Willie Davis, a speedy center fielder who collected two World Series rings, three Gold Gloves and was a two-time All-Star during his 14 seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, has died. He was 69. "He was beloved by generations of Dodger fans and remains one of the most talented players ever to wear the Dodger uniform.

One day after Josh Bell announced his presence with authority by slugging two homers in his spring debut, Brian Matusz declared himself an early season favorite for Rookie of the Year honors.

While the first outing of spring is only a small sample to pull from, the left-hander's command and dominance was eye-opening.

Matusz threw 28 of 36 pitches for strikes and retired the side in the first inning with three strikeouts.

He capped the opening inning with an impressive, 13-pitch battle with Rays all-star third baseman Evan Longoria.

"It was fun," Matusz told reporters. "It was a good battle. I know my pitch count got up today, but I threw a lot of strikes ... and I was able to do what I wanted to do."

Matusz, 23, is a cerebral pitcher.

Rays right-hander Jeff Niemann breezed through his start Tuesday. The Baltimore Orioles made it easy on him. Niemann became the first Tampa Bay pitcher to complete four innings this spring, leading the Rays to an 8-3 victory against the Orioles. Niemann threw just 36 pitches while allowing one run and two hits.

Jeremy Guthrie pitched into the third inning in his second spring start, but the Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 Sunday. Guthrie threw 51 pitches and gave up a run and three hits in 2 1-3 innings. He walked two and struck out two -- Jacoby Ellsbury and David Ortiz. A year ago, the Orioles' right-hander had only one start in spring training before leaving for the World Baseball...

Miguel Tejada started getting comfortable at his new position, and the Baltimore Orioles broke in their new spring home with a bevy of long balls. Josh Bell and Rhyne Hughes each hit two home runs as the Orioles hit six homers in winning their spring opener, 12-2 Wednesday over the Tampa Bay Rays. Tejada made his first appearance at third base in his 13-season big league career.