Whit Merrifield made his major league debut on May 18, 2016 the year after the Kansas City Royals had won their first World Series in 40 years. Whit finished the season playing in 81 games and the Royals finished at .500 with an 81-81 record. Just as fast as the Royals rose to the top, they started their slide back down to the bottom as key veterans and free agents moved on from the 2014-15 run that saw KC win 184 regular season games with back-to-back World Series appearances.

In 2018 and 2019 the Royals won only 58 and 59 games respectively and Whit was leading baseball in the hits category finishing with 192 in 2018 and 206 in 2019. However, Whit’s expectations have never changed heading into a season.

Merrifield talks about the young core of pitchers led by the rising star Brad Keller and the veteran presence of Danny Duffy. In the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season, we got a look at Brady Singer and Kris Bubic, both first round draft picks in 2018. Both took their lumps, but both showed the potential that could lead to solid 2021 numbers for both young arms.

The Royals also went out and acquired more offense. Instead of giving their young pitchers more time to develop, Merrifield says it’s encouraging to see ownership be aggressive when many teams take a different approach of rebuilding.

Early in the offseason, the Royals picked up centerfielder Michael A. Taylor, then came the signing of first baseman Carlos Santana, a 26-homer, 86 RBI producer. Then late in the winter, a trade bringing in Andrew Benintendi who brings defense, speed and the potential for a high average bat to replace the perennial Gold Glover Alex Gordon.

The Royals lineup could look like this:
Adalberto Mondesi (led the league in triples in 2019 and stolen bases in 2020)
Whit Merrifield (hits leader for two straight seasons)
Andrew Benintendi
Carlos Santana
Jorge Soler (led AL with 48 HRs in 2019)
Salvador Perez
Hunter Dozier
Then the 8 and 9 hitters with second base still up for grabs and Taylor in CF.

Merrifield says if Benintendi and Santana are patient, he and Mondi can use their speed to create havoc on the base paths and pressure opposing pitching early.

Whit’s expectations have always been to make the postseason, but now with a young nucleus ready to prove their big league ready and a new ownership group in John Sherman providing the tools needed, Merrifield says it’s time for everyone to get on board.

The Southeastern Conference announced Thursday that the men’s basketball game between Mizzou and LSU, which was previously scheduled for Jan. 9 but postponed due to COVID-19 protocols, has been rescheduled for Saturday, March 6 at Mizzou Arena. The tip time has not been announced.

The game will also serve as Mizzou’s Senior Day, honoring a group that features Jeremiah Tilmon, Dru Smith, Mark Smith, Mitchell Smith and Drew Buggs. The senior class will be recognized immediately following the game’s conclusion with a ceremony. Fans are encouraged to stay in their seats when the buzzer sounds to honor the senior class.

Mizzou and LSU meet for the 11th time in series history. Mizzou seeks its first win over LSU since Jan. 8, 2015.

The St. Louis Blues lost their third straight, but it wasn’t due to lack of opportunities. Kings goalie Calvin Petersen made 35 saves to help Los Angeles to their sixth straight win, 2-1 against the Blues at Enterprise Center on Wednesday.

“We did a lot of good things tonight. Obviously we’re having trouble scoring goals, but it’s not like we’re not creating opportunities and chances. We are. I thought our team worked hard tonight,” said Coach Craig Berube who is coaching a team down seven players due to injuries. Despite being down personnel, the Blues outshot L.A. 36-20. On Monday, the Blues lost 3-0 and got another 31 shots on goal.

Oskar Sundqvist scored at 18:14 of the third period to end the Blues’ goalless streak at 139:33. It’s the first time the Blues have lost three straight at since Feb. 11-23, 2018.

The 19th-ranked Missouri State Lady Bears won their second consecutive Missouri Valley Conference regular season title and 14th MVC/Gateway championship since 1990 Wednesday evening with a 67-55 victory over Southern Illinois in Carbondale, IL. The Lady Bears (16-2, 12-0 MVC) matched MSU’s 1995-96 club for the best conference start in school history and improved to 9-0 on the road this season while extending the nation’s second-longest road winning streak to 10 games dating to last year. MSU won back-to-back Valley titles for the first time since 2004 and 2005.

Missouri State returns to JQH Arena for the final home games of the season Feb. 27 and 28 against Loyola. Both games start at 5 p.m.

Mizzou head coach Eliah Drinkwitz has hired Aaron Fletcher as the Tigers’ defensive backs coach. Fletcher has spent the last 15 years coaching at the collegiate and high school level, including the past six seasons at Tulsa.

“I am excited to add Aaron and his family to our staff,” said Drinkwitz. “He has a great reputation as both a coach and a recruiter, while developing players to compete at the highest level. He will be a great fit for our program and the vision we have for Mizzou Football.”

Fletcher helped lead Tulsa to three bowl game appearances between 2015-20, including a 55-10 2016 Miami Beach Bowl game victory over Central Michigan. The Golden Hurricane’s pass defense ranked in the Top Five of the AAC the past three seasons, including a conference-leading and eighth-best national mark of 174.6 yards per game in 2018. He coached and mentored Reggie Robinson II to first-team 2019 All-AAC honors after recording four interceptions and a conference-leading 17 PBUs. Robinson became Tulsa’s first NFL Draft pick in 10 years and its highest in 15 years when the Dallas Cowboys selected him with a fourth-round selection in 2020.

“I’m thrilled and honored to be joining the coaching staff at Mizzou,” said Fletcher. “Coach Drinkwitz is an excellent leader, and the values to which his program is built from is what sold me on coming to Mizzou. To get the opportunity to work with Coach Wilks is something I greatly look forward to, his reputation proceeds himself and I can’t wait to learn from him. I’m also so excited to reconnect with my college coach, Curtis Luper. My family is happy to be in Columbia and begin this next chapter in our lives.”

The Texas A&M at Missouri men’s basketball game of February 27 has been postponed due to a combination of positive tests, contact tracing and subsequent quarantining of individuals within the Texas A&M basketball program, consistent with Southeastern Conference COVID-19 management requirements. A make-up date has not been determined at this time.

With the postponement, the Alabama at Mississippi State game on Feb. 27 will now be played at 6 p.m. ET on SEC Network.

>>Blues Host Kings Tonight

(St. Louis, MO) — The Blues and Kings face off tonight at the Enterprise Center for the second time in three days. Los Angeles shutout St. Louis, 3-0, on Monday. The Blues have 22 points on the season.

>>Blues’ Gunnarsson To Miss Rest Of Season With Knee Injury

(St. Louis, MO) — Blues defenseman Carl Gunnarsson is done for the season after suffering a right knee injury in Monday’s loss to the Kings. Gunnarsson got hurt during a puck battle with LA forward Gabriel Vilardi along the boards behind the Blues’ net in the second period. The 34-year-old is currently undergoing further evaluation to determine the full extent of the injury. Gunnarsson has played in 11 games for the Blues this season, posting two assists.

>>NHL Adjusts Three Blues-Avalanche Games

(St. Louis, MO) — The NHL has adjusted three games between the Blues and Avalanche. The February 7th game will now be played April 20th at the Enterprise Center. In addition, the April 20th game between St. Louis and Colorado at Ball Arena has been rescheduled for April 2nd. The April 3rd game in Denver, which was originally scheduled to be played at 2 p.m., will now begin at 8 p.m.