Rays pounce on Tigers to take opening game of series  —  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Matt Andriese outpitched Michael Fulmer, Tim Beckham hit a two-run homer, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 on Tuesday night.  —  Andriese (1-), who had lost seven of nine decisions dating …

Cubs headed toward another decision on Tommy La Stella and Matt Szczur  —  Cubs manager Joe Maddon on lineup, rotation changes and Jon Lester on April 19, 2017.  (Mark Gonzales/Chicago Tribune)  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Less than one month after finalizing their opening day roster …

As Starling Marte exits after PED bust, Pirates, McCutchen aim to salvage '17  —  ST. LOUIS - The Pittsburgh Pirate clubhouse was quiet Tuesday afternoon, with no music, no laughter, little chatter, just players inwardly pondering their thoughts and feelings toward a teammate.

Cardinals make do with two and ‘positive juju’  —  Photo by Christian Gooden, cgooden@post-dispatch.com  —  Cardinal infielder Jose Martinez is met in the dugout in the 5th inning after scoring the second run in on a double by Greg Garcia a 2-1 game against the Pirates on Tuesday, April 18 …

Ichiro Suzuki: Had to ‘pinch myself’ after ninth-inning HR at Safeco  —  In what could have been his final at-bat at Safeco Field, longtime Mariners and current Miami Marlins outfielder Ichiro Suzuki hit a home run in the ninth inning of a 10-5 loss in Seattle on Wednesday.

Tomas, Miller way too much for Padres as D-backs win 3rd straight  —  SAN DIEGO — Yasmany Tomas hit a three-run homer, Shelby Miller pitched 7 1/3 innings of four-hit ball and the Arizona Diamondbacks routed the San Diego Padres 11-2 on Tuesday night.  —  The Padres lost their fifth straight game.

Mookie Betts: The Babe Ruth of not striking out  —  In the seventh inning Tuesday night, Boston Red Sox All-Star Mookie Betts lashed a hanging breaking ball from reliever Joe Smith into the second deck at Rogers Centre, his first home run of a season that may once again conclude …

Arenado hits 2 home runs, Rockies hold off Dodgers 4-3  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nolan Arenado went home to work on his swing, and it paid off in a big way.  —  Arenado homered twice, Trevor Story also connected and the Colorado Rockies held off the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-3 on Tuesday night.

Cleveland Indians finding groove, rout Minnesota Twins  —  MINNEAPOLIS — The Cleveland Indians are starting to resemble the team that took the American League by storm last year and advanced to Game 7 of the World Series.  —  Jose Ramirez and Edwin Encarnacion each hit two-run homers …

Country boy Jay Bruce finding comfort in Big Apple  —  When Jay Bruce was hitting .183 and flailing at everything in sight in his first month as a New York Met, a casual observer might have concluded that he was having trouble finding his comfort zone in the big city.

Red Sox-Blue Jays lineups: Porcello looks to get back on track  —  Dustin Pedroia's back in the lineup after a day off and Eduardo Rodriguez is back with the team after a short paternity leave.  —  Now the Red Sox hope Rick Porcello is back to form.  —  The defending American League Cy …

Hector Rondon still adjusting to a change in his delivery  —  Chicago Tribune  —  After watching Hector Rondon struggle for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, the Chicago Cubs believe they've corrected the former closer's flaws.  —  Rondon strengthened his cause by pitching …

Rangers reaction goes Rashomon to explain baffling Yu Darvish night  —  OAKLAND  —  What exactly went down Tuesday night in Oakland?  Yu Darvish dominated the Oakland A's for five innings, allowing one hit in the process.  He threw just 56 pitches and faced the minimum in the stretch.