Rick Ankiel belted a pinch-hit three run homer and Justin Maxwell tripled twice with two RBIs as the Houston Astros defeated the Texas Rangers, 8-2, at Minute Maid Park on Opening Night.

The Rangers are working on a contract extension with shortstop Elvis Andrus that could be as long as eight years, a source confirmed Sunday.

Rangers pitcher Matt Harrison, trailing by two runs in the bottom of the sixth on Sunday, walked Justin Maxwell with one out. He retired Jason Castro for the second out but then walked Matt Dominguez. That was enough for manager Ron Washington.

Matt Harrison tied a career high with nine strikeouts on Sunday, but he allowed six runs and the Rangers fell, 8-2, to the Astros on Opening Night at Minute Maid Park, ending Texas’ streak of season-opening wins at four.

Opening Day arrived with the Rangers visiting the newest member of the American League, the Houston Astros, on Sunday night at Minute Maid Park, and it will continue with 12 matchups on Monday and six more on Tuesday.

Lance Berkman was at Minute Maid Park in a season opener for the eighth time in his career, but this is the first time that he was playing against the Astros.

Astros owner Jim Crane said Sunday the team is “well on its way” to joining another club in relocating Spring Training facilities to the east coast of Florida.

Fans wearing the Astros’ new blue and orange colors sipped on cold drinks, played games and enjoyed live music along Crawford Street outside Minute Maid Park on Sunday afternoon as part of the team’s 12th annual Opening Day Street Festival.

When Mariners ace Felix Hernandez makes his sixth Opening Day start Monday night against the A’s, he’ll be just the third Major League pitcher since 1920 to make that many Opening Day debuts before the age of 27.

Jose Fernandez is on the Marlins’ Opening Day roster after all. Miami’s decision to promote its top prospect was made largely because of injuries to the rotation. The startling transaction came on arguably the wildest day before a season opener in franchise history.

When Paul Konerko and the White Sox and Royals take the field Monday afternoon to start the 2013 regular season, the weather is predicted to be 39 degrees at first pitch, with a 12 mph wind. Welcome to April baseball in Chicago.

Jackie Bradley Jr. has arrived on a major stage. Manager John Farrell said that Boston’s highly touted outfield prospect has done enough in Spring Training to make the team, and he’s performed so well that he’ll start in left field against the Yankees on Opening Day.

Opening Day starter Jeff Samardzija has a good feeling about the Cubs’ season, and he knows that it starts with the first two series in Pittsburgh and Atlanta.

As MLB gets set to begin the 2013 season, Commissioner Bud Selig noted that “Opening Day is exciting, not only for baseball, but for the entire country.”

Tommy Hanson and Zack Greinke each pitched well in important, final tuneups, and Hank Conger brought down the spring curtain with a walk-off homer as the Angels beat the Dodgers, 2-1, in front of a sold-out crowd of 44,717 at Angel Stadium on Saturday night.

Yasiel Puig, who hit a team-best .517 with an .828 slugging percentage in 27 games this spring, was named the 2013 Jim and Dearie Mulvey Award winner as the top rookie in Dodgers camp.

Dodgers outfielder Carl Crawford continues to build up strength in his throwing arm, but he’s not been limited at the plate while finishing his recovery from last year’s Tommy John surgery.