Friday's first pitch

Manny Ramirez has given the cold shoulder to the Los Angeles Dodgers' two-year offer. The Los Angeles Times reports the squabbling is over deferred money.
Bill Plaschke says the Dodgers should tell Manny to go "be Manny" somewhere else.

• The Orioles, who started six shortstops last season, think they've found their man. He's Cezar Izturis.


• The Washington Nationals prospect who caused a scandal is apologizing.


• The Philadelphia Daily News' Bill Conlin says Ryan Howard has a date with Cooperstown.


• The St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Ryan Burwell says Albert Pujols' has a new job. The game rests on his integrity.


• New York Yankees All-Star Jorge Posada is not behind the plate this week, though the Yankees are relying on him to be the regular this season. The Southpaw predicts Posada will catch less than 90 games this season.


• Alex Rodriguez has been told not to let his cousin come around any more.

On the diamond, the O's and Nats won, the Phightings lost and there's no tying in baseball.

Here's the Associated Press roundup of Thursday's action:

While the Dodgers and Giants found another place to renew their heated rivalry, Jose Reyes took a liking to his new spot in the lineup.

Longtime adversaries first in New York, then California and now in the Cactus League, the Dodgers and Giants squared off again Thursday in a fresh locale: Scottsdale, Ariz.

Russell Martin homered off Matt Cain and drove in three runs as Los Angeles spoiled San Francisco's spring training home opener with a 16-7 victory.

Both teams are now in Arizona after the Dodgers left their longtime home in Vero Beach, Fla., to open their new facility in the Phoenix area this year. The Giants have trained in Arizona since 1952.

Reyes looks ready to go right now.

Dropped from the leadoff spot to No. 3 in the order, he hit a grand slam, a solo homer and had six RBIs to power the New York Mets past the Florida Marlins 9-0 at Port St. Lucie, Fla.

"I didn't do anything different," Reyes said. "I just put my best swing on the ball and tried to go from there."

Mets manager Jerry Manuel is juggling his lineup this spring to see if he wants to keep the changes for the regular season. The idea is to benefit Castillo, coming off an ineffective season, and give Reyes a chance to knock in more runs.

Carlos Beltran also homered for New York and drove in three runs.

At Tampa, Fla., Yankees star Alex Rodriguez got another mixed reception in his first spring training game at home since admitting he used performance-enhancing drugs from 2001-03. Rodriguez tested positive for steroids while playing for Texas.
The three-time MVP went 0-for-2 and left after five innings of New York's 5-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. The sellout crowd of 10,693 at George M. Steinbrenner Field included the Yankees owner.

Rodriguez said he had not yet met with investigators from Major League Baseball, which wants to interview him about a trainer from the Dominican Republic and the cousin the third baseman said injected him with a banned substance called "boli."

In other news, Ken Griffey Jr.'s first spring game in his return to the Seattle Mariners likely won't come until Wednesday night against the Australian national team.

In other spring training games:

Cubs 7, Brewers 4

At Mesa, Ariz., Milton Bradley's spring training debut was cut short by an injury. Chicago's new right fielder walked in the first inning, then was lifted for a pinch-runner as soon as he reached base.

Braves 8, Astros 7

At Kissimmee, Fla., Roy Oswalt was sharp in a World Baseball Classic tuneup for Houston, allowing just one hit in three innings. He struck out United States teammate Chipper Jones twice.

Nationals 2, Tigers 1

At Viera, Fla., Collin Balester, Jordan Zimmermann and Terrell Young each pitched two scoreless innings for Washington.

Pirates 3, Red Sox 2

At Fort Myers, Fla., Jon Lester worked on his changeup and threw two scoreless innings for Boston.

Twins 10, Reds 4

At Sarasota, Fla., Micah Owings used his first opportunity to show Cincinnati he can pitch as well as he hits by working three scoreless innings in the final spring opener at Ed Smith Stadium for the Reds. The team signed a lease to move next year to Goodyear, Ariz.

Blue Jays 6, Phillies 2

At Clearwater, Fla., top pitching prospects Carlos Carrasco and J.A. Happ each tossed two shutout innings for Philadelphia. Carrasco struck out three.

Orioles 11, Cardinals 3

At Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Baltimore right-hander Danys Baez allowed three walks and two runs in one inning, his first outing since September 2007. He underwent elbow surgery the following month, and the former All-Star closer is now trying to win a job with the Orioles as a starter, a role he hasn't held since 2002.

Mariners 4, Padres 4, 10 innings

At Peoria, Ariz., Felix Hernandez gave up a two-run homer to San Diego catcher Henry Blanco in a tuneup for the World Baseball Classic. Hernandez is slated to start Venezuela's opener March 7 against Italy in Toronto.

Angels 3, Athletics 1

At Tempe, Ariz., new Los Angeles closer Brian Fuentes worked a scoreless inning before a sparse crowd of 1,643.

Royals 7, Rangers 2

At Surprise, Ariz., Kyle Davies pitched two scoreless innings and Ross Gload hit a bases-loaded triple for Kansas City. Josh Hamilton homered for the second consecutive game for the Rangers.

Diamondbacks 15, Indians 9

At Goodyear, Ariz., prized prospect Matt LaPorta homered off Arizona All-Star Dan Haren.

White Sox 4, Rockies 1

At Tucson, Ariz., Huston Street made his Colorado debut, giving up a run and three hits in one inning. He is competing with Manuel Corpas for the closer role, a job he held in Oakland last season.

Looking across the Leagues:

• The New York Times' George Vecsey ponders the incredible shrinking player.
• ESPN's Jayson Stark says Phillies have a hard task in front of them