MLB

4:22 PM ET Associated Press ATLANTA — Brian Snitker choked back tears as he remembered Hank Aaron’s affection for those who didn’t possess his unparalleled talent on the baseball field. During his post-playing career running the Atlanta Braves‘ farm system, the Hammer had a penchant for looking beyond the can’t-miss prospects. “He always wanted to

7:00 AM ET Baseball Hall of Fame arguments used to be, dare I say … fun? Bert Blyleven is underrated! Jim Rice is overrated! Jack Morris? Show me the back of his baseball card and let’s debate. Well, welcome to the 2021 Hall of Fame ballot. It includes one player who was suspended for PED

10:40 PM ET A defamation lawsuit filed against Major League Baseball and the Los Angeles Angels by Brian Harkins, the longtime clubhouse attendant who was fired for supplying illegal ball-doctoring substances to pitchers, has been struck down in Orange County Superior Court. Judge Geoffrey T. Glass granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss Harkins’ complaint, stating

2:15 PM ET The Major League Baseball Players Association has turned down latest MLB proposal for the universal designated hitter and an expanded playoff format, sources confirmed to ESPN. The news was first reported by MLB Network. The union’s stance has been all along that it did not want to talk about a trade of

7:00 AM ET It’s Baseball Hall of Fame election week, and with nobody likely to get voted into Cooperstown when ballots are revealed Tuesday night, it seems like a perfect time to look ahead by predicting 40 active players who will eventually be Hall of Famers. Why 40? After all, that feels like a lot

7:52 PM ET ESPN News Services Closer Brad Hand and the Washington Nationals are in agreement on a one-year, $10.5 million contract, sources familiar with the deal told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Sunday. Hand had another solid season as the closer for the Cleveland Indians, leading the major leagues with 16 saves, but he was

3:00 PM ET The year 2018 wasn’t that long ago. It really wasn’t, despite how it seems. The Red Sox beat the Dodgers in the World Series that year and while it feels like an epoch has passed since that happened, the highlight reels of that matchup are in full color, not black and white.

7:32 AM ET All along, the plan of the Toronto Blue Jays had been to start looking for opportunities — either in trades or in free-agent signings. The priority was to entrench the team’s core of promising young players — Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cavan Biggio and others — in the big leagues, and

8:57 PM ET Associated Press WASHINGTON — Now that he’s set to play for the Washington Nationals this season, Ryan Zimmerman might stick around a little longer, too. Zimmerman and the Nationals made it official Saturday, announcing his $1 million, one-year contract. The deal came after the Nats’ longest-tenured player opted out of the coronavirus-shortened

9:50 AM ET When I first reached out to Henry Aaron to tell him I was interested in writing a book about his life, he did not want to talk to me. He was convinced the public had no interest in him, except to have him serve as their proxy to criticize Barry Bonds as

7:00 PM ET So much of Henry Aaron’s baseball legacy is attached to three numbers — 715, 755 and whatever Barry Bonds’ career home run total ended up at — that we too often overlook his all-around brilliance on the field. Put it this way: If you turned his 755 home runs into outs, he

11:30 AM ET Henry Aaron, who rose up from the depths of Southern poverty to become one of the towering figures in baseball history as well a bittersweet symbol of both American racial intolerance and triumph, has died today. He was 86. When he retired in 1976 after a 23-year major league career with the

12:44 PM ET The importance of Hank Aaron to baseball — and to American culture — is unmistakable. The Hall of Famer and longtime MLB home run king was a symbol of greatness on the field and dignity off it, facing death threats as a Black man approaching and then breaking Babe Ruth’s hallowed home

7:00 AM ET MLB InsidersESPN Two of baseball’s big four free agents are off the board. Two remain. With the World Series ancient history and the first pitch of the 2021 MLB season still months away, we’ve reached this offseason’s unofficial midway point. While we wait for the rest of the hot stove action to

12:54 PM ET After intimating as much over the last year or so, Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant admitted he isn’t having as much fun playing baseball as he used to. Bryant, 29, spoke to Red Line Radio, a Barstool podcast, and was asked if there was joy for him on the field. “At

12:32 PM ET Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City T-Bones of the independent American Association are being renamed the Kansas City Monarchs after the team that played in the Negro Leagues. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum signed a licensing agreement with Mark Brandmeyer’s MaxFun Entertainment, owner of the minor league team. The

7:00 AM ET So often, when you reference the big numbers of a pitcher from baseball’s past, you are dealing with results that have no modern relevance. They certainly have little use as a signpost for what some present-day hurler might do. Things have changed too much. There are some obvious examples of that which

5:07 PM ET Veteran left-hander J.A. Happ and the Minnesota Twins have agreed to a one-year deal, pending a physical, sources tell ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Financial terms weren’t immediately available. Happ, a free agent, will remain in the American League after spending the last two-and-a-half seasons with the New York Yankees. He will join a