Opening Day Tidbits: For the second consecutive season, all 30 MLB Clubs are scheduled to play on Opening Day (March 28th). The 2019 season is scheduled to mark the first time since 1968 that every team across the Majors plays on Opening Day (two weather-related postponements in 2018).
• Yadier Molina has made 14 straight Opening Day starts at catcher (2005-18), the most ever by a Cardinals backstop. The 14 consecutive starts are a record for the most consecutive starts at a single position in Cardinals history, and his 14 consecutive Opening Day starts are currently third-most in franchise history overall, behind Hall of Famers Stan Musial (18, 1946-63) and Lou Brock (15, 1965-79). o With a start behind the plate on Thursday, Molina will become just the 10th catcher ever to start at least 15 Opening Day contests, joining Hall of Famer Ivan Rodríguez (20), Benito Santiago (16), Sandy Alomar Jr. (15), Bill Dickey (15), Jason Kendall (15), Hall of Famer Al Lopez (15), Lance Parrish (15), A.J. Pierzynski (15), and Hall of Famer Ray Schalk (15). Of those, only Rodríguez, Kendall, Lopez and Schalk did so in consecutive seasons.
• Xander Bogaerts has made five consecutive starts at shortstop on Opening Day for the Boston Red Sox (201418). In Red Sox lore, only six players have made more than five consecutive Opening Day starts at shortstop since 1901: Everett Scott (8, 1914-21), Joe Cronin (7, 1935-41), Heinie Wagner (7, 1907-13), Rick Burleson (6, 1975-80), Freddy Parent (6, 1901-06) and Rico Petrocelli (6, 1965-70).
• Backstop Buster Posey has started eight consecutive Opening Day contests for the San Francisco Giants, the most by a Giants catcher in Club history. Elsewhere in the infield, Brandon Crawford has made seven straight Opening Day starts, which are the most by a Giants shortstop since the team moved to San Francisco in 1958.
• Third baseman Evan Longoria has made 10 consecutive Opening Day starts at the hot corner, marking the longest active streak of any third baseman in the game.
• First baseman Freddie Freeman has started eight consecutive Opening Day games for the Braves, an Atlanta franchise record for a first baseman.
• Mike Trout is the only player in Angels history to make six Opening Day starts in center field (2013-18). The Club record for consecutive Opening Day starts at any position is held by Tim Salmon, who registered 11 consecutive Opening Day starts in right field from 1993-2003.
• Julio Teheran, who is scheduled to start Atlanta’s opener on Thursday, has started each of the last five seasonopeners, marking an Atlanta-era record (since 1966). Hall of Famer Warren Spahn started a franchise-record six straight Milwaukee openers (1957-62). Only Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers (eight) owns a longer active Opening Day start streak with his current team than Teheran, and Kershaw’s streak will end on Thursday.
• Ryan Braun is one of four players in Brewers franchise history to start at least 11 games on Opening Day, joining Hall of Famers Robin Yount (19) and Paul Molitor (12), as well as Jim Gantner (11). Braun is also one of four players in franchise history to make starts from at least three different positions on Opening Day. Braun joined Molitor (2B, 3B, SS, CF, DH), Yount (SS, LF, CF) and Charlie Moore (C, LF, RF).
• Justin Verlander (10), CC Sabathia (11) and Felix Hernández (11) are three of the 20 pitchers in Major League history to make 10 career Opening Day starts. No other active MLB hurler has made at least 10 such starts.
• Jon Lester has made seven career Opening Day starts, including three with the Cubs. The lefty hurler also made four straight Opening Day starts with the Red Sox from 2011-14. Lester became the first left-handed pitcher in Cubs history to start consecutive season openers, and just the second lefty hurler in Cubs history to start three Opening Day contests, joining Hippo Vaughn (1915, 17, 19).

• Two-time AL Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber has made four straight Opening Day starts for the Cleveland Indians, just the fourth hurler in franchise lore to do so, joining Hall of Famers Stan Coveleski (5, 1917-21), Bob Feller (4, 1946-49) and Gaylord Perry (4, 1972-75).
• Marlins hurler José Ureña is scheduled to make his second consecutive Opening Day start for Miami, which will end a streak of seven consecutive seasons in which the Marlins have featured a different Opening Day starting pitcher: Ureña (2018); Edinson Volquez (2017); Wei-Yin Chen (2016); Henderson Alvarez III (2015); José Fernandez (2014); Ricky Nolasco (2013); and Josh Johnson (2012). Prior to Ureña’s expected start on Thursday, Johnson was the last Marlins hurler to draw consecutive Opening Day starts, doing so from 2010-12.
• Brewers pitcher Jhoulys Chacín is expected to start Milwaukee’s opener on Thursday, which would mark the sixth straight season in which the Brewers have started a different pitcher on Opening Day. The others include: Chase Anderson (2018); Junior Guerra (2017); Wily Peralta (2016); Kyle Lohse (2015); and Yovani Gallardo (2014).
• The Los Angeles Angels have had a new Opening Day starting left fielder in each of the last seven seasons. In that span, the starting left fielders have included: Justin Upton (2018); Cameron Maybin (2017); Daniel Nava (2016); Matt Joyce (2015); Josh Hamilton (2014); Mark Trumbo (2013); and Vernon Wells (2012).
• The Baltimore Orioles have won each of their last three Opening Day contests via walk-off: Adam Jones’ 11th inning homer in 2018; Mark Trumbo’s 11th inning homer in 2017; and Matt Wieters’ ninth inning single in 2016. The Orioles, who open the season at Yankee Stadium, will square off against the Yankees in their home opener next Thursday, April 4th.

Opening Day Meeting of Cy Young Award Winners: On Thursday, 2018 NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom will toe the rubber at Nationals Park in Washington against 2017 NL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, who finished second in the Cy Young voting last season behind deGrom. Meanwhile, in Tampa Bay, 2018 AL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell will take the hill against the Houston Astros and 2011 AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander.
• Thursday will mark the first Opening Day in Major League history in which both of the defending Cy Young Award winners square off against fellow Cy Young Award winners who finished second in voting the previous season. o On Opening Day in 1979, 1978 AL Cy Young Award winner Ron Guidry of the Yankees pitched against Mike Caldwell of the Brewers, who finished second in the 1978 AL Cy Young running, while 1978 NL Cy Young Award winner Gaylord Perry of the Padres squared off against Burt Hooton of the Dodgers, who was the runner-up in the 1978 NL Cy Young race. However, both Caldwell and Hooton had not already been a Cy Young Award winner, as Scherzer and Verlander are.
• Additionally, the matchup in Washington featuring deGrom and Scherzer marks just the second time that consecutive Cy Young Award winners pitch against each other on Opening Day. The first occurrence came in 1974, when 1973 NL Cy Young Award winner Tom Seaver of the Mets faced off against 1972 NL Cy Young Award winner Steve Carlton of the Phillies.

Opening Day Active Leaders: Below are the active leaders on Opening Day in a variety of categories:
• Home Runs: Bryce Harper (5); Ian Kinsler (5); Albert Pujols (5); Nelson Cruz (4); Evan Longoria (4); Yadier Molina (4); Dustin Pedroia (4); Troy Tulowitzki (4)
• RBI: Albert Pujols (15); Miguel Cabrera (12); Nick Markakis (12); Lucas Duda (10); Matt Kemp (10); Ian Kinsler (10); Evan Longoria (10)
• Games Started: Felix Hernández (11); CC Sabathia (11); Justin Verlander (10); Clayton Kershaw (8); Jon Lester (7); David Price (5); Julio Teheran (5); Adam Wainwright (5)
• Wins: Felix Hernández (7); Clayton Kershaw (5); David Price (3); Chris Sale (3); Justin Verlander (3)

MLB 150: In celebration of the 150th anniversary of the first openly all-salaried professional baseball team – the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings – Major League Clubs will wear an MLB 150 patch on the right sleeve of their jerseys for the entire season. In addition, all Clubs will feature an MLB 150 patch on their caps on Opening Day. Throughout the season, MLB will create original content to pay tribute to its history while connecting it to the players and game today. The season-long recognition will extend across MLB media including MLB Network, MLB.com and MLB Social Media platforms. • On Opening Day on Thursday in Cincinnati, Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred will join four Reds greats (Hall of Famers Johnny Bench and Joe Morgan, as well as Eric Davis and Bronson Arroyo) for pre-game ceremonies prior to Cincinnati’s opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates. In addition, Commissioner Manfred will serve as the Grand Marshall in the 100th Findlay Market Parade in honor of the 150th anniversary.

Jackie Robinson Centennial Celebration: Seventy-two years ago, on April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson broke Baseball’s color barrier when he made his historic MLB debut. Baseball will join the Robinson Family and the Jackie Robinson Foundation in a year-round celebration of the centennial of Jackie’s birth, which was on January 31, 1919. A key component of this celebration is Jackie Robinson Day (April 15), and by all on-field personnel proudly wearing Jackie’s “42” in addition to special batting practice tees to commemorate the centennial celebration, Baseball demonstrates a powerful, unified, tribute to the legacy of the Hall of Famer and Baseball Pioneer.

International Flavor: In addition to the recently completed Opening Series in Japan between the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics, MLB will stage several international events in 2019:
• In special international events at Estadio de Béisbol Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico, the Cincinnati Reds will host the St. Louis Cardinals on April 13th-14th, while the Los Angeles Angels will host the Houston Astros on May 4th-5th.
• Mitel & MLB Present London 2019, an historic two-game set at London Stadium, will take place on June 29th-30th between the host Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees in the first-ever Major League games played in Europe. FOX Sports will provide coverage of the game on Saturday, June 29th at 1:10 p.m. ET, while ESPN will broadcast the game on Sunday, June 30th at 10:10 a.m. ET.

Special Events: In 2019, MLB will once again showcase Major League games in unique settings and markets.
• “MLB in Omaha” will take place on Thursday, June 13th at 8:05 p.m. (ET) on ESPN, two days prior to the start of the 2019 NCAA Men’s College World Series. The first Major League game ever played in Nebraska, part of the new GEICO Summer Series, will feature the host Kansas City Royals against the Detroit Tigers.
• On Sunday, August 18th (7:10 p.m. ET on ESPN), the Pittsburgh Pirates will host the Chicago Cubs in Williamsport, Pennsylvania during the third “MLB Little League Classic presented by GEICO” at Historic Bowman Field.

Postseason Matchups Revisited
• In a rematch of the 2018 World Series, the Red Sox will host the Los Angeles Dodgers at Fenway Park following the All-Star break for a three-game set beginning on Friday, July 12th. It marks the third-ever regular season trip by the Dodgers to Fenway Park to play the Red Sox, and the first since June 2010.
• Following a thrilling seven-game NLCS, the Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers will meet again for a three-game series at Dodger Stadium beginning on Friday, April 12th, and will square off a week later for a four-game set at Miller Park beginning on Thursday, April 18th.
• The Red Sox and Astros, who met in the 2018 ALCS, will play a three-game series at Fenway Park beginning on Friday, May 17th, and will meet again the following week for a three-game set at Minute Maid Park beginning on Friday, May 24th.

All-Star Week in Cleveland: The 2019 All-Star Game presented by Mastercard will be played on Tuesday, July 9th at Progressive Field in Cleveland. The 90th Midsummer Classic will mark the sixth to be played in Cleveland, which will become just the third city to host at least six All-Star Games, joining New York (nine) and Chicago (7). Additionally, the Indians will become the first individual MLB Club to host the Midsummer Classic on six occasions.
• All-Star Week in Cleveland will also include the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and All-Star Celebrity Softball Game on Sunday, July 7th; the T-Mobile Home Run Derby on Monday, July 8th; and a wide-ranging week-long schedule of events and activities around the city, including the new fan-friendly, interactive festival PLAY BALL PARK .

Trout Set to Become Youngest to 200 HR/200 SB: Two-time AL MVP Mike Trout is 11 stolen bases shy of reaching 200 for his career. With 240 career home runs, Trout, who will turn 28 years old in August, is likely to become the youngest player in Major League history to join the 200/200 club. The current youngest players to do include: Barry Bonds (28 years, 349 days old); Alex Rodriguez (29 years, 31 days old); Bobby Bonds (29 years, 84 days old); Hall of Famer Willie Mays (29 years, 90 days old); and Carlos Beltrán (29 years, 124 days old).

All About Albert: Angels first baseman Albert Pujols will visit the Cardinals at Busch Stadium from June 21st-23rd, marking his first return to St. Louis as a visiting player following 11 seasons with St. Louis from 2001-2011. Pujols is also in range of several on-field milestones in 2019. Among them:
• Home Runs: Currently sixth all-time with 633 for his career; Needs 28 to surpass HOF Willie Mays for fifth alltime.
• Hits: Currently 23rd all-time with 3,082 for his career; Needs 18 to reach 3,100 (22nd all-time) and 118 to reach 3,200 (14th all-time).
• Doubles: Currently 10th all-time with 639 for his career; Can move into top-five all-time, passing Hall of Famers Carl Yastrzemski (646), Honus Wagner (651), Nap Lajoie (654), George Brett (665) and Craig Biggio (668) along the way.
• RBI: Currently 18 RBI shy of 2,000 RBI for his career, a number only two players have reached since RBI became an official statistic in 1920 (Hall of Famer Hank Aaron and Alex Rodriguez). Pujols can pass Hall of Famers Babe Ruth (1,992) and Lou Gehrig (1,994), as well as Barry Bonds (1,996) en route to the 2,000-RBI mark.

Miggy Closing in on 500-Homer Club: Two-time AL MVP Miguel Cabrera sits 35 home runs shy of becoming the 28th player in Baseball history to reach 500 home runs. Among the current players who have reached the plateau, Cabrera’s current career batting average of .316 would rank fourth, behind only Hall of Famers Ted Williams, Babe Ruth and Jimmie Foxx.

CC in Rare Air: Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia enters 2019 just 14 strikeouts shy of 3,000 strikeouts and just four wins shy of 250 career victories. The six-time All-Star and 2007 AL Cy Young Award winner would become just the 14th pitcher in Major League history to reach both plateaus.

Player Strikeouts Wins Nolan Ryan 5,714 324 Randy Johnson 4,875 303 Roger Clemens 4,672 354 Steve Carlton 4,136 329 Bert Blyleven 3,701 287 Tom Seaver 3,640 311 Don Sutton 3,574 324 Gaylord Perry 3,534 314 Walter Johnson 3,515 417 Greg Maddux 3,371 355 Phil Niekro 3,342 318 Fergie Jenkins 3,192 284 Bob Gibson 3,117 251

Can Verlander Join CC?: Justin Verlander enters the 2019 season 294 strikeouts shy of 3,000 for his career. Coming off a career-best 290 strikeouts in 2018, the 2011 AL MVP and AL Cy Young Award winner could make a run at becoming the 18th pitcher in the 3,000-strikeout Club (*including Sabathia).

Other Statistical Milestones In Reach: Additionally, several other individual statistical milestones are in reach during the 2019 season:
• Dodgers closer and three-time All-Star Kenley Jansen is 32 saves away from becoming the 30th pitcher since saves became an official statistic in 1969 to reach 300 career saves.
• Newly-acquired Mets infielder Robinson Canó is 30 hits shy of 2,500 for his career.
• Three-time All-Star Edwin Encarnación, in his first season with the Mariners, is 20 home runs shy of reaching 400 home runs for his career and becoming the 56th player in Major League history to accomplish the feat. Nelson Cruz, formerly of the Mariners and now in his first season with Minnesota, is also just 40 homers shy of the 400-homer club.

Twin Sighting: Twins left-hander Taylor Rogers, who appeared in 72 games for Minnesota in 2018, could be joined in the Major Leagues by his twin brother, Tyler, a right-hander in the San Francisco Giants organization. Upon Tyler’s potential arrival to the Majors, the brothers would become the 10th set of twins to play in the Major Leagues, joining Jose & Ozzie Canseco; Stan & Stew Cliburn; Marshall & Mike Edwards; Ray & Roy Grimes; Bill & George Hunter; Bubber & Claude Jonnard; Damon & Ryan Minor; Eddie & Johnny O’Brien; and Joe & Red Shannon.

Familiar Faces in Different Places:
• Outfielder Bryce Harper is scheduled to make his Philadelphia Phillies debut on Thursday against the NL Eastrival Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park. Harper, who played the first seven seasons of his career for the Washington Nationals, will make his return to the nation’s capital next week for a two-game series on April 2nd3rd.
• Harper’s teammates J.T. Realmuto and Andrew McCutchen are also scheduled to make their Phillies debuts on Thursday. In addition, Realmuto will return to Miami, where he played the first five seasons of his career, for a three-game set beginning on Friday, April 12th.
• Infielder Manny Machado is scheduled to make his San Diego Padres debut on Thursday against the NL Westrival San Francisco Giants at Petco Park.
• First baseman Paul Goldschmidt is scheduled to make his Cardinals debut on Thursday against the NL Centralrival Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park in Milwaukee. Goldschmidt will make his return to Arizona, where he played the first eight seasons of his career, for a three-game series beginning on Monday, September 23rd.
• Outfielder A.J. Pollock is scheduled to make his Dodgers debut on Thursday against his former team, the Arizona Diamondbacks, at Dodger Stadium. Pollock, who spent the first seven years of his career with the D-backs, will return to Chase Field for the first time as a visiting player for a three-game series beginning on Monday, June 3rd.
• Infielder Robinson Canó and closer Edwin Díaz will play their first game for the New York Mets on Thursday against the Nationals at Nationals Park.
• Outfielder Yasiel Puig is scheduled to make his Reds debut on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Great American Ball Park. Puig, who played his first six seasons in Los Angeles, will visit the Dodgers for a three-game series beginning on April 15th.
• Left-hander Patrick Corbin is scheduled to make his first start for the Nationals on Sunday against the Mets at Nationals Park. Corbin, who pitched six seasons with the D-backs, is slated to return to Arizona for a threegame series beginning on Friday, August 2nd.
• Outfielder Michael Brantley is scheduled to make his Astros debut on Thursday at Tropicana Field against the Tampa Bay Rays. Brantley, who spent his first 10 seasons with the Indians, will return to Cleveland for a threegame series beginning on Tuesday, July 30th.
• Infielder/outfielder Marwin Gonzalez is scheduled to make his Minnesota Twins debut on Thursday against the Indians at Target Field. Gonzalez, who played the first seven seasons of his career for the Astros, will return to Houston for a three-game series beginning on Monday, April 22nd.
• Outfielder Adam Jones is scheduled to make his Arizona Diamondbacks debut on Thursday against the NL Westrival Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Jones, who spent the last 11 seasons playing for the Orioles, is scheduled to square off against his former Club for a three-game set beginning on Monday, July 22nd.