THE BIG 3-0Whit Merrifield can set a record for the longest hitting streak in Royals history. He extended his streak to 30 games Tuesday night Addison Russell Jersey , tying the team mark set by George Brett in 1980. Merrifield’s string started last season and he’s hit safely in all 10 Kansas City games this year. The Royals will face rookie Yusei Kikuchi and the Seattle Mariners at Kauffman Stadium.AILING STARMike Trout will likely miss the Angels‘ series finale against Milwaukee after straining his right groin Tuesday night. The two-time AL MVP said he first felt discomfort after completing a workout earlier in the day and it flared up as he was running to second base in the second inning. He was removed for Peter Bourjos in the fourth and is day-to-day. “I didn’t want to push it. It is better to take time out than blow it out,” Trout explained. Los Angeles has Thursday off before beginning a three-game series Friday in Chicago against the Cubs. “When it is 100 percent I will play,” Trout said.OUT OF CONTROLYu Darvish tries again to find the strike zone after two shaky starts for the Cubs. The four-time All-Star has walked 11 over 6 2/3 innings so far, with an 8.10 ERA. Darvish was hurt for most of last season, his first with Chicago after signing a $126 million, six-year deal. He next faces Pittsburgh at Wrigley Field.YOU AGAINBryce Harper takes another swing at his former team when the Philadelphia Phillies host Washington. Harper hit a three-run homer Tuesday night off ex-teammate Stephen Strasburg, but the Nationals rallied from a five-run deficit to win 10-6 in 10 innings. Harper, who spent his first seven seasons in Washington before signing a $330 million, 13-year contract with the Phillies Sammy Sosa Jersey , also homered in his first game against his old club last week.SPOTLESSCleveland right-hander Trevor Bauer (1-0, 0.64 ERA) pitches in Detroit, looking to extend his dominant start to the season. Bauer was pulled after seven hitless innings last Friday against Toronto and has yielded only one hit over 14 innings. Matthew Boyd (0-1, 3.18) and the Tigers try to halt the Indians‘ five-game winning streak. The lefty struck out a career-high 13 in his last outing April 3 at Yankee Stadium.NOT A NIFTY FIFTYSlumping Orioles slugger Chris Davis might get a chance to end his record hitless streak. The lefty hitter didn’t play Tuesday night when the A’s started a left-hander against Baltimore. Davis extended his drought to 0 for 49 this week, the longest rut by a position player ever in the majors. The former home run champion will see if he plays when Oakland starts right-hander Frankie Montas at Camden Yards. This is not as easy as you might think."WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Chicago Cubs recapsChicago Cubs minor leaguesChicago Cubs essaysChicago Cubs game threadsWrigley Field renovationsFull archiveLibrary Bleed Cubbie Blue Community GuidelinesCurrent time in ChicagoBCB Specials & Site InfoWinter 2019 music threadsCubs StoriesScheduleRosterStatsYahoo Cubs newsYahoo Cubs team pageYahoo Cubs reportYahoo Cubs depth chartYahoo Cubs transactionsYahoo Cubs photosOdds Shop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub 鉁旵hicago Cubs essaysChicago Cubs spring trainingWho will be in the Cubs’ bullpen on Opening Day?New,109commentsThis is not as easy as you might think.CSTShareTweetShareShareWho will be in the Cubs’ bullpen on Opening Day?The Cubs’ bullpen at Wrigley FieldAl YellonThe Cubs seemed to have a fairly set bullpen before this offseason began. It was filled with veteran pitchers, some of whom had tough years in 2018, but seemed primed for a rebound in 2019.And then Theo Epstein went out and signed a whole passel of pitchers with big-league experience who will compete for jobs in the bullpen.At MLB.com Tuesday, this article was posted with reports on all 30 teams and “battles” they’d have for positions during spring training. The Cubs’ battle was listed as “bullpen Joe Maddon Jersey ,” and here’s what reporter Jordan Bastian wrote:I count 10 names there for eight bullpen spots, and to those you can add these two, who had big-league experience for the Cubs last year: Dillon Maples and Randy Rosario.Something’s gotta give, obviously. I concur with Bastian’s five “sure things,” and we might add Duensing and Kintzler to that list, only because both have significant big-league experience and $8.5 million worth of contract between them. On the other hand, Theo Epstein didn’t sign Barnette and Cedeno, both of whom also have significant big-league experience, to not have them in the pen when the season begins.It turns out Willson Contreras Jersey , according to AZ Phil at The Cub Reporter, that Barnette has options remaining. A note on that site says:Article XIX-A refers to the fact that Barnette, even though he went through the MLB draft and was in the Diamondbacks’ system for four years, is considered an “international player” since he was signed by the Rangers in 2016 after he played six years in Japan’s NPB. Now, would Barnette refuse such an assignment? Impossible to tell at this point.It’s possible, I suppose, that the Cubs will let Duensing and Kintzler go at the end of spring training if they don’t show well. Or, if they do show well, it’s possible they could be traded.Regarding Chatwood http://www.chicagocubsteamshop.com/authentic-david-ross-jersey , I suppose we simply don’t know what will happen with him. He simply can’t be on the 25-man roster if he’s going to pitch the way he did in 2018. On the other hand, maybe he’s fixed things. He does have good stuff and was a reasonably effective pitcher with the Rockies. Perhaps if he has a good spring, the Cubs can deal him somewhere. They’d likely have to eat some of the money, but that’s a better outcome than eating all of the $25 million they owe him.So while the Cubs’ starting rotation and position-player lineup seem set, pay close attention to all of these relievers (not to mention the other 23 pitchers in camp) and how they are used during spring games. There might be more than one the Cubs are putting on display for scouts.