Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer has been called upon to replace injured New York Yankees slugger Mark Teixeira on the United States team for the World Baseball Classic.
Hosmer received a text message late Tuesday from Tony Clark of the players union, asking if he’d be interested in a spot on the roster. After getting a call from U.S. manager Joe Torre and receiving the blessing of the Royals, Hosmer quickly agreed to join the Americans.
Meanwhile, Teixeira is going to be out 8 to 10 weeks with a strained right wrist tendon.
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Talk to Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau or Dan Boyle and they will tell you that bringing home an Olympic gold medal in hockey is almost on par with winning the Stanley Cup. International competition is even more meaningful in soccer as the world stops spinning for 32 days as 32 nations compete for the sport’s ultimate prize.
But does anyone care that Team USA is taking the field Friday for its first game in the World Baseball Classic, our national pastime’s version of the World Cup?
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Nick Swisher supplies enough energy and enthusiasm to fill several clubhouses. These days, he’s getting an extra boost with all the new faces in Cleveland.
Swisher hit one of three Cleveland home runs, Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched three scoreless innings and the Indians beat the Giants 4-3 Tuesday.
Brandon Crawford hit a two-run homer for the Giants, who lost their second straight. Brandon Belt also homered.Madison Bumgarner gave up a run on three hits in his two innings for the Giants. He walked one and struck out three.
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PHOENIX — The A’s will move their spring training camp to nearby Mesa starting in 2015, agreeing to a 20-year deal following approval from the Mesa City Council.
The Chicago Cubs are moving out of HohoKam Park to a new facility in Mesa next spring, and the A’s will assume control of HohoKam Park and Fitch Park after their lease with Phoenix expires in December 2014.
Oakland trained in Mesa for a decade, at Rendezvous Park from 1969-76 and then at HohoKam from 1977-78.
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PHOENIX — John Jaso was brought to the A’s as a backup. He showed what he could do as a starter.
Jaso had a bases-loaded triple, Brandon Moss had two hits and an RBI, and the A’s beat the Los Angeles Angels 13-5 on Monday.
“He’s always had good numbers but it’s still good to see him hit like that,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “He got that triple off a left-hander and he’s had good at-bats this year.”
Jaso, a four-year veteran, was obtained in a three-way trade from the Seattle Mariners to backup catcher Derek Norris.
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GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — John Danks hadn't pitched in a game since last May.
The 10 months that passed since felt like 10 years to the Chicago White Sox left-hander.
The last two hours before Danks started Chicago's spring game against the San Francisco Giants on Monday seemed like an eternity to him, too.
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Baseball was invented in the United States, but the World Baseball Classic has been dominated by Japan.
U.S. manager Joe Torre has taken a different approach in the WBC’s third edition this year. Rather than stock his entire roster with high-profile stars, he’s got a basic starting nine with utility players, three catchers and 15 pitchers filling out the 28-man group.
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By:
The Associated Press
03/03/13 6:51 PM
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — A pair of Colorado Rockies pitchers were so wild Sunday, the A’s barely had to swing to score.
Oakland had 12 hits but pushed across its first four runs without putting the ball in play.
Colorado’s Jorge De La Rosa and Tyler Chatwood combined to issue five walks and hit three batters with pitches in the first three innings. All three A’s were plunked with the bases loaded — Michael Choice in the first, and Daric Barton and Scott Sizemore in the third. Adam Rosales also drew a bases-loaded walk in the third.
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By:
Rick Eymer
03/03/13 6:20 PM
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Barry Zito made believers out of a pair of former teammates as he tries to build on the success he rediscovered last season.
Zito pitched three shutout innings, Brandon Crawford had three hits and the Giants beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-3 on Sunday.
“I felt a lot better than I did the last time,” Zito said. “My focus was better, my timing was better and I was making more pitches.”
The left-hander gave up two hits and struck out two — ex-teammates Cody Ross and Eric Chavez.
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Andres Torres was a cautionary tale of sorts, in that the Giants counted on him in 2011 to provide the same spark he provided the 2010 team that ended San Francisco’s World Series drought.
He was coming off a career year so skeptics abounded, each of them eager to note the inherent danger in expecting a journeyman-turned-cult figure to recapture the magic.
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