Astros show they're perfectly awful  —  Mark Mulder took the words right out of my mouth.  —  “This won't be the last time this year that someone is perfect through a good portion of the game against the Astros,” the former major-league pitcher, now a TV analyst, said on Twitter during the seventh inning.

Final Score: Mets 8 Padres 4  —  The Mets (2-0) defeated the Padres (0-2) by the score of 8-4 tonight at Citi Field.  — Matt Harvey started for the Mets, and was dominant for seven innings, allowing one hit with two walks and striking out ten — he faced one batter over his minimum tonight.

Reds' Ludwick expected to miss 3 months  —  CINCINNATI — Reds outfielder Ryan Ludwick is expected to miss at least three months following surgery on Wednesday to repair torn cartilage in his right shoulder.  —  Ludwick dislocated his non-throwing shoulder while sliding into third base …

Miami Marlins: Vaunted Double-A outfield to open on disabled list … Double-A Jacksonville was projected to have one of the best starting outfields in the minor leagues with Christian Yelich, Jake Marisnick and Marcell Ozuna.  The Suns will feature those three at some point, just not when the season starts Thursday.

Twins Rally Past Tigers in 9th for 3-2 Win  —  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Eduardo Escobar's two-run double with one out in the ninth inning lifted the Minnesota Twins to a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday.  —  After Joaquin Benoit issued a leadoff walk to Trevor Plouffe, reliever Phil Coke took over.

Shane Victorino, distracted by free agency last year, took less money to taste Boston Red Sox-Yankees rivalry; Mets, Blue Jays  —  You can't catch this buzz in Cleveland, not if you're Shane Victorino, and you took a long drink of Philly during that town's baseball peak.

A's notes: Colon to start Saturday, no limits on Balfour  —  Programming note: Coverage of A's-Mariners begins at 6:30 PT with A's Pregame Live on CSN California.  —  The decision to get Colon on the mound as soon as his suspension is lifted benefits the A's in several different ways.

Dodgers bring in humidor to combat mile-high effect at Isotopes Park  —  ALBUQUERQUE — The average summertime temperature in the state's largest city hovers in the low to mid 90s with humidity in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 percent.  —  Combine that with Albuquerque's mile-high altitude …

For Harvey, pitching is the easy part  —  The Mets right-hander is learning to tap his intensity when he needs it … NEW YORK — Ten weeks before his first start of the 2013 season, Matt Harvey is firing a baseball in the batting cage underneath Citi Field.

Dunn Homers, White Sox Beat Royals 5-2  —  CHICAGO (AP) — Adam Dunn homered and the Chicago White Sox went deep four times to back a solid start by Jake Peavy in a 5-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday.  —  Tyler Flowers, Dayan Viciedo and Alexi Ramirez also connected …

Cards Notebook: Matheny cautious with Freese  —  • By Derrick Goold dgoold@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8285  —  PHOENIX  Matheny struck a new note of caution with third baseman David Freese, acknowledging Tuesday that the schedule of games in Jupiter, Fla., may not allow Freese enough …

Cardinals Hit 3 Home Runs in 6-1 Win Over D-Backs  —  PHOENIX (AP) — Matt Holliday, Pete Kozma and Jon Jay homered and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-1 on Tuesday night to even their season-opening series at a game apiece.  —  Jaime Garcia (1-0) gave up two hits …