Baseball players may file grievance against owners

Baseball players may file a collusion grievance charging owners with conspiring against free agents last winter.

"We have concerns about the operation of the post-2009 free-agent market," new union head Michael Weiner said Tuesday in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "We have been investigating that market. Our investigation is far along but not yet complete."

The sides reached a standstill agreement last year giving the union additional time to proceed with a grievance against teams alleging misconduct after the 2008 season. Management denies any violation of the collective-bargaining agreement, which states clubs may not act in concert with respect to free agents.

Foreign players' percentage dips

The percentage of major-league ballplayers born outside the 50 states dipped slightly from last year. It was 27.7 percent at the start of this season, down from 28 percent on opening day in 2009. The commissioner's office said that of the 833 players on rosters at the end of Monday, 231 were born outside the 50 states. That was down from a high of 29.2 percent in 2005. The Dominican Republic leads with 86 players in the majors.

The Mets had the most foreign-born players for the fourth time in five years and had a record high of 18, including natives of Canada, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.

Courtney to be MLB spokesman

Patrick Courtney will become Major League Baseball's chief spokesman after the retirement of Rich Levin at the end of the year. Courtney was promoted to senior vice president of public relations. He entered baseball as an intern with the Yankees in 1991 and was hired by the commissioner's office as a public relations assistant the following year. He became vice president of public relations in 2003.

Aaron talks up Braves' Heyward

Jason Heyward's debut has Hank Aaron convinced that the rookie can stir up more excitement about baseball in the black community. The Hall of Fame Atlanta Braves slugger said that Heyward, who is black, "can mean an awful lot to what ails baseball."- AP