The Florida Marlins got another strong start from ace Josh Johnson but a bad ending from their closer Thursday. Johnson struck out four in three scoreless innings before the St. Louis Cardinals beat up on closer Leo Nunez during a five-run ninth for a 5-3 win. Nunez, who saved 26 games last season, allowed four hits before leaving with two outs and runners at second and third.

John Lackey is off to a nice start with the Red Sox. The right-hander threw three shutout innings in Boston's 8-2 victory over Jason Bay and the New York Mets on Thursday. Lackey allowed three hits in his second spring outing and has yet to allow a run since he finalized an $82.5 million, five-year contract with the Red Sox in December.

Joe Blanton used a mix of fastballs and changeups to shut down the Detroit Tigers, leading the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-0 victory Thursday. Blanton has focused solely on the fastball-changeup combination in his first two spring starts before he incorporates breaking pitches into his repertoire. So far the results have been promising: Blanton held the Tigers to three singles in four innings of...

New Cleveland Indians manager Manny Acta says Jhonny Peralta is his third baseman. Peralta says he's still a shortstop at heart. With some other headstrong, ego-driven player, that difference of opinion could be a huge problem, but Peralta is one of the most easygoing players in the game. He says he'll do his best to play alongside new shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and make it work.

Cuban Leslie Anderson has agreed in principle to a contract with the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays said Thursday that some details of the deal with the 27-year-old first baseman-outfielder are still being worked out. Anderson is a former member of the Cuban national team.

Dallas Braden has found a whole new role to play for the Oakland Athletics' young pitching staff. He's become a second set of eyes to many of the younger hurlers. Braden, at age 26, is older than all but Ben Sheets and Justin Duchscherer among possible A's starters. But after an offseason in which he helped the University of Pacific pitchers, he's discovered a taste for instruction.

Andy Sonnanstine pitched four scoreless innings and Evan Longoria, Jason Bartlett and John Jaso drove in runs during a three-run fifth that helped a Tampa Bay Rays split-squad beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1 on Thursday. Sonnanstine rebounded from a poor outing in his spring debut, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out three.

Brian Giles says the pain in his arthritic right knee is getting worse, and the 39-year-old outfielder informed the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday that he will retire. Giles is a career .291 hitter with 287 home runs and 1,078 RBI in 1,847 games. The two-time All-Star also played for the San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates and Cleveland, calling his trip to the World Series with the Indians in...

One day, Elvis Andrus short-hopped a routine throw. The next, the Texas Rangers shortstop made an incredible play deep in the hole, getting a runner at first despite throwing with his feet off the ground while falling away from the base. Which one did manager Ron Washington appreciate the most? Since he has been emphasizing focus to Andrus this spring, what he really liked was his young...

Chicago White Sox ace Mark Buehrle won't have his second start of spring training until next Monday as the club seeks to keep him rested before the regular season begins. Buehrle made his first start on March 5 against the Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing an unearned run on three hits with two strikeouts over two innings.

Arizona manager A.J. Hinch says there's an increasing chance that Brandon Webb will start the season on the disabled list. Webb reached what Hinch called a "plateau" in his comeback from surgery on his right shoulder. He has not thrown a bullpen session for a week after saying he felt "stagnant" and was not making the progress he expected.

Arizona manager A.J. Hinch says there's an increasing chance that Brandon Webb will start the season on the disabled list.

Orlando Cepeda and Felipe Alou used to hit up Giants teammate Willie Mays when they needed a little extra cash. The $5 of daily meal money didn't stretch very far back in the 1960s. "I was the banker," Mays said. "We're grateful to him for everything," Cepeda said. "We learned so much from him.

All-Star shortstop Jose Reyes has been told to rest and refrain from athletic activity for 2-to-8 weeks until his thyroid levels normalize, another blow to the New York Mets before opening day. Center fielder Carlos Beltran already is expected to miss the first month of the season following right knee surgery Jan.

Thursday's scheduled exhibition game between the Houston Astros and Washington Nationals has been canceled because of rain. The game, which was to pit Nationals left-hander John Lannan against Houston right-hander Roy Oswalt, was called at 12:22 p.m. EST after two hours of heavy rain swept through central Florida.

First baseman Todd Helton and the Colorado Rockies agreed Thursday to $9.9 million, two-year contract extension through the 2013 season. The first baseman is earning $16.6 million this year, and he agreed to defer $13.1 million of his $19.1 million salary in 2011 over a 10-year period beginning in 2014.

PEORIA, Ariz. — The preseason praise for Jack Zduriencik continues to come in waves. But instead of being...

Despite all the offseason buzz, the Mariners could actually regress.

First baseman Todd Helton has agreed to a contract restructuring and extension that will allow him to finish his career where it began, with the Colorado Rockies.

Left-handers Eddie Guardado and Shawn Estes have been released by the Washington Nationals in the first round of spring training cuts. The Nationals also reassigned six players to their minor league camp on Thursday. Guardado had pitched in two exhibition games and had an ERA of 18.00 in two innings. Estes had made one appearance, pitching one inning to an ERA of 18.00.