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A look at what’s happening around the majors Thursday:

CLUTCH CITY

Alex Bregman is red-hot at the plate as the Astros travel to Tampa Bay for a four-game series , and he’s been especially good late in games. Bregman has homered in three straight, including a game-ending two-run shot Wednesday to cap Houston’s rally from five runs down against Toronto. That was the second walk-off hit this month for Bregman, who also had a game-ending single in Game 5 of last year’s World Series. Bregman is 9 for 17 with three homers and five doubles since shaving his mustache midway through a game Sunday.

TAKE TWO

Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw looks to sharpen his stuff against the Cubs in his second start since ending a DL stint for a lower back strain. Kershaw stumbled through three innings against the Mets last Saturday after surprisingly nixing a scheduled minor league rehab assignment, though Los Angeles beat New York 8-3 that day behind stellar relief work from rookie Caleb Ferguson. The 21-year-old left-hander is set to follow Kershaw again against Chicago. Kershaw acknowledged feeling some rust at Citi Field, when he was limited to 55 pitches. He’s hoping to go deeper and pitch more effectively this time at Dodger Stadium.

BOSIO FIRED

The Tigers fired pitching coach Chris Bosio on Wednesday, saying he made insensitive comments to another employee of the team. General manager Al Avila said Bosio made the comments recently and they were brought to Avila’s attention Tuesday. Avila decided Wednesday to terminate Bosio’s contract after the team investigated the situation and spoke to all of the people involved. Detroit promoted bullpen coach Rick Anderson to replace Bosio. Roving pitching instructor A.J. Sager will be the team’s bullpen coach until Triple-A Toledo pitching coach Jeff Pico takes his place next week. The Tigers are set to wrap a four-game series against Oakland.

ANOTHER SHOT AT NOLA

The Nationals try to solve the Phillies’ Aaron Nola five days after the right-hander won a 5-3 decision in Washington. Nola (9-2, 2.58) allowed two runs, four hits and three walks over six innings while striking out five in that game. Nola is fifth in the NL in ERA, and only Mets ace Jacob deGrom has allowed fewer home runs per nine innings than Nola (0.53) among qualified NL starters.

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North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum said he has repaid a Minnesota electric utility $37,000 for tickets the company provided him and his wife for Sunday’s Super Bowl in Minneapolis.

The Republican governor on Wednesday said he reimbursed Xcel Energy ”to eliminate even the perception of any conflict.”

Burgum and first lady Kathryn Helgaas Burgum watched the game from a suite provided by Xcel , which serves more than 90,000 customers in Grand Forks, Fargo and Minot. He said before going that he planned to use the opportunity to talk with Xcel officials about their service and infrastructure in North Dakota.

The trip drew criticism even from within his own party.

”We can’t be doing that,” GOP Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner said. ”I don’t think the governor was influenced in any way but we as state officials just need to use good judgment.”

Burgum, in a statement, said the tickets ”have not influenced, and will not influence, my decision-making as governor. However, to eliminate even the perception of any conflict, I have reimbursed Xcel Energy for the full cost of the tickets.”

Earlier Wednesday , his office said that an ethics policy was being written for the governor and his staff. But it was in progress before the governor was criticized over the Super Bowl, according to Burgum spokesman Mike Nowatzki.

”There wasn’t one in the governor’s office when we moved in,” Nowatzki said of an ethics policy. Burgum’s lawyer, Leslie Bakken Oliver, has been crafting such a policy for several months, the spokesman said.

”We don’t have a timeline” for when it will be done, Nowatzki said.

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton paid more than $6,000 for his own ticket to the Super Bowl.

Democratic House Minority Leader Corey Mock of Grand Forks said if anyone could make the case for getting a free ticket to the game it would have been Minnesota’s governor. Burgum, a wealthy, former software executive , could afford his own, Mock said.

”That way, no one would question why you get to go to the biggest football game of the season at no cost,” he said.

During his campaign for governor, Burgum often talked about ”reinventing government,” shaking up the ”good old boy” party establishment and reining in ”runaway spending” as the state’s oil boom was fading.

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