Mascots need training, too
Blue Jays mascot Ace works on his autograph-signing skills before Wednesday's exhibition game against the Phillies at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in Dunedin, Fla. ( Justin K. Aller/Getty )
CARDINALS: Second baseman Kolten Wong agreed to a five-year, $25.5 million contract. Wong, 25, gets $1.25 million this year, $2.5 million in 2017, $4 million in 2018, $6.5 million in 2019 and $10.25 million in 2020. He would have been eligible for salary arbitration next winter.
YANKEES: A day after accepting a 30-game suspension, closer Aroldis Chapman apologized for using a gun and insisted he never hurt his girlfriend during an incident last year. His girlfriend, 22-year-old Cristina Barnea, told police he pushed and choked her during an Oct. 30 incident at his home in Davie, Fla. Chapman said he no longer has a gun.
TIGERS: With Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh moonlighting as their 1B coach, a split squad of Tigers beat the Pirates 10-3 in Bradenton, Fla. Wearing a gray Tigers road uniform with No. 4 — his number when he was a Wolverines QB in the mid-1980s — stitched on the jersey, Harbaugh coached the first three innings. After being replaced by Alan Trammell, Harbaugh watched the game from the dugout.
EXTRA INNINGS: Jeff Samardzija pitched two innings in his first game in a Giants uniform, giving up a run and two hits as the Giants beat the Angels 4-1 in Scottsdale, Ariz., in the exhibition opener for both teams. Signed to a $90 million, five-year contract, Samardzija walked two and struck out none. ... Royals C Salvador Perez is donating $1 million to the Urban Youth Academy, a 21-acre development of playing fields and other park amenities near downtown Kansas City, Mo. A day earlier, Perez signed a five-year, $52.5 million contract. ... President Barack Obama plans to attend the Rays' exhibition game in Cuba on March 22. ... Dusty Baker won his exhibition debut as Nationals manager when they roughed up top Rays pitching prospect Blake Snell for a 6-2 victory in Port Charlotte, Fla. Baker last managed with the Reds in 2013.