5. Tebow homers on first pitch

Former quarterback goes 1 for 6 in his Instructional debut.

New York Mets prospect Tim Tebow homered on the first pitch he saw Wednesday in his instructional league debut against the St. Louis Cardinals club. Tebow finished 1 for 6.

Tim Tebow made a powerful first impression for the New York Mets.

The former NFL quarterback homered on the first pitch he saw Wednesday in his Instructional League debut, against the St. Louis Cardinals in Port St. Lucie, Fla.

“It was fun,” said Tebow, who went 1 for 6 and put the ball in play in each plate appearance. “I just wanted to have the approach that I was going to be aggressive.

“It was probably a little high, but I got good barrel on it and it went out.”

The 2007 Heisman Trophy winner, 29, drove a high 90 mph fastball over the leftfield fence. The home run came off John Kilichowski, a left-hander who pitched for Vanderbilt and two St. Louis minor league affiliates this year.

Tebow flashed a broad smile as he approached home plate, then was overwhelmed by his teammates, who had come out of the dugout to swarm him.

Cubs: President of baseball operations Theo Epstein was awarded a five-year contract extension. Terms were not announced. The Cubs reached 100 wins for the first time since 1935 and have already clinched the best record in the majors.

Tigers: Jordan Zimmermann is set to pitch Friday at Atlanta in what would be his first start in nearly three weeks because of neck issues.

White Sox: Manager Robin Ventura wouldn’t say whether he’s been offered the chance to return next season and backtracked from an earlier comment he’d like to come back for a sixth season. Ventura, in the last year of his contract, is 373432 in five years at the helm in Chicago.

Orioles: Left-hander Wade Miley left the team and returned home for the birth of his first child, a son. He’s expected to return in time for his next scheduled start, Friday or Saturday at Yankee Stadium.

Angels: Mike Trout’s walk in the fourth inning Tuesday gave him 113 on the season, tying him for the Angels’ team record with Tony Phillips (1995) for most in a season. Trout leads the majors in walks and on-base percentage (.441).

Athletics: Tuesday’s loss dropped Oakland to 67-90, giving the A’s consecutive 90-loss seasons for only the second time in Oakland history (1977-79).

Noteworthy: Pete Rose is appealing directly to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in an effort to restore his eligibility to be elected. In a seven-page letter to the Hall’s president, Rose’s attorney Raymond Genco makes the case the career hits leader’s ban from baseball for gambling in 1989 was not intended to make him ineligible for the Hall of Fame.