ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The much-anticipated Chicago Cubs 2016 season is upon us. Let’s take a look at five last-minute Opening Day items to keep an eye on.

Jake Arrieta: He finished last season on a 22-inning scoreless streak, then eventually gave up runs in the postseason. He’s on a streak of 13 consecutive regular-season starts of allowing two or fewer earned runs. He was 11-0 with a 0.57 ERA in those outings. Can he pick up where he left off? Is it humanly possible? And don’t forget Joe Maddon says he’ll back off of Arrieta’s workload where possible -- and that could include Game 1.

Carry over: Which hot hitters from the spring will keep going? Addison Russell hit six home runs while Ben Zobrist got on base in 41 percent of his plate appearances. Meanwhile, Jason Heyward and Jorge Soler hit .164 and .145, respectively, with only slightly better on-base percentages. But the slate is clean. We’ll see if spring told us anything real about the hot and not-so-hot hitters.

The bullpen: Trying to keep guys fresh, Maddon didn’t pitch his main relievers many innings in spring games. Justin Grimm threw seven innings, Neil Ramirez had six and Pedro Strop just five. Rust could be a factor early in April, but the benefit should pay off later. Still, keep an eye on sharpness -- or lack thereof -- out of the bullpen.

Kris Bryant: Flying way under the radar this spring, he hit just his second home run on Sunday, but he says his swing is better than ever. He’s more comfortable with some changes made last season and will be in a prime RBI spot batting fifth -- at least on opening night. Look for a huge year for him driving in runs; he was stuck on 99 last season, unable to get to triple digits despite several chances in the final week of the season.

Off the bench: The Cubs could employ one of the best pinch hitters in the league in infielder Tommy La Stella. He may not come into play much the first two games, but if there’s a tough righty on the mound with, say, Soler up, La Stella could be the guy late in the game. He hit everything after coming back from a calf injury this spring, and once the Cubs start playing National League games, expect him to pinch-hit in some key moments.