STARS
Tuesday
— Brad Hawpe, Rockies, finished a single shy of the cycle and drove in four runs to lead Colorado past Arizona 6-5.
— Edwin Encarnacion, Reds, hit a grand slam for one of Cincinnati's six homers in a 9-2 rout of the Cubs.
— Mike Lowell, Red Sox, went 4-for-4 with an RBI double in Boston's 5-3 win over Toronto.
— Khalil Greene, Padres, drove in four runs with two homers to help San Diego beat Florida 9-3.
CAPTAIN COMEBACK
Derek Jeter capped a five-run rally in the eighth with a three-run homer to help New York win its club-record ninth straight home opener, 9-7 over Kansas City on Tuesday. The Yankees had won eight straight home openers from 1920-27.
FIRST
New York Mets rookie Brian Bannister shut down Washington's struggling offense for his first major league win, 7-1 on Tuesday. Bannister gave up three hits without a walk over seven innings.
CHA-CHING
Derrek Lee signed a five-year $65 million deal with the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday. The new contract calls for a $13 million annual salary from 2006-10 and contains a no-trade clause. Lee hit .335 with 46 homers and 107 RBIs last year while winning a Gold Glove at first base.
EARNING HIS KEEP
Bronson Arroyo, who had no homers in his first six major league seasons, hit his second in a week off Glendon Rusch in Cincinnati's 9-2 win over the Cubs on Tuesday. Arroyo (2-0), acquired in a March 20 trade from the Red Sox, also pitched seven shutout innings. His solo shot six days before at Great American Ball Park was his first homer since high school and first hit since 2001.
STRONG IN DEFEAT
Bill Mueller went 4-for-4 with two home runs and three RBIs in Los Angeles' 7-6 loss to Pittsburgh. ... Hank Blalock went 2-for-3 with two home runs and three RBIs in Texas' 5-4 loss to Los Angeles.
STREAKING
Boston beat Toronto 5-3 on Tuesday to extend their winning streak to five games.
SPEAKING
"In '04 he had the same kind of start, and what did he get about 260 hits? We'll take that. Death, taxes and Ichiro getting base hits. Some things are a solid bet." — Seattle manager Mike Hargrove on Ichiro Suzuki's slow start. Ichiro's average dropped to .176 (6-for-34) after an 0-for-4 in Seattle's 9-5 loss to Cleveland on Tuesday.