Bettis bests Garcia as Rox win 5th straight  —  ST. LOUIS — Buoyed by Chad Bettis' fifth quality start of the season, the Rockies ran their winning streak to five by opening a three-game series at Busch Stadium with a 3-1 victory over the Cardinals on Tuesday.

Nationals 2B Murphy Returns to Citi Field to Face Mets  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMAY 17, 2016, 7:01 P.M. E.D.T.  —  NEW YORK — Back at Citi Field for the first time as an opponent, Daniel Murphy walked into the visiting clubhouse and knew his way around.  —  Sort of.

Pirates Spoil Snitker's Debut as Manager, Top Braves 12-9  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMAY 17, 2016, 11:51 P.M. E.D.T.  —  PITTSBURGH — There are nights when Gregory Polanco will head to the dugout after an at-bat knowing it will be a while before he gets another turn at the plate.

Gibbons and Bautista suspended for role in bench brawl with Rangers  —  Toronto Manager John Gibbons has been suspended for three games for his role in Sunday's wild on-field brawl between the Blue Jays and the Texas Rangers.  —  Rangers' second baseman Rougned Odor has also been handed …

Paulo Orlando Paces Royals to 8-4 Win Over Red Sox  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMAY 17, 2016, 11:30 P.M. E.D.T.  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Paulo Orlando hit a two-run homer, Eric Hosmer also went deep and the Kansas City Royals beat the hot-hitting Boston Red Sox 8-4 on Tuesday night in the opener of their three-game series.

Bumgarner's Complete Game, Crawford's 5 RBIs Carry Giants  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMAY 18, 2016, 1:06 A.M. E.D.T.  —  SAN DIEGO — Madison Bumgarner threw a five-hitter and struck out 11 for his first complete game this season and Brandon Crawford homered and drove in all five runs to lead …

Free Agent Compensation Must Die  —  I don't know how gauche it's considered to link to one of our own, but Devin Shaw's recent article here at the Hardball Times first got me thinking, and then it got me fired up.  —  The aspect of Shaw's piece that I want to focus on is free agent compensation.

Anderson's No-Hit Bid for Brewers Broken Up in 8th by Cubs  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMAY 17, 2016, 9:48 P.M. E.D.T.  —  MILWAUKEE — Chase Anderson's no-hit bid for the Milwaukee Brewers against the Chicago Cubs has been broken up by Ben Zobrist's leadoff double in the eighth inning.

Cruz and Seager Go Deep to Power Mariners Past Orioles, 10-0  —  By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSMAY 17, 2016, 10:03 P.M. E.D.T.  —  BALTIMORE — Nelson Cruz homered and drove in five runs, Kyle Seager hit a three-run drive and the Seattle Mariners cruised past the Baltimore Orioles 10-0 Tuesday night.

Mets GM Alderson has pre-planned surgery in cancer treatment  —  NEW YORK (AP) Mets general manager Sandy Alderson says he had pre-planned surgery last week as part of his cancer treatment and that the procedure was “fantastically successful.”  —  The 68-year-old hasn't revealed what kind of cancer he has …

Tigers score 7 in 7th inning, beat Minnesota 7-2 (Yahoo Sports)  —  Ian Kinsler and J.D. Martinez hit consecutive homers during a seven-run seventh inning, and the Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins 7-2 on Tuesday night as manager Brad Ausmus served a one-game suspension.