NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball will open the 2021 season on April 1 and hopes to have every team play its first game on the same day for the first time since 1968. The league released the full schedule Thursday, two weeks before it plans to begin a 2020 season that's been delayed …

NEW YORK (AP) — Gerrit Cole couldn't have expected the New York Yankees to take the ball away from him just one batter into his first home start in the Bronx. But the team's new $324 million ace learned the hard way about one of baseball’s new coronavirus safety protocols Tuesday night …

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Mets will host the crosstown Yankees on the 20th anniversary of 9/11 next season, according to a person familiar with the decision. The clubs will play at Citi Field in a game sure to be full of emotions for the city that's also reported over 18,000 confirmed …

Major League Baseball released its pandemic-shortened schedule Monday, featuring a tantalizing season opener between the New York Yankees and World Series champion Washington Nationals, even as some teams were still bogged down by coronavirus concerns. By the time MLB revealed each team’s …

NEW YORK (AP) — No fans. No music. A bullpen catcher calling balls and strikes. Still, for one night at least, the New York Yankees played something resembling a baseball game in the Bronx. “It felt great, actually,” said starter J.A. Happ, who pitched for Team Yankees against Team …

NEW YORK (AP) — Mookie Betts, Gerrit Cole and a pair of high-profile matchups are set for opening day as Major League Baseball begins its shortened 60-game season on July 23 in ballparks without fans amid the coronavirus pandemic. MLB released the schedule Monday, and it starts with two …

There would have been a lot of close MLB rivalry games this week if not for the coronavirus pandemic, with five interleague series matching teams from the same city or state. All of those rivals will still get to play this year. The Associated Press looks at some of the sporting events that had …

NEW YORK (AP) — The Yankees had their Sunday brightened by Masahiro Tanaka, who came to the ballpark and seemed well a day after being hit in the head by Giancarlo Stanton’s line drive. They’re hoping Yankee Stadium’s lights will do the same this week. Encouraged by Tanaka’s …

NEW YORK (AP) — With Masahiro Tanaka crumpled motionless on the mound, Aaron Judge repeatedly waved behind home plate and scolded a video journalist for taking images. This wasn't a scene anyone at Yankee Stadium wanted to see. Tanaka was alert and sent to a hospital after being hit in …

Freddie Freeman tests positive for COVID-19. Masahiro Tanaka gets hit in the head by a line drive. David Price announces he won’t play this season. On this Fourth of July, even the return of baseball didn’t offer much cause for celebration. As teams prepared to start their …

The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on sports around the world: ___ Yankees All-Star infielder DJ LeMahieu and right-hander Luis Cessa tested positive for the coronavirus before traveling to New York for preseason camp and are self-isolating at home. Manager Aaron …

NEW YORK (AP) — Getting ready for a high-profile New York Yankees debut at World Series champion Washington on July 23, Gerrit Cole explained his mindset. “There is only going to be only one coronavirus World Series champion, and so that's unique in and of itself,” he said Friday. “I …

HOUSTON (AP) — Gerrit Cole’s departure to join the New York Yankees in free agency left a gaping hole in Houston’s rotation entering the season. The Astros hope the return of Lance McCullers will help lessen the blow. The 26-year-old McCullers is healthy and ready to go after …

NEW YORK (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals have replaced the New York Yankees as the opponent for the Chicago White Sox in the Field of Dreams game on Aug. 13 at Dyersville, Iowa. The schedule change caused by the new coronavirus pandemic meant the White Sox no longer play the Yankees this …

Trying to find out the status of a baseball player coming back from an ankle injury definitely will be easier than learning whether someone tested positive for the coronavirus. Major League Baseball said Tuesday that a team will not specifically announce a COVID-19 injured list placement for …

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The San Diego Padres have acquired middle infielder Jorge Mateo from the Oakland Athletics in the first trade since baseball resumed after a shutdown of more than three months due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Padres will send either a player or cash to the A’s for …

NEW YORK (AP) — Given an extra 3 1/2 months for their brittle stars to heal, the New York Yankees will closely monitor the conditioning of Aaron Judge, James Paxton, Aaron Hicks and Giancarlo Stanton ahead of a season unlike any other. “We want these players to withstand a 60-game sprint …

BOSTON (AP) — Tucked under the center field seats at Fenway Park, down some stairs from Lansdowne Street in an area previously used as the visiting team’s batting cage, is a sports bar that is preparing to reopen from the coronavirus shutdown. Largely windowless and decorated with sepia …

NEW YORK (AP) — Gerrit Cole could make his New York Yankees debut in a tasty opening-day treat for fans, facing Juan Soto and World Series champion Washington at Nationals Park. The Yankees and Nationals are set meet when the virus-delayed season begins next month, a person familiar with …

NEW YORK (AP) — Grant Dayton will notice one glaring absence this season after he reports to the Atlanta Braves: his twice-a-month salary. He is among 11 major leaguers whose prorated pay for the abbreviated 60-game season amounts to less than the $286,500 advance already received by the …