A four-run top of the 11th inning gave the Cubs a 7-3 victory over the Reds on Friday, their fifth game won in their final at-bat in 16 games overall. Jonathan Herrera delivered the go-ahead run with an RBI single.

Nelson Cruz continued his home run barrage for the Mariners on Friday with a first-inning blast off Twins right-hander Phil Hughes, raising his Major League-leading long ball total to nine in his first 16 games.

White Sox fans eventually were able to exhale during the third inning of Friday night’s rain-suspended contest against the Royals at U.S. Cellular Field after Jose Abreu went down to the ground in pain following a rundown play involving Alcides Escobar.

Boston used a trio of homers, including an eighth-inning go-ahead three-run blast from Brock Holt, to hand Baltimore its fifth consecutive loss in Friday’s 7-5 series-opening win at Camden Yards.

Reds speedster Billy Hamilton was more than willing to exploit Cubs ace Jon Lester’s weakness at holding runners, and he seemed poised early to be a one-man run-manufacturing machine. When push came to shove in the later innings, however, runs that were begging to be scored were left uncollected.

Twelve of the 15 games on Saturday involve division rivalries, and one of the exceptions brings a natural Interleague rivalry. There are huge bats and streaking starting pitchers scheduled for Saturday’s games, and the next batch of highlights may well involve new teams staking a claim for first place.

Mark Teixeira homered twice off Jacob deGrom and Michael Pineda pitched effectively into the eighth inning in Friday night’s Subway Series opener, helping the Yankees snap the Mets’ 11-game winning streak with a 6-1 victory at Yankee Stadium.

This was the kind of night the Indians had in mind when they traded for Brandon Moss over the offseason. Cleveland envisioned towering home runs from the slugger out of the heart of its lineup, putting pressure on opposing pitchers.

Leave it to the Yankees, those killjoys in pinstripes, to be Interleague party poopers. They couldn’t be satisfied with the merely scheduled engagement against the hottest team in the hemisphere. Nooo, they wanted more.

Hitters could produce a tidal wave of runs today, as few accomplished hurlers are on the docket. DraftKings participants will have a tough decision between paying for the few high-end aces or stacking hitting lineups with studs and opting for low-cost starters.

Mark Teixeira’s gluten-free menu — headlined by spinach smoothies, bison burgers and turkey bacon — hasn’t become a popular choice in the Yankees’ clubhouse, though if he continues hitting for power, he just might gain a few converts along the way.

The Rangers are close to a deal that would bring Angels outfielder Josh Hamilton back to Texas, according to a source. Neither club has confirmed.

It’s early. The Mets stressed that throughout their franchise record-tying 11-game winning streak, reminding themselves and others not to grow too brash. If they needed any additional reminder, Jacob deGrom’s ERA provided it on Friday, bloating from 0.93 to 2.96 in a single game.

Theirs was a nearly perfect marriage for five seasons, and that surely is what this reunion is about. Josh Hamilton and the Texas Rangers may have needed one another more than they ever understood, and maybe this is about both of them attempting to recapture some of the old magic. So here’s to second chances and happy endings.

Mariners right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma, one of the top starters in the American League the past three seasons, was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Friday with a strained lat muscle behind his right shoulder.

As Statcast shows, Mark Teixeira added force to the pitch, sending his second home run ball shooting toward right field with an exit velocity of 106 mph.

Mets center fielder Juan Lagares had to battle windy conditions at Citi Field on Wednesday, but as Statcast shows, that didn’t stop him from making a fine play to rob the Braves’ Jace Peterson of an extra-base hit.