Whit Merrifield

{{Infobox baseball biography

|name = Whit Merrifield

|image = Whit Merrifield on June 6, 2016.jpg

|image_size =

|caption = Merrifield with the Kansas City Royals in 2016

|team = Free agent

|number =

|position = Utility player

|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1989|1|24}}

|birth_place = Florence, South Carolina, U.S.

|bats = Right

|throws = Right

|debutleague = MLB

|debutdate = May 18

|debutyear = 2016

|debutteam = Kansas City Royals

|statyear = 2024 season

|statleague = MLB

|stat1label = Batting average

|stat1value = .280

|stat2label = Hits

|stat2value = 1,249

|stat3label = Home runs

|stat3value = 94

|stat4label = Runs batted in

|stat4value = 485

|stat5label = Stolen bases

|stat5value = 218

|teams =

Kansas City Royals ({{mlby|2016}}–{{mlby|2022}})
Toronto Blue Jays ({{mlby|2022}}–{{mlby|2023}})
Philadelphia Phillies ({{mlby|2024}})
Atlanta Braves ({{mlby|2024}})

| awards =

3× All-Star (2019, 2021, 2023)
3× AL stolen base leader (2017, 2018, 2021)

}}

Whitley David Merrifield (born January 24, 1989) is an American professional baseball utility player who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves. Merrifield is a three-time All-Star and has led the American League in stolen bases three times.

Amateur career

Merrifield graduated from Davie County High School in Mocksville, North Carolina. He enrolled at the University of South Carolina and played college baseball for the South Carolina Gamecocks from 2008 to 2010. In 2008, he played collegiate summer baseball for the Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod Baseball League, and in 2009 returned to the league to play with the Chatham Anglers.{{cite web|url=http://www.thebaseballcube.com/college/summer/stats.asp?Y=2008&T=Yarmouth-Dennis_Red_Sox |title=2008 Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox |publisher=thebaseballcube.com |accessdate=September 23, 2021}}{{cite web|author=NICOLE AUERBACH |url=https://www.capecodtimes.com/article/20090616/SPORTS/906160308 |title=Cape League: Turning tables on Y-D |publisher=capecodtimes.com |date=June 16, 2009 |access-date=September 25, 2019}}{{cite web|url=http://www.thebaseballcube.com/college/summer/stats.asp?Y=2009&T=Chatham_As |title=2009 Chatham As |publisher=thebaseballcube.com |accessdate=September 23, 2021}} In the second game of the championship series at the 2010 College World Series, Merrifield hit a game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the 11th inning to give South Carolina the championship.{{cite web|url=http://www.journalnow.com/sports/colleges/baseball/merrifield-former-cws-hero-is-back-in-omaha/article_88948d4c-84ef-529f-9913-32766cd271d8.html?mode=story|title=Merrifield, former CWS hero, is back in Omaha|work=Winston-Salem Journal|date=June 20, 2014 |access-date=September 8, 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.omaha.com/sports/cws/four-years-after-delivering-a-cws-title-to-south-carolina/article_f9f1538a-efd5-5a5e-9eef-9b2ff6ebd534.html|title=Four years after delivering a CWS title to South Carolina, Merrifield's a hit with Chasers|work=Omaha.com|date=June 20, 2014 |access-date=September 8, 2015}} In his three years at South Carolina, he played in 195 games and hit .329/.389/.489 with 27 home runs.{{cn|date=April 2024}} In 2010, he set a Gamecocks record with a 26-game hitting streak.{{cite news |title=USC baseball cruises to win; Revan makes first start |url=https://www.goupstate.com/story/news/2010/03/10/usc-baseball-cruises-to-win-revan-makes-first-start/29817756007/ |access-date=April 18, 2024 |work=Spartanburg Herald Journal}}

Professional career

=Kansas City Royals=

The Kansas City Royals selected Merrifield in the ninth round of the 2010 Major League Baseball draft.{{cite web|url=https://gamecocksonline.com/news/2010/6/8/Whit_Merrifield_Selected_By_Kansas_City_Royals_In_Ninth_Round_Of_2010_MLB_Draft.aspx|title=Whit Merrifield Selected By Kansas City Royals In Ninth Round Of 2010 MLB Draft|work=gamecocksonline.com|date=June 8, 2010|access-date=July 11, 2020}} He signed with the Royals and made his professional debut that season with the Burlington Bees.{{cite web|url=https://www.heraldonline.com/latest-news/article12257144.html|title=Merrifield signs with Kansas City|author=Joseph Person|work=heraldonline.com|date=July 9, 2010|access-date=July 11, 2020}}{{cite web|url=http://archive.independentmail.com/sports/college/usc/baseball/merrifield-ready-to-start-new-chapter-ep-414315665-349801621.html|title=Merrifield ready to start new chapter|author=Brad Senkiw|work=AIM|date=July 8, 2010|access-date=July 11, 2020}} In 47 games he hit .253/.317/.409 with five home runs and 26 RBIs. In 2011, Merrifield played for the Wilmington Blue Rocks where he batted .262 with five home runs and 36 RBIS. In 2012, with both Wilmington and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, he compiled a .258 batting average with nine home runs and 44 RBIs in 125 games between both teams. He spent 2013 with Northwest Arkansas where he batted .270/.319/.391 with three home runs and 43 RBIs in 94 games.{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=merrif001whi|title=Whit Merrifield Minor League Statistics & History|website=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=July 11, 2020}}

File:Whit Merrifield on April 17, 2015.jpg in {{Baseball year|2015}}]]

Merrifield returned to Northwest Arkansas to start 2014 and was promoted to the Omaha Storm Chasers during the season.{{cite web|url=http://www.omaha.com/sports/chasers/merrifield-s-focus-keeps-him-locked-in/article_5b48a8b7-9745-526f-bf6f-c5d94a47aa26.html|title=Merrifield's focus keeps him 'locked in'|author=Tony Boone|work=Omaha.com|date=August 11, 2014|access-date=September 8, 2015}} In 120 games between the two clubs, he slashed .319/.371/.470 with eight home runs and 49 RBIs. In 2015, Merrifield played for Omaha where he posted a .265 batting average with five home runs and 38 RBIs in 135 games. He returned to Omaha to start the 2016 season.

Merrifield made his major league debut with the Kansas City Royals on May 18, 2016, instantly batting in the top third of the lineup and soon taking the starting second baseman job from Omar Infante.{{cite web|url=https://www.thestate.com/sports/college/university-of-south-carolina/usc-baseball/article78479462.html|title=Kansas City Royals call up Whit Merrifield from minors|work=thestate.com|date=May 18, 2016|access-date=July 11, 2020}} His first Major League hit came off of David Price.{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/royals-whit-merrifield-gets-hit-in-debut-c178894616|title=Merrifield notches hit in major league debut|author=Jeffrey Flanagan|work=mlb.com|date=May 18, 2016|access-date=July 11, 2020}} On June 13, Merrifield hit both his first major league triple and home run against the Cleveland Indians. In early July 2016, a song and video tribute to Merrifield titled "Cool Whit" received coverage on local Kansas City radio and TV news.{{cite web|url=http://www.kctv5.com/story/32361813/fan-creates-ode-to-royals-rookie-cool-whit-merrifield.html|title=Fan Creates Ode to Royals Rookie Cool Whit Merrifield|work=kctv.com|access-date=July 2, 2016}} He was optioned back to Omaha in July and recalled in September. In 69 games for Omaha he batted .266 with eight home runs and 29 RBIs, and in 81 games for Kansas City he compiled a .283 batting average with two home runs, 29 RBIs, and 22 doubles.{{cite news |url=http://www.milb.com/player/index.jsp?player_id=593160#/career/R/hitting/2018/ALL|title=Whit Merrifield Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball |publisher=MiLB.com |access-date=May 23, 2018}}

Merrifield began the 2017 season with Omaha, but was recalled in April after nine games and spent the remainder of the season with Kansas City. With the Royals, he hit .288 in 145 games with 19 home runs and 78 RBIs. He also led the American League with 34 stolen bases, the fewest total for a league leader since Luis Aparicio led the AL with 31 in 1962.{{Cite web|url=https://www.royalsreview.com/2017/10/1/16393994/congrats-to-whit-merrifield-your-al-stolen-base-champ|title=Congrats to Whit Merrifield, your AL stolen base champ!|first=Max|last=Rieper|date=October 1, 2017|website=Royals Review}} In 2018, Merrifield hit .304/.367/.438 and led the majors in hits (192) and stolen bases (45).{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/2018-batting-leaders.shtml|title=2018 Major League Baseball Batting Leaders|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}

In 2019, Merrifield batted .302/.348/.463 and led the major leagues in games (162), at bats (681), singles (139), triples (10), and line drive percentage (28.2%), while stealing 20 bases and leading the majors in caught stealing (10).{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/merriwh01.shtml|title=Whit Merrifield Stats|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=2&season=2019&month=0&season1=2019&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2019-01-01&enddate=2019-12-31&sort=5,d|title=Major League Leaderboards » 2019 » Batters » Batted Ball Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball|website=www.fangraphs.com}}

Overall with the 2020 Kansas City Royals in the Covid-shortened season, Merrifield batted .282 with nine home runs and 30 RBIs in 60 games.{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/player/whit-merrifield-593160|title=Whit Merrifield Stats, Fantasy & News|website=MLB.com}}

In 2021, Merrifield hit .277/.317/.395 with 10 home runs and 74 RBIs. He tied for the MLB lead with 42 doubles, and led the American League with 40 steals. He also tied for the major league lead in sacrifice flies, with 12.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=0&season=2021&month=0&season1=2021&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2021-01-01&enddate=2021-12-31&sort=17,d|title=Major League Leaderboards » 2021 » Batters » Standard Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball|website=www.fangraphs.com}} On defense, he led all major league second basemen with 283 putouts, 103 double plays and a 4.77 range factor. He won a Fielding Bible Award for his defensive excellence.{{cite web|url=https://hutchpost.com/posts/1a167b33-c1b7-4d40-b05b-5b2162db6ee7|title=Merrifield, Taylor are 2021 Fielding Bible Award winners|work=Hutch Post|date=October 28, 2021|accessdate=January 4, 2022}} Merrifield played in a franchise-record 553 consecutive games for the Royals between June 2018 and July 2022.{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/34228099/kansas-city-royals-infielder-whit-merrifield-games-played-streak-ends-553|title=Whit Merrifield's Kansas City Royals-record consecutive games-played streak ends at 553|work=ESPN.com|date=July 11, 2022|access-date=September 19, 2022}}

=Toronto Blue Jays=

On August 2, 2022, Merrifield was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for Max Castillo and Samad Taylor.{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/34337186/kansas-city-royals-second-baseman-whit-merrifield-traded-toronto-blue-jays|title=Kansas City Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield traded to Toronto Blue Jays|website=ESPN.com|date=August 2, 2022 }} He was among ten Royals players who were in violation of Canada's COVID-19 vaccination requirement and unable to travel to Toronto for a four-game weekend series right before the All-Star break two weeks earlier in July.{{cite news|url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/34238893/andrew-benintendi-whit-merrifield-10-unvaccinated-kansas-city-royals-players-toronto-blue-jays-series|title=Andrew Benintendi, Whit Merrifield among 10 unvaccinated Kansas City Royals players out for Toronto Blue Jays series|newspaper=Washington Post|date=July 14, 2022}} On August 4, 2022, Merrifield announced that he was now vaccinated and would be able to play in the team's first game in Toronto since being acquired.{{Cite web |date=August 4, 2022 |title=Blue Jays new acquisition Whit Merrifield says he is vaccinated |url=https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/blue-jays-new-acquisition-whit-merrifield-says-he-is-vaccinated/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810051357/https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/blue-jays-new-acquisition-whit-merrifield-says-he-is-vaccinated/ |archive-date=August 10, 2022 |access-date=September 28, 2022 |website=Sportsnet}}

In 2022 he batted .250/.298/.375 in 550 plate appearances, and was the only qualified batter in the major leagues who was not hit by a pitch all year.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=0&season=2022&month=0&season1=2022&ind=0&team=0&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2022-01-01&enddate=2022-12-31&sort=16,a|title=Major League Leaderboards » 2022 » Batters » Standard Statistics | FanGraphs Baseball|website=www.fangraphs.com}} He became a free agent following the 2023 season.

=Philadelphia Phillies=

On February 19, 2024, Merrifield signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.{{Cite web |title=Merrifield, Phils agree to 1-year deal |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/whit-merrifield-phillies-deal |access-date=May 17, 2024 |website=MLB.com |language=en}} In 53 games with the team, Merrifield struggled offensively, batting .199/.277/.295. He was released by the Phillies on July 12, 2024.{{Cite web |title=Phillies Release Merrifield; Recall Wilson |url=https://www.mlb.com/press-release/press-release-phillies-release-merrifield-recall-wilson |access-date=July 12, 2024 |website=MLB.com |language=en}}

=Atlanta Braves=

On July 22, 2024, Merrifield signed a major league contract with the Atlanta Braves.{{Cite web |last=Passan |first=Jeff |date=July 22, 2024 |title=Banged-up Braves ink super-utility man Merrifield |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/40616307/sources-banged-braves-agree-deal-whit-merrifield |access-date=July 22, 2024 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}} On September 7, 2024, Merrifield was diagnosed with a fractured left foot, and was sidelined for a short amount of time but not placed on the injured list.{{Cite web |date=September 7, 2024 |title=Braves' Whit Merrifield: Diagnosed with foot fracture |url=https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/baseball/news/braves-whit-merrifield-diagnosed-with-foot-fracture/ |access-date=September 7, 2024 |website=CBS Sports}}

International career

On September 10, 2018, he was selected by the MLB All-Stars at 2018 MLB Japan All-Star Series.{{cite web| url=http://www.mlbplayers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=34000&ATCLID=211771396 | title=Eight Players Selected for Japan All-Star Series | work=The Official Site of Major League Baseball Players Association | date=September 10, 2018 | access-date=September 12, 2018 }}

Personal life

Merrifield married his wife, Jordan Michael, on December 28, 2019.{{Cite web|url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/whit-merrifield-of-the-kansas-city-royals-poses-for-a-photo-news-photo/1154806239|title=Whit Merrifield of the Kansas City Royals poses for a photo with his...|website=Getty Images|date=July 9, 2019 }}

Merrifield's father, Bill, played college baseball for Wake Forest University,{{cite news |url=http://www.journalnow.com/journal_west/sports/despite-not-getting-called-up-merrifield-trusts-perfect-timing/article_92871918-2a99-11e5-a8a1-b37fefa30ca8.html |title=Despite not getting called up, Merrifield trusts 'perfect timing' |first=Jay |last=Spivey |newspaper=Winston-Salem Journal |date=July 14, 2015}} and spent six seasons in Minor League Baseball, primarily as a third baseman.{{cite web |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=merrif001bil |title=Bill Merrifield Minor League Statistics & History |website=Baseball-Reference.com |access-date=June 1, 2018}} In September 1987, Bill Merrifield was briefly on the active roster of the Pittsburgh Pirates, but was sent to the Florida Instructional League without making an MLB appearance,{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/20593721/merrifield_assigned_to_instructional/ |title=Merrifield assigned to instructional camp |newspaper=Rocky Mount Telegram |location=Rocky Mount, North Carolina |page=9 |date=September 12, 1987 |access-date=June 1, 2018 |via=newspapers.com}} rendering him a phantom ballplayer.{{cite news|last1=Dodd|first1=Rustin|title=Royals' Whit Merrifield is taking his family along on big-league journey|url=http://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article81885862.html|access-date=September 2, 2017|publisher=Kansas City Star|date=June 4, 2016}}{{cite news|last1=Perrotto|first1=John|title=Rumors and Rumblings – Merrifield fulfills father's dream|url=https://www.fanragsports.com/mlb/rumors-rumblings-merrifield-fulfills-fathers-dream/|access-date=September 2, 2017|publisher=Fanrag|date=September 1, 2017}}