Kansas City Royals right-handed pitcher Scott Barlow and infielder Whit Merrifield have been selected to represent Major League Baseball in the 2018 Japan All-Star Series with Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). MLB and the MLB Players' Association jointly announced the roster for this year's All-Star Series, which will feature seven games (one exhibition) across Japan from Nov. 8-15.  
Barlow, 25, made his Major League debut on April 30 and made six appearances with the Royals this season, going 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA (6 ER in 15.0 IP) with three walks and 15 strikeouts. He earned his first big league victory on May 29 vs. Minnesota, tossing 4.0 hitless frames in a 2-1 triumph in 14 innings. His 4.0-inning stint without allowing a hit was the longest by a Royals reliever since 2000. Barlow, who signed with Kansas City a free agent on Dec. 8, 2017, also made 13 appearances (10 starts) with Omaha (AAA) in 2018. 
Merrifield, 29, became the third player since World War II to lead the Major Leagues in both hits (192) and stolen bases (45) in the same season, joining Dee Gordon (2015) and Ichiro Suzuki (2001). He finished the season on a career-best 20-game hitting streak, which was the longest in the big leagues in 2018, batting .304 overall. He also ranked among the American League leaders in multi-hit games (54, tied for fourth), doubles (43, sixth), batting average (sixth) and on-base percentage (.367, eighth). Merrifield is the only player in the Majors with at least 70 doubles (75) and 70 steals (American League-best 79) combined over the last two years.
This year's All-Star Series is the 37th time that Major League players have toured Japan for exhibition games. The event begins with an exhibition game against the Yomiuri Giants on Nov. 8. MLB Network will provide extensive coverage of the 2018 All-Star Series, including live telecasts of the contests from Nov. 9-15.