The Braves are in settlement with infielder/outfielder Whit Merrifield on a giant league deal, in keeping with Jeff Passan of ESPN. The Braves’ 40-man roster presently stands at 39 previous to the deal, that means the membership will solely must accommodate Merrifield’s addition to the lively roster with a corresponding transfer.
Merrifield, launched by the Phillies earlier this month, figures to assist cowl second base instead of Ozzie Albies, who suffered a fractured wrist yesterday and is predicted to be out of motion for roughly eight weeks. Reporting yesterday indicated that the Braves plan to advertise prime infield prospect Nacho Alvarez to take over for Albies as their common second baseman, and it seems the addition of Merrifield received’t change that. As famous by the New York Put up’s Jon Heyman, Merrifield is presently anticipated to take a bench function with the Braves, leaving the beginning job at second base open for Alvarez.
The 35-year-old veteran is a wonderful match for Atlanta’s roster wants in a bench function, a minimum of on paper. With clear holes at second base and within the outfield, Merrifield’s capability to play each left discipline and second base makes for a powerful match, permitting him to again up each Alvarez at second base and work into an outfield combine that presently options Adam Duvall, Eddie Rosario, Jarred Kelenic, and Ramon Laureano. That being stated, Merrifield’s troublesome stint with the Phillies offers some motive for concern about his capability to be an efficient main league hitter at this stage of his profession. In 174 journeys to the plate this season with Philadelphia, Merrifield slashed a paltry .199/.277/.295 with a wRC+ of simply 65.
Regardless of Merrifield’s lackluster efficiency with the Braves’ chief division rival, there are some causes for optimism that his efficiency may enhance going ahead. Whereas Merrifield is nearly actually not the above-average contributor he was earlier in his profession with the Royals, for whom he posted a 111 wRC+ and 13.3 fWAR from 2017 to 2020, he nonetheless had a current observe file of being a serviceable bench bat in newer years. Merrifield slashed a good .268/.311/.385, good for a wRC+ of 90, with the Royals and Blue Jays between 2021 and 2023.
That form of manufacturing nonetheless appears to be inside the realm of risk for the veteran, notably taking a look at his underlying metrics. Merrifield’s 10.9% strikeout fee this yr is definitely the bottom of his huge league profession, and his 8.6% stroll fee matches his profession excessive from again in 2018. Whereas Merrifield’s .096 ISO this yr is the bottom of his profession, the bigger offender for his downturn in efficiency seems to be his shockingly low .206 BABIP. Getting into the 2024 marketing campaign, Merrifield owned a wholesome .321 BABIP for his profession and had by no means posted a determine decrease than .276 in any particular person season. Even matching his earlier profession low set in 2022 would absolutely present a noticeable carry in his manufacturing and make him a compelling bench piece when mixed along with his versatility and respectable 11-for-12 displaying on the basepaths this yr.
Along with serving to Alvarez cowl for Albies at second base, the addition of Merrifield alongside Rosario earlier this month is considerably harking back to Atlanta’s quantity-over-quality strategy to retooling their outfield on the commerce deadline in 2021, after they loaded up on rental outfield items within the type of Rosario, Duvall, Joc Pederson, and Jorge Soler in an effort to assist enhance the outfield’s manufacturing following the lack of Ronald Acuna Jr. to season-ending ACL surgical procedure. With Acuna as soon as once more finished for the yr in 2024, the signing of Merrifield may function a sign that the Braves intend to observe an analogous path ahead this yr quite than spend vital prospect capital to land a extra vital piece like Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the Marlins or Luis Robert Jr. of the White Sox.
