By the time Tuesday’s 7-4 loss to the Orioles was over, Evan Longoria had issued another reminder that the Rays didn’t just miss their star third baseman’s bat in the middle of their lineup while he sat out more than half the 2012 season with a partially torn left hamstring. They might have missed his defense just as much.

Carl Crawford was held out of the Dodgers lineup Tuesday against the Giants. The club remains cautious with the outfielder following Tommy John surgery last August.

The Rangers are expected to wait until Thursday to officially announce an eight-year, $120 million extension with shortstop Elvis Andrus. The contract is still in the process of being finalized, but Andrus has passed his physical and acknowledged on Tuesday the deal was getting done.

When the Astros arrived home from Spring Training last week, they found brand new iPads at their lockers, courtesy of owner Jim Crane. The team had downloaded opposing pitcher and hitter videos to give the players another tool to stay sharp.

Adam Jones, Matt Wieters and Chris Davis contributed in a big way on Tuesday afternoon, leading the Orioles to a season-opening 7-4 win over the Rays before a crowd of 34,078 at Tropicana Field.

Brewers ace Yovani Gallardo insisted he wasn’t worried about the slightly diminished radar gun readings during his Opening Day start against the Rockies.

The Blue Jays are expecting third baseman Brett Lawrie to miss approximately the next two weeks.

As he approaches what figures to be a lucrative contract payday, Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano has switched agents, leaving the Scott Boras agency to sign with CAA Sports.

On Tuesday for Manny Machado’s first career Opening Day, his mother, Rosa Nunez, was in the stands at Tropicana Field, along with the rest of the O’s infielder’s support team — a group that includes his uncle, Gio Brito, the only coach Machado had throughout his younger years.

Stephen Drew took the first step toward his return from a concussion on Tuesday, with The Boston Globe reporting that Major League Baseball cleared the Red Sox shortstop to begin playing in games.

For the first few weeks of each season, outfielder Cameron Maybin brings his family along to wherever the Padres’ schedule takes them. On Monday, Maybin — accompanied by his father, Rudy — spent part of Tuesday’s off-day interacting with fans via a live video stream in a 15-minute question-and-answer session inside the Chatting Cage.

One of Major League Baseball’s signature events is coming to The Windy City. MLB announced Tuesday that Chicago will be the scene of the 2013 Civil Rights Game, which will pit the White Sox against the Rangers on Aug. 24.

First lady Michelle Obama on Tuesday conducted a White House workshop for 80 high school and college students about the upcoming movie about the life and baseball career of Jackie Robinson.

After a visit to Dr. James Andrews on Tuesday, it appears Jonny Venters is not likely to rejoin the Braves’ bullpen until late May, at the earliest. But there is still some uncertainty about what is causing the discomfort in his left elbow.

In seasons past, if the Phillies had Roy Halladay pitching the next game after losing the season opener, there would’ve been confidence back home in the Delaware Valley. But confidence is not exactly overflowing among Phils fans entering Wednesday’s game vs. the Braves.

For nearly a year, Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki has held back so much, physically and emotionally. But he knows Opening Day on Monday against the Brewers is the time to let it all flow with his characteristic furor.

To a franchise like the Astros, little moments are important. This Opening Night, with an 8-2 win over the Rangers, was one of those.