Baseball's opening lines: Alex Rodriguez, Bobby Valentine and Yu Darvish among early stories  —  The stories to watch as MLB opens another season  —  Keep a close eye on Bobby Valentine as the new Red Sox skipper could have his hands full in Boston.  —  Now that the baseball season …

Nationals rally again, beat Cubs 7-4  —  CHICAGO - Adam LaRoche homered and matched a career-high with four hits, and the Washington Nationals again rallied late against Kerry Wood and Carlos Marmol, scoring five runs in the eighth to beat the Chicago Cubs 7-4 on Sunday.

Blue Jays Topple Indians 7-4 in 12 Innings  —  CLEVELAND (AP) — Rajai Davis hit a two-run double in the 12th inning, Toronto rallied for the second straight game against Cleveland's bullpen and the Blue Jays beat the Indians in extra innings again, 7-4 on Saturday.

Duda's day: Slugger's two homers carry Mets  —  NEW YORK — Mets manager Terry Collins spent much of Spring Training lauding Lucas Duda, he of prodigious raw power but a noticeable lack of confidence and experience.  What Collins envisioned for his right fielder was something like this.

Prince debuts home run trot twice vs. Red Sox  —  DETROIT — Coming into the season, some questioned if the large confines of Comerica Park might hurt Prince Fielder's power numbers.  The jury is still out on that, but if the second game of the regular season is any indication, the Tigers' new slugger should be just fine.

Joe Girardi and Joe Maddon play game of chess in bizarre Opening Day game between Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays  —  Managers save nothing and neither does Mo Rivera  —  Tampa Bay Rays' Carlos Pena watches the flight of the ball after hitting a grand-slam home run and might as well thank Joe Girardi for loading bases for him.

Brandon Phillips mum on contract  —  CINCINNATI — Reds All-Star second baseman Brandon Phillips is keeping quiet while closing in on a contract extension.  —  Phillips said on Saturday before a game against Miami that he's not going to discuss an extension that's been in the works since last season.

Doug Fister exits with apparent injury  —  DETROIT — Detroit right-hander Doug Fister has left Saturday's game against Boston with a strain in his left side.  —  The Tigers led 2-0 when manager Jim Leyland and trainer Kevin Rand came out to the mound to check on Fister in the middle of an at-bat by Ryan Sweeney.

Rockies get 5-3 opening day win over Astros  —  HOUSTON—Pinch runner Eric Young scored the go-ahead run on an error in the eighth inning and Troy Tulowitzki homered in the ninth to lift the Colorado Rockies to a 5-3 win over the mistake-prone Houston Astros on Friday night.

Colorado Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd addresses several issues on opening day  —  HOUSTON — The Rockies are going to score runs.  Preventing them?  That's a concern even for the man responsible for piecing together the opening-day roster.  —  “I thought there was a lot of trust …

Uecker mourns loss of 52-year-old son  —  MILWAUKEE (AP)  —  Hall of Fame broadcaster Bob Uecker's son Steve has died from complications related to San Joaquin Valley fever.  —  The Brewers issued a statement saying Steve Uecker passed away Friday at a hospital in Milwaukee.  He was 52.

Magic vs. Kemp?  LA slugger is ready  —  SAN DIEGO — It might have to happen over the dead body of incoming CEO Stan Kasten, what with the injury exclusion clauses in today's contracts.  —  But the mythical one-on-one hoop challenge concocted in the Dodgers clubhouse has been further fueled …

Nieuwenhuis promoted after Torres is put on DL  —  After playing in only one regular-season game, the Mets' new centerfielder is on the disabled list.  —  The Mets announced Friday that Andres Torres was put on the 15-day DL with a strained left calf, an injury suffered in their Opening Day win over Atlanta on Thursday at Citi Field.