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SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Yu Darvish will be the opening day starter for the Rangers. Manager Ron Washington says he informed Darvish on Tuesday morning that the right-hander from Japan will start March 31 against Philadelphia at home. Darvish is going into his third major league season. He started the second game last season, when he came within one out of a perfect game against Houston. He went on to lead the majors with 277 strikeouts and finish second in the AL Cy Young Award voting. The last Rangers starter with consecutive opening day starts was Kevin Millwood from 2006 to 2009. Darvish will be the sixth different opening day starter in six years for Texas. Matt Harrison started last years opener. Kerry Wood Jersey . -- Hal Steinbrenner says Alex Rodriguez is "a great player" and "obviously an asset," but the New York Yankees managing general partner wouldnt discuss the third basemans possible return to the team following a season-long suspension. Brandon Morrow Jersey . Today, their baseball playing sons were reportedly traded for each other. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Cubs dealt minor league outfield Trevor Gretzky to the Angels for catcher Matt Scioscia. http://www.thecubsteamshop.com/Cubs-Joe-Maddon-Kids-Jersey/ . - Josh Sterk scored twice to lead the Oshawa Generals to a 7-1 rout of the Ottawa 67s in Mondays Ontario Hockey League action. Jose Quintana Jersey ." The game can be seen live on TSN starting with Monday Night Countdown at 6:30 p.m et/3:30 p.m. pt. The Patriots, who had a bye in Week 10, will look to continue the offensive success they had a week earlier when New England scored 55 points and racked up 610 yards of total offense in a 55-31 drubbing of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Andre Dawson Jersey . In the second game of their day/night doubleheader at Minneapolis, three Blue Jays pitchers, Steve Delabar, Sergio Santos and J.MIAMI -- Boosted by a torrid stretch at the plate, the Pittsburgh Pirates have returned to .500 again. Judging by the hitting and pitching they got on Saturday, they could have a winning record soon. Andrew McCutchen hit a three-run homer and Jody Mercer also went deep, leading the Pirates to an 8-6 victory over the Miami Marlins. Josh Harrison and Chris Stewart had three hits apiece, and the Pirates finished with 18 overall in their sixth consecutive game in double digits. Touted rookie Gregory Polanco had two hits and two RBIs. "When you put people on base, you can do a lot," McCutchen said. "Getting on the board first definitely helps us. Weve got a lot of guys swinging the bat, basically from one to nine." The Pirates (34-34) have won four straight and five of six to get back to .500 for the first time since they were 8-8 following a victory over Milwaukee on April 17. "You believe in the talent and you believe in the guys on the team," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. "You just dig in and you go. These guys have been resilient in challenging times." Pittsburgh right-hander Charlie Morton (4-7) pitched seven effective innings for his third consecutive win. He allowed two runs and five hits to improve to 4-1 with a 2.40 ERA in his last five starts. "Its nothing special, nothing different," Morton said. "I just go out there and do my job." Marcell Ozuna and Jeff Baker each hit a two-run homer for Miami in the ninth. Jason Grilli then replaced Stolmy Pimentel and allowed a single to Rafael Furcal before retiring Chris Johnson for his 10th save in 13 opportunities. In the series opener Friday, the Pirates a squandered a 6-2 lead in the ninth and needed 13 innings for an 8-6 win. "Its nice to get a win though," Mercer said. "Thats all that matters. As long as were on top in the end with the third out, well take it." Mercer hit a leadofff home in the second and McCutchen connected in the fourth, making it 5-0 with a drive to left for his 11th of the season.dddddddddddd McCutchen extended his hitting streak to 10 games. He is hitting .439 (18 for 41) in June. "Im just getting pitches to hit and Im hitting them," he said. Marlins starter Randy Wolf (1-3) allowed five runs and nine hits in four innings. "It was embarrassingly bad," Wolf said. "Its frustrating to physically feel fine but not have command of your pitches. The only thing you can do is get better, but, right now, its frustrating." McCutchen also made a sliding catch to rob Furcal of a base hit in the fifth. Furcal is 1 for 11 since rejoining the Marlins on Friday from hamstring and groin injuries that sidelined him for the teams first 65 games. Ozuna had a run-scoring triple in Miamis two-run fourth, but Pittsburgh added three more in the fifth. Mercer doubled home a run against Kevin Slowey and Morton helped himself with a run-scoring sacrifice squeeze. Polanco added a run-scoring single for an 8-2 lead. "Give our offence credit for coming back there at the end," Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "It continues to show the character of our guys - they dont quit." NOTES: Harrison missed the last two games because of left ankle discomfort. ... Pittsburgh called up veteran RHP Vance Worley from Triple-A Indianapolis so he can start on Sunday against Miami. Worley, 26, will be making his debut with the Pirates, who acquired him on March 25 from the Twins for cash considerations. He has a career record of 19-18 with a 4.05 ERA while pitching parts of three seasons with the Phillies and last year with the Twins. ... RHP Henderson Alvarez is Miamis scheduled starter for Sundays series finale ... Marlins LF Christian Yelich got the day off after he left Fridays game in the first inning with a lower-back injury. The Marlins are hoping he can return in a day or two. ' ' '