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The ace pitched six innings, allowing five runs off seven hits while striking out two and walking two against the Rockies. Greinke got some support from Yordan Alvarez’s two-run homer in the bottom of the second inning and Houston managed to pull away late for an 11-6 victory over Colorado. The Rockies scored two runs in the fourth inning and three more in the sixth. Colorado added another run in the seventh but it wasn’t enough to catch up to the streaking Astros, who have now won five in a row....

The two sides announced the deal Wednesday after several days of negotiations that threatened to undo the progress made during the winter months. As a result of the agreement, the league is cleared for a return to play for a widely reported tournament in Orlando, Fla., that is set to begin in July. MORE: Weston McKennie wears ‘Justice for George’ armband during Bundesliga match According to The Athletic, preparations for that tournament will begin June 24, with players beginning a two-week training camp in Florida....

Villa’s second-half double helped City overcome the Seattle Sounders 2-1 on Saturday. TFC stars lead the way The Sounders had taken a 40th-minute lead at a wet Yankee Stadium through Cristian Roldan, who finished well into the bottom corner. Villa had struck the woodwork before dragging City back into the game, his 50th goal for the club coming via a penalty he had controversially been awarded. The former Spain forward scored the winner 13 minutes from time, side-footing a Jack Harrison cross past Stefan Frei....

In short, it wasn’t exactly a Gold Glove night for the board in its All-Star turn. Progressive Field’s giant scoreboard misspelled players’ names multiple times, had the incorrect logos for a couple of teams and even displayed the wrong picture for one not-too-happy first-time All-Star. Mets infielder Jeff McNeil, only MLB’s leading hitter at .349, entered the game to bat in the eighth inning. The picture on the scoreboard? That was New York teammate Jacob deGrom....

Below, you will find two of the best value bets for today’s slate of MLB games. Bet #1: Minnesota Twins F5 -0.5 (+100) vs. the San Francisco Giants Last night, the Minnesota Twins gave the San Francisco Giants a pretty good beatdown. Minnesota shut out the Giants in an impressive 9-0 victory. Sonny Gray will get the start for the Twins, and he has turned in a quality start in five out of his last six outings....

As expected, Vanderbilt shortstop Dansby Swanson was the first player selected Monday night. MLB DRAFT 2015: Track the first round | Meet Dansby Swanson The Diamondbacks selected the shortstop, who went 2 for 4 with a home run and double in Vanderbilt’s 4-2 win over Illinois Monday to clinch a berth in the College World Series. Swanson hit .350 with 15 home runs and 15 stolen bases while driving in 62 runs for the defending college national champions....

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The big dogs in baseball right now are the Angels, who have won nine straight games to push their AL West lead to 11 games over the A’s. Losing Garrett Richards may eventually catch up with them in the playoffs, but it appears the loss of their young ace has made this team more focused than ever as they’ve gone 18-5 since the injury. Here’s a look at some trends on today’s card:...

Check The Linemakers on Sporting News’ odds page for current baseball lines from Las Vegas. Arizona Diamondbacks (+106) vs. Miami Marlins Robbie Ray (3-4, 2.29 ERA) vs Jose Fernandez (2-0, 2.37 ERA) Neither of the teams have exactly impressed nor were expected to achieve much this season. The Marlins had their time in the spotlight with some impressive performances and the Diamondbacks have pretty much been in the “bubbling under” category so far....

Whether that means transitioning from leather helmets to something sturdier in football or introducing helmets and later visors in hockey, tradition often trumps safety for years before the latter wins out. The next great battleground might very well be in protective gear for pitchers, as Major League Baseball and its players’ union ramp up their efforts to protect hurlers from line drives. MORE: Best and worst of MLB’s new spring training caps...

The Mets right-hander doesn’t see a move happening, though. “I think I’m staying put,” Syndergaard told reporters, including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, after dominating the White Sox over 7 1/3 innings on Tuesday in Chicago. He said he spoke with people in the team’s front office about his status. MORE: Here’s how to watch “ChangeUp,” an MLB whiparound show, free on DAZN Syndergaard has been one of the most talked-about trade candidates leading up to the deadline....

According to FOX Sports reporter Jon Morosi, the Orioles, Rangers and Padres are all possible landing spots for Braves outfielder Justin Upton. The Braves are almost certain to deal Upton, 27, by the end of the MLB Winter Meetings later this month, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post Atlanta recently signed 31 year-old free agent outfielder Nick Markakis (10th in AL with 177 hits). The Orioles, who saw outfielders Markakis and Nelson Cruz sign with other teams this week, would welcome Upton’s right-handed power (29 home runs and 102 RBI this season) to the smaller confides of Camden Yards....

The second New York acquired James Paxton in the offseason for Justus Sheffield and a couple other players, things got real. The Yankees had a rotation that included a Cy Young candidate (Luis Severino), a shutdown postseason starter (Masahiro Tanaka), one of the best lefty strikeout artists in the game (Paxton) and a potential future Hall of Famer who could guide the team throughout the year (CC Sabathia). And that’s not even mentioning J....

REPORTED BY: FOX Sports THE DETAILS: Rockies officials believe they can trade Blackmon for a starting pitcher and replace him with a free-agent outfielder that wants to join the hitter-friendly confides of Coors Field. LAST SEASON: Blackmon was on a tear to start the season, hitting .374/.418/.616 in March and April, before finishing the season hitting .288/.335/.440 with 19 home runs and 72 RBIs in 154 games. SN’S TAKE: The Rockies’ pitching staff ranked last in the league with an ugly 4....

REPORTED BY: CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman THE DETAILS: The Nationals, Royals, Dodgers, Rangers and Angels are among teams believed to have some involvement or interest in the All-Star and could use Frazier at third base, first, outfield or designated hitter. LAST SEASON: The Home Run Derby winner was absolutely on fire in the first half of the season before falling off in the second half to the tune of a ....

Boston is quietly “surveying the market” for a reliever, according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. He also reports general manager Dave Dombrowski prefers hard throwers. So who could those men be? There haven’t been any names attached to Boston as of yet, and as Heyman also reported, Dombrowski will not panic in his pursuit of help. There are, however, several names that have been discussed as possible trade targets for multiple teams already, so we’re doing our best to put two and two together and project just who the Red Sox could be looking for....

Last season’s champion, Toronto suffered a 2-0 defeat to the Columbus Crew at BMO Field . Goals either side of half-time from Federico Higuain and Gyasi Zardes saw Columbus to victory. Higuain volleyed in the opener in the 44th minute, getting on the end of a Milton Valenzuela cross from the left. Just 52 seconds into the second half and it was 2-0, Zardes finishing clinically after a beautiful through ball from Pedro Santos....