Pages hit his home run, a two-run shot just inside the left-field foul pole, in the fifth inning and added his triple in the seventh . ... Gavin Lux went 0 for 3in another start at shortstop as he continues his comeback after missing all of last season with a knee injury . ... Austin Gauthier went 1 for 2 after entering as a replacement for third baseman Max Muncy, who was hit by a pitch on the left hand in the first inning. Dodgers (LHP James Paxton) vs. Reds (LHP Graham Ashcraft) in Goodyear, Ariz., today, 5:05 p.m., Spectrum SportsNet
Ohtani will take live batting practice on a back field this morning and is next scheduled to play Friday night against Cleveland. ... After signing a one-year deal earlier this week, utility man Kiké Hernandez is expected to start in center field on Friday .
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