1. Houston Astros. That's the first-place Astros, so let's give them a little love. They rallied for a five-spot in the eighth inning against a shaky Mariners bullpen to pull out a 6-3 win at Safeco. The inning started with Robinson Cano bobbling a routine grounder and Jose Altuve's three-run double broke a 3-3 tie. I liked the Astros before the season more than most and they're certainly a good team when Collin McHugh and Dallas Keuchel pitch. McHugh wasn't great in this game, with seven hits allowed and just three strikeouts, but he got through seven innings and that's what has turned him into one of the better pitchers in the league, the ability to go six or seven even on an off night. He has won his past 10 decisions. The last time the Astros were in first place after the first two days of the season? April 20, 2007, when they were 9-6 and led the NL Central by half a game. That was the only day they led the division that year. So April of 2006 was the last time the Astros led their division two days in a row.

Meanwhile, the scuffling Mariners just look bad. Taijuan Walker was better but still walked four in 5 1/3 innings and the bullpen continues to struggle. Manager Lloyd McClendon continues to confound by having better hitters in the fifth and sixth spots (Kyle Seager and Seth Smith) than the first two spots (Dustin Ackley and Austin Jackson). That's Managing 101, and McClendon is failing.

2. Grand slams! Jay Bruce and Todd Frazier hit slams for the Cincinnati Reds, and Elian Herrera hit one for the Milwaukee Brewers. That ties the major league for grand slams in one game.

The combined 3 grand slams in today's Reds-Brewers game matches the MLB single-game record last seen in 2011 pic.twitter.com/RnAwogYSY9 — ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) April 22, 2015

But my favorite part of this game: Reds manager Bryan Price turned to Aroldis Chapman in the ninth to protect a 16-10 lead. Your 2015 Reds bullpen, everyone!

3. Carlos Carrasco, Cleveland Indians. Good to see Carrasco deliver a strong effort after getting hit in the face in his previous outing eight days ago. He went five innings with eight strikeouts and one run on a cold night in Chicago as Cleveland won 6-2. Carrasco said he felt a little tight, so the Indians played it safe and took him out after 60 pitches.

4. Chicago Cubs' ninth-inning rally. Last year, the Cubs were 0-79 when trailing entering the ninth. This year, they've now won two such games after scoring three times off Pirates closer Mark Melancon for a dramatic 9-8 victory. I wrote about the Cubs' young infield here.

5. Jose Bautista stares, homers, flips and throws. After this game, the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles are no longer best buddies.

What a night! I didn't even get to the Mets winning their ninth in a row, MLB's StatCast debut, Yunel Escobar's walk-off home run for the Nationals (after Drew Storen blew the save), Kevin Pillar's catch or Ike Davis pitching a 1-2-3 inning for the A's.