Jason Vargas makes his Mets debut vs. Padres  —  Left-hander Jason Vargas makes his long-awaited, 2018 season debut for the New York Mets Saturday night at Petco Park as he goes up against San Diego Padres left-handed rookie Joey Lucchesi.  —  Signed to a two-year contract by the Mets …

Didi Gregorius' home run in 10th carries Yankees over Angels for seventh straight win  —  ANAHEIM — Didi Gregorius got another curtain call on Friday night — only this one was 3,000 miles away from home.  —  Gregorius continued his torrid start to the season, blasting a go-ahead solo homer …

Kris Bryant, Ben Zobrist return to lineup for Cubs  —  CHICAGO — The Cubs will welcome back a pair of regulars on Saturday, with Kris Bryant and Ben Zobrist returning to the lineup against the Milwaukee Brewers.  —  Bryant has missed four games after being hit in the head by a pitch from the Rockies' German Marquez last Sunday.

Arizona Diamondbacks at Washington Nationals … WASHINGTON - As A.J. Pollock raced toward the gap in left-center field, the game hung in the balance.  It was the fifth inning.  The Washington Nationals had loaded the bases again.  And if Wilmer Difo's drive got down, it would have meant trouble for the Diamondbacks.

Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins set for doubleheader after playing extras  —  The Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Royals played 11 innings on Friday night before the White Sox prevailed, 7-4.  —  The two teams are scheduled to play 18 more innings Saturday in a day-night doubleheader.

Marte's 11th-inning single rallies Pirates over Cardinals  —  PITTSBURGH (AP) — Starling Marte's game-ending single in the 11th inning lifted the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-5 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.  —  David Freese drew a one-out walk from rookie Jordan Hicks …

Corey Kluber strikes out 10, Cleveland Indians top Seattle Mariners 6-5 with 5 homers  —  Francisco Lindor, Michael Brantley and Edwin Encarnacion homered in the first, and Yonder Alonso and Yan Gomes hit consecutive drives in the sixth.  —  CLEVELAND (AP) - Corey Kluber struck out 10 …

Brewers' Eric Thames out 6-8 weeks after thumb surgery  —  CHICAGO — Brewers first baseman Eric Thames had surgery on his left thumb, and Milwaukee said it expects him to return in six to eight weeks.  —  Dr. Donald Sheridan operated on Thames on Friday in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Manaea follows no-hitter with another win for A's  —  HOUSTON (AP) — Sean Manaea followed up his no-hitter with seven solid innings, three Athletics homered and Oakland beat the Houston Astros 8-1 on Friday night for its fifth win in six games.  —  Manaea (4-2) no-hit Boston last Saturday …

Patrick Corbin keeps adding zeroes to his next payday  —  When Major League Baseball front offices began looking forward to the 2018-2019 free-agent mega-class in spring training, Patrick Corbin appeared to rank well down the list of potentially available left-handed starters.

Fantasy Fare: The sorry early state of the catching position  —  Don't like the numbers your catching duo is putting up so far?  Chances are you're not alone.  —  Through the first month of the season, the catching position has been a veritable fantasy wasteland.  The supposed studs are scuffling.

Rays Tales: There's something familiar about that guy on the mound  —  The first few weeks of the new season have given the Rays a lot of reminders of their past.  —  Alex Cobb is the newest headliner in the club, the group of starting pitchers signed and raised by the Rays who moved on …

Cincinnati Reds come back to beat Twins 15-9  —  MINNEAPOLIS — It looked like the Reds were pretty well buried when starter Luis Castillo left without recording an out in the second inning.  —  But the Reds kept digging — and hitting and scoring.  The result was a 15-9 comeback win …

West rivals Dodgers, Giants set to play two  —  The San Francisco Giants will take a bit of a worn-down bullpen into a rare double-header Saturday when they duel the Los Angeles Dodgers in the middle two games of a four-game series at AT&T Park.  —  Five Giants relievers combined …