Justin Verlander allowed two runs and four hits over six innings to win his season debut for the Houston Astros 5-3 over the Washington Nationals. The 41-year-old right-hander, who began the season on the injured list because of right shoulder inflammation, struck out four and walked none, throwing 59 of 78 pitches for strikes in his 258th win. Verlander averaged 94.3 mph with 35 four-seam fastballs and induced five groundouts. The nine-time All-Star retired the side in order four times and improved to 5-0 with a 2.08 ERA in five regular-season starts against the Nationals.

Justin Verlander allowed two runs and four hits over six innings in the three-time Cy Young Award winner’s season debut for the Houston Astros against the Washington Nationals. The 41-year-old right-hander, who began the season on the injured list, struck out four and walked none. The nine-time All-Star retired the side in order four times. Ildemaro Vargas hit an RBI single in the third and Riley Adams homered in the fourth, cutting Washington’s deficit to 4-2.

There’s a 64-win team in Boston that ran away with the league’s best record. The defending champions in Denver, a group that won 57 games. A fearless young bunch in Oklahoma City, whose No. 1 seed was no fluke. A trio of Villanova alums in New York, who turned the Knicks into a real contender. And, once again, there’s LeBron James, too. The NBA playoffs are about to begin with the Celtics and Nuggets the heavy favorites to collide in the Finals, and no shortage of teams have realistic belief that they can win the whole thing as well.

A Department of Homeland Security official told survivors and loved ones of the 168 people killed in the Oklahoma City bombing that federal officials are resolved to never allow a similar terrorist attack again. Deputy Security Advisor Caitlin Durkovich spoke Friday morning during a ceremony on the 29th anniversary of the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Durkovich was joined outside the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt and Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt for the ceremony attended by more than 100 people on a partly sunny, cool and windy morning.

The “miners” who chisel bitcoins out of complex mathematics are taking a 50% pay cut — effectively reducing new production of the world’s largest cryptocurrency, again. Bitcoin’s latest “halving” appeared to occur Friday night. Soon after the highly anticipated event, the price of bitcoin held steady at about $63,907. The move could have a lot of implications, from the price of the asset to the day-to-day operations of bitcoin miners themselves. And, as with everything in the cryptoverse, the future is hard to predict. Beyond its infamous volatility, bitcoin is still a relatively young asset. This next halving will be only the fourth to take place since the digital currency’s 2009 launch.

The University of Southern California is further shaking up its commencement plans. The private university said Friday it has called off appearances by outside speakers and honorees. That includes a speech by filmmaker and USC alumnus Jon M. Chu. The move comes days after the university said it wouldn't allow the student valedictorian to speak at the May 10 ceremony because of safety concerns. The chosen student is Muslim and had expressed support for Palestinians. The university's decision has been met with praise from pro-Israel groups but protest from some students, faculty and free speech groups.

Israel and Iran are both playing down an apparent Israeli airstrike near a major air base and nuclear site in central Iran. The muted public responses signal the two bitter enemies are ready to prevent their latest eruption of violence from escalating into a full-blown regionwide war. But the indecisive outcome of weeks of tensions — which included an alleged Israeli strike that killed two Iranian generals, an unprecedented Iranian missile barrage on Israel and the apparent Israeli strike early Friday in the heart of Iran — has done little to resolve the deeper grievances between the foes and left the door open to further fighting.