Jeff Moorad announces he is stepping down as Chief Executive Officer of the San Diego Padres, but will remain a Vice-President in charge of developing the team’s relationship with the Fox Sports San Diego network.
2011 – Greg Anderson, personal trainer of Barry Bonds, refuses to testify at the slugger’s trial for perjury. He is charged with contempt of court by Judge Susan Illston and is taken into custody, facing a fifth jail term for his consistently uncooperative attitude.
With the same pen he used to sign his rookie contract in 2001, Twins catcher Joe Mauer (.365, 28, 96) signs a $184 million, eight-year contract extension, keeping him with the small market team through 2018. Last year, the 26 year-old backstop, after starting the season on the DL as result of back surgery the previous year, captured his third batting crown and was named the American League’s Most Valuable Player.
Albert Pujols gives the Cardinals a scare as he is scratched from the line-up for today’s Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox, suffering from tightness in his lower back. The 2009 National League MVP has already missed a week of work this spring; he undergoes a MRI and receives an anti-inflammatory injection as a precaution. On the positive side of the ledger for the Cards, OF Matt Holliday is back in the line-up after missing two weeks with a strained chest muscle.
2008 – Javy Lopez retires. Lopez hit 260 home runs and slugged .491 in his major league career, producing a 112 OPS+ in 15 seasons. He set a single-season home run record for catchers with 42. A three-time All-Star, Lopez sat out 2007 before managing just a .188 average in his comeback attempt with the Atlanta Braves this spring.
2007 – After almost 20 years of wearing a pin in his cap to promote the Sunshine Kids charity for cancer-stricken children, Major League Baseball tells 41-year-old Craig Biggio that he can no longer wear the emblem during spring exhibition games. Biggio reacts angrily while the Astros front office refrains from comment. A week later, after a mild media uproar, Major League Baseball rescinds the order.
Giants’ slugger Barry Bonds, 11 home runs shy of passing Babe Ruth on the all-time list, indicates he may not play this season. The 40 year-old National League MVP, who has had two knee operations and implicated in the sport’s steroids scandal, cites being physically and mentally “done,” and blames the media for much of his unhappiness.
2002 – 38-year-old Dante Bichette announces his retirement after a poor spring trying to make the Dodgers’ roster as a bench player. A four-time All-Star, Bichette was a .299 hitter with 274 home runs and 1,141 RBI in a 14-season career with five teams.
1999 – The St. Louis Cardinals announce that starter Matt Morris, expected to be the ace of their pitching staff, will miss the entire season because of a torn ligament in his right elbow.
The New York Mets, loaded with middle infielders, add two more, acquiring shortstop Manny Alexander and third baseman Scott McClain from the Baltimore Orioles. The Mets give up hard-throwing reliever Hector Ramirez in exchange.
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