Forget the World Series rematch with Giants ace Madison Bumgarner; Padres pitcher James Shields had more immediate concerns Saturday at Scottsdale Stadium. Such as how to go about pitching his Royals teammate from 2014, new Giants outfielder Nori Aoki.

Just because Saturday’s Cactus League game against the Dodgers wasn’t the real Opening Day, that doesn’t mean Jason Kipnis wasn’t excited to get back on the field again.

In his three big league seasons, Darvish is 29-22 with a 3.42 ERA when working on four days of rest or less, compared with 10-3 with a 2.58 ERA in 15 starts on five days of rest or more. He was 6-2 with a 1.49 ERA with the extra rest in the last two seasons compared with 17-14 with a 3.21 ERA on three or four days of rest.

Though his left arm feels right, Jaime Garcia knows he still has much to prove over the next month. Not only are the Cardinals seeking assurances of durability, they are also curious to see whether Garcia can still harness the natural movement of his pitches.

The Nats’ ace tries to glean some positves from walking a batter to lead off an inning, or having to pitch with the bases loaded.

After all the anticipation for Joey Votto’s return to the Reds’ lineup, the first baseman had just what he hoped for on Saturday — a rather routine first game back.

Carlos Rodon looked Major League ready during his two innings of work on Friday against the Padres. His mindset and confidence reside on that same exact big league level.

Though it’s just one Grapefruit League start, the glass looks a lot fuller for the Red Sox when Clay Buchholz displays the form of an ace.

Clay Buchholz, one of the top candidates to pitch Opening Day for the Red Sox, fired three dominant innings and retired the final eight batters he faced in his Grapefruit League debut as a split-squad of Sox took a no-hitter into the seventh on the way to topping the Twins, 4-2, on Saturday.

White Sox left-hander Chris Sale has taken a step in the right direction regarding the broken right foot and sprained right ankle he sustained last Friday during an accident at his Arizona home.

Felix Hernandez’s first Cactus League start has been moved up a day to Tuesday, meaning the Mariners’ ace will face the Rockies in Scottsdale in his spring debut. Manager Lloyd McClendon also announced positive news on injured starter James Paxton as Seattle’s pitching plans continue to fall into place.

Buck Showalter isn’t concerned about Matt Wieters suffering any physical effects due to lack of game action this spring, as the three-time American League All Star has placed heavy emphasis on physical conditioning.

Rangers right-hander Yu Darvish underwent an MRI on Friday, which revealed that he has a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy, who has won the past three AL Gold Glove Awards, is a quiet leader whose goes out of his way to help players coming up through the system.

Nationals second baseman Yunel Escobar has been diagnosed with a Grade 1 left oblique strain that is expected to sideline him for a week to 10 days.

Cuban second baseman Hector Olivera was declared a free agent by Major League Baseball on Friday, and he could come to an agreement with a team as early as Sunday, according to industry sources.

It has been a relief for Carlos Beltran to play without pain after a season of managing discomfort in his right elbow, and after the Yankees veteran made his spring debut on Friday, he said that there has been no hesitation in trusting his health.