LEADING OFF: White Sox check Farquhar, Ohtani's blister  —  A look at what's happening around the majors today:  —  CHECK HIM  —  The White Sox will see how Danny Farquhar is feeling, a day after he passed out in the dugout during a home game against Houston.

Chicago embarrasses Colorado Rockies at Coors  —  DENVER — Javier Baez and Kyle Schwarber each had a homer and four RBIs, and the Chicago Cubs rode a seven-run sixth inning to a 16-5 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Friday night.  —  Baez had four hits, finishing a triple shy of the cycle.

Cespedes' clutch hit, Gsellman's heroics propel Mets to win in 12  —  ATLANTA — Robert Gsellman's rubber arm and baggy shirt were a perfect combination for the Mets in extra innings Friday night.  —  After pitching the 10th and 11th, the right-hander remained in the game to bat …

Nats beat Dodgers 5-2 in uneven matchup of Scherzer, Kershaw  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) The Dodgers didn't make it easy on Max Scherzer.  In the end, though, he was just better than Clayton Kershaw.  —  Scherzer allowed one run over six innings in the 13th all-time meeting of three …

Sonny Gray struggles again, gives up five runs as Yankees fall to Blue Jays 8-5  —  After his worst start as a Yankee last week in Boston, Sonny Gray decided he needed to make a change.  So the righthander sat down with pitching coach Larry Rothschild and identified some necessary mechanical fixes.

Last Slide  —  The season is barely three weeks old, but the Diamondbacks' bullpen already is exhibiting many of the same attributes as last year: assembled on the cheap, effective in a sort of non-traditional way and, most important, as good as anyone's.  —  The Diamondbacks entered Friday …

Cubs top prospect Adbert Alzolay dominates in Triple-A debut  —  Chicago Cubs top prospect Adbert Alzolay joins Iowa Cubs  —  It's easy to see why there are so many high hopes for Adbert Alzolay.  —  The 23-year-old was dominant in his Triple-A debut for the Iowa Cubs …

Fowler sits as Pham bats leadoff  —  Dexter Fowler wasn't in Friday night's Cardinals lineup, which meant he wasn't leading off, which meant that Tommy Pham was.  —  The switch-hitting Fowler, just one for 17 (.059) against lefthanded pitching, didn't start against Cincinnati lefthander Brandon Finnegan last Saturday, either.

Cleveland Indians fall to Baltimore Orioles, 3-1, at Camden Yards  —  The Cleveland Indians fell to the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1, at Oriole Park at Camden Yards Friday night.  —  The Cleveland Indians' first outing since their 16-inning loss to the Minnesota Twins at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan …

Angels drop fourth straight game with loss to Giants 8-1  —  At one point Friday night, the fifth inning was delayed because a beach ball fell onto the field.  —  And that was pretty much the highlight for the home team at Angel Stadium, where a lot of negative things unfolded.  —  Yeah, again.

Phillies, Rhys Hoskins don't panic with two strikes  —  Rhys Hoskins kickstarted the Phillies' five-run second inning Thursday night by crushing a pitch through a stiff wind and over the left-field fence at Citizens Bank Park.  —  But it didn't happen until Hoskins was in a two-strike count.

Bullpen collapses late as Rangers fall to Mariners, 6-2  —  ARLINGTON, Texas — Jean Segura hit a two-run double in a four-run ninth inning after Mitch Haniger's tying homer in the eighth, lifting the Seattle Mariners over the Texas Rangers 6-2 on Friday night.

Detroit Tigers' Daniel Norris still searching for velocity: ‘It will come back’  —  Daniel Norris has been searching for it under his bed.  —  He has been looking through trash cans.  In the back seat of his car.  Anywhere and everywhere.  —  “I'm searching for the velocity,” he said.

Archer's sparkling start precedes surreal finish  —  By now, we presume you've had a few hours to digest the Rays' improbable 10-inning triumph Friday night.  —  So instead of rehashing the whole bizarre body of work, how 'bout a closer look at the workmanship.  Specifically, Chris Archer's.

Cubs' Ben Zobrist headed to DL with lower back stiffness  —  Photos from the Cubs-Rockies game at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado on Friday, April 20, 2018.  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Cubs infielder Ben Zobrist will be placed on the 10-day disabled list because of persistent lower back stiffness …

Now Batting in Double A: Biggio, Bichette and Guerrero  —  HARTFORD, Conn. — Craig Breslow is 37 years old, with a dozen years of experience as a left-handed reliever in the major leagues.  He is pitching now for the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, just getting to know his teammates.

Cubs' Albert Almora Jr. making most of leadoff time  —  Albert Almora Jr. on the current state of the Cubs: 'We're having so much fun.' (Mark Gonzales/Chicago Tribune)  —  Chicago Tribune  —  Cubs manager Joe Maddon had some discouraging words for those clamoring to keep Albert Almora Jr. at the leadoff spot on a permanent basis.