Across the Florida Grapefruit League and the Arizona Cactus League, real life, honest to goodness baseball games have started. Sunday, March 1 kicked off 2015 Spring Training when the University of Tampa defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 6-2. Games between MLB teams commenced on Tuesday, March 3, which saw a full slate of action with nine games played.
The highlights of the day’s action included a 10-0 win by the Cleveland Indians over the Cincinnati Reds in the Grapefruit League and a 15-2 thumping of the Baltimore Orioles by the Detroit Tigers.
Another highlight of the early Spring Training action came the next day when the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the New York Yankees 3-1. This low-scoring seemingly innocuous game grabbed headlines when Yankee designated hitter Alex Rodriguez played for the first time since 2013 due to a well-publicized suspension for the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
International stars have made splashes early on this spring as Kendrys Morales (.571 avg with one homerun and two RBIs) of Fomento, Cuba and Gabriel Noriega (1.000 avg with a walk) of Maturin, Venezuela have lead the Kansas City Royals to a 2-0 start in the beginning of their defense of the American League crown
Additionally, Nelson Cruz (.667 avg with one homerun and two RBIs) of Las Matas de Santa Cruz, Dominican Republic has shone early on for the 2-0 Mariners and must continue to do so to justify his four year, $58 million contract that drew him to Seattle from Baltimore.
