sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - The San Francisco Giants left the desert with Brandon Belt on a tear at the plate and Madison Bumgarner effective if not perfect in his final start before the real season begins.

GOODYEAR, Ariz. - Edinson Volquez was wild in this warmup. Volquez walked six in his last outing before starting the Padres' opener and the Cincinnati Reds beat San Diego 7-3 Wednesday.

TORONTO - Sportsnet is looking at creating a game of its own. At a media event on Wednesday, Scott Moore, president of broadcast for Sportsnet owner Rogers Media, hinted that the company is working on creating "a whole new sport.

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. - Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons maintained all along that left-hander J.A. Happ belonged on the team. Now it's official.

ATLANTA - That familiar face over at third base is gone. Time for the Atlanta Braves to go through another changing of the guard. Goodbye, Chipper Jones. Hello, Jason Heyward and the Brothers Upton.

OTTAWA - The Ottawa Senators got a welcome surprise at practice Wednesday morning. Defenceman Jared Cowen joined the team on the ice for the first time this season. The 22-year-old has been recovering from surgery for a torn labrum in his hip.

PHILADELPHIA - About 14 months ago, New York Rangers owner James Dolan made a rare stop at a postgame press conference and proclaimed his team fit for a championship. "I think we're pretty close to getting that back," Dolan said of the Stanley Cup.

TORONTO - The UFC is playing the role of Switzerland when it comes to Nick Diaz's allegations of improprieties surrounding the UFC 158 weigh-in and drug testing.

The second jewel of Canadian thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown is staying put, at least for one more year.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - David Wright got engaged last winter to his longtime girlfriend, model Molly Beers. By then he was already married to the New York Mets — for better or for worse.