Whit Merrifield, Infield, Toronto Blue Jays

Date of Birth: 1/24/1989
Birthplace: Florence, South Carolina
College: University of South Carolina

Whit Merrifield, infielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 2010. He played in their minor league system from 2010 through 2015.

Merrifield joined the Royals for 81 games in 2016. He hit his first major league triple and his first home run on June 13th. He finished the season with 88 hits, 22 doubles, 8 stolen bases, 29 RBIs, 72 strikeouts to 19 walks, and a .283 batting average. Defensively, as a second baseman in 65 games, he made 156 assists, 39 double plays, 92 putouts, and 4 errors.

Merrifield finished the 2017 season with 169 hits, 32 doubles, 19 home runs, 34 stolen bases, 78 RBIs, 88 strikeouts to 29 walks, and a .288 batting average in 145 games. Defensively, as the Royals' second baseman in 132 games, he made 341 assists, 93 double plays, 232 putouts, and 11 errors.

Merrifield played in 158 games in 2018. He had 192 hits, 43 doubles, 12 home runs, 45 stolen bases, 114 strikeouts to 61 walks, and a .304 batting average. Defensively, as a second baseman in 108 games, he made 287 assists, 71 double plays, 175 putouts, and 6 errors.

Merrifield finished the 2019 season with a major league leading 206 hits, 41 doubles, 16 home runs, 20 stolen bases, 74 RBIs, 126 strikeouts to 45 walks, and a .302 batting average in 162 games. Defensively, he played at first base and second base and in all three outfield positions.

Merrifield played in 60 games in 2020. He finished the season with 70 hits, 12 doubles, 9 home runs, 30 RBIs, 12 stolen bases, 33 strikeouts to 12 walks, and a .282 batting average. Defensively, he played 1 game at first base, 15 games at second base, 6 games in left field, 23 games in center field, and 34 games in right field.

Merrifield finished the 2021 season with 184 hits, 74 RBIs, 103 strikeouts to 40 walks, and a .277 batting average. He led major league baseball players in games played (162), doubles (42), and stolen bases (40). Defensively, as a second baseman in 149 games, he made 382 assists, 103 double plays, 283 putouts, and 8 errors.

Merrifield was traded to the Blue Jays on August 2, 2022.

Career batting statistics for Merrifield through 2021 include:

• 768 games played
• 909 hits
• 192 doubles
• 159 stolen bases
• 345 RBIs
• 536 strikeouts to 206 walks
• .291 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Merrifield at second base through 2021 include:

• 551 games played
• 1,424 assists
• 378 double plays
• 956 putouts
• 39 errors
• .984 fielding percentage

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Whit Merrifield
ESPN - Whit Merrifield