Braves, Mets duke it out for early lead in NL East  —  NEW YORK — Jason Vargas will take the mound Thursday afternoon for the New York Mets against the Atlanta Braves as the Mets try to return to first place after spending most of the season's opening five weeks atop the National League East.

Ichiro Suzuki Moves To Front Office Role, Will Not Continue Playing In 2018  —  The Mariners announced today that future Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki has is moving to a front office role where he'll serve as a special assistant to the chairman, effective immediately.

Ryu out until after All-Star break with groin injury  —  PHOENIX (AP) — More bad news for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  —  Manager Dave Roberts said Thursday that left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu will be sidelined until after the All-Star break with a severe left groin strain.

Yankees rally past Astros for wild 6-5 win  —  HOUSTON (AP) — Aroldis Chapman struck out AL MVP Jose Altuve on three straight 101 mph fastballs with two on to end the game, and the New York Yankees got a key hit from rookie Gleyber Torres during a three-run rally in the ninth inning to seesaw past the Houston Astros 6-5 Thursday.

Detroit Tigers' Daniel Norris back on feet after successful surgery  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Daniel Norris is back on his feet.  —  That was the most interesting news in the Detroit Tigers' announcement Thursday morning that Norris had underwent successful surgery on his left groin and pelvic region.

Jays' Solarte faceplants during horrible slide, hits game-winning grand slam … Toronto Blue Jays infielder Yangervis Solarte had one of the worst slides of the season Thursday against the Cleveland Indians.  —  He also hit a game-winning grand slam in the top of the 11th inning …

MLB to announce Yankees-Red Sox games in London  —  Major League Baseball intends to announce next week that the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox will play two games at London's Olympic Stadium in June next year, a person close to the planning told The Associated Press.

Botte Shots: It's time for MLB to give umpires some help with the strike zone  —  Take away my Baseball Purist membership card.  The kids no longer will be chased off my lawn about this one.  —  After strongly residing in the “human element” camp for years when it comes to umpires …

Trout, Pujols, Upton HRs power Angels' 10-7 win over Orioles  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) Albert Pujols reached 2,998 career hits with a home run and a double, and Justin Upton hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 10-7 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday night.

Column: Did the Cubs get the extended warranty when they purchased Yu Darvish?  —  Cubs starter Yu Darvish discusses his “bad rhythm” in the team's 11-2 loss to the Rockies on Wednesday, May 2, 2018.  (Mark Gonzales/Chicago Tribune)  —  Did the Cubs also pay for the extended warranty with Yu Darvish?

Cincinnati Reds rebuild still rests on developing starting pitching  —  It's still about the pitching, specifically the starting pitching.  —  For the Reds' rebuild to work, they're going to have to figure out a way to build a starting rotation.  The results so far this year have been more than a tad short of encouraging.

Carl Edwards Jr.'s ‘nasty’ stuff earns praise from fellow Cubs pitchers  —  Cubs manager Joe Maddon discusses the team's 11-2 loss to the Rockies on Wednesday, May 2, 2018.  (Mark Gonzales/Chicago Tribune)  —  Chicago Tribune  —  New Cubs closer Brandon Morrow didn't know much about Carl Edwards Jr. outside of one trendy statistic.

Joey Votto reminds St. Louis Uber drivers that he won an MVP over Albert Pujols  —  Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto was the National League MVP in 2010, beating out then-Cardinals star Albert Pujols, who had won the award the previous two years.  —  Votto is so proud of this that he brags …

Grading early returns on the MLB offseason's biggest moves  —  Grading a hot stove transaction in early May is the baseball equivalent of judging Tiger Woods' round when he's standing on the fourth tee at Augusta National.  In the face of such a limited sample size, the numbers are subject to constant re-evaluation.