Padres' Jackson Merrill: Racks up three hits in victory
Rotowire
Merrill went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs and a stolen base Tuesday in a 4-1 win over Seattle.
Merrill notched one of the Padres' two extra-base hits in the game and recorded the team's only theft. The star outfielder seems to be turning things around after a slow start to the season, as he's batting .467 (7-for-15) with a home run, two doubles four RBI, six runs and two steals over his past four games. Prior to the surge, Merrill had hit just .184 across his first 13 contests of the campaign.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Goes deep in win
Rotowire
Merrill went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional run scored and one stolen base in Sunday's 7-2 victory over the Rockies.
Merrill put the finishing touch on the Padres' fifth-straight win, blasting a solo homer in the seventh inning to extend the lead to five. It's been a slow start for the center fielder, who is slashing .217/.288/.417 through 16 games to open the 2026 campaign, though he's driven in four runs over his past two games and will look to build on that as he works to hit his stride at the plate.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Riding pine Saturday
Rotowire
Merrill isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Red Sox.
Merrill doesn't typically step out of the lineup against left-handed starters, but after a 5-for-27 (.185) start to the season, he'll sit on the bench, with Connelly Early on the mound for Boston. Bryce Johnson will pick up a start in center field as a result and bat ninth.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Pops homer to conclude postseason
Rotowire
Merrill went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's loss to the Cubs in Game 3 of the National League Wild Card Series.
Merrill accounted for the Padres' only run in their loss to the Cubs by leading off the ninth inning with a home run. He had a disappointing regular season but ended the campaign well, tallying eight home runs with 18 RBI and 18 runs scored across his final 22 games -- including the postseason.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Swats homer in loss Wednesday
Rotowire
Merrill went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to Milwaukee on Wednesday.
Merrill accounted for San Diego's only run with a 344-foot solo shot to left field in the sixth inning. The second-year outfielder has picked up his power of late, belting six home runs over his past 12 games. Merrill is batting .306 during that span with 11 runs scored and eight RBI, although he's also struck out at a 29.4 percent clip.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Sitting Tuesday
Rotowire
Merrill is not in the starting lineup Tuesday against the Brewers.
Merrill will get his first day off since Sept. 1 after he went 2-for-5 with two strikeouts in Monday's 5-4 extra-innings win. Bryce Johnson will start in center field and bat seventh versus Milwaukee.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Stays hot with homer
Rotowire
Merrill went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and two additional runs scored in Saturday's 7-3 win over the White Sox.
Merrill is on a heater at the plate, tallying multiple hits in four of his last six games. Six of his 15 homers for the year have come in the past 13 games, during which the center fielder is batting .321 with 11 RBI and 12 runs scored. That said, Merrill has just one stolen base over 109 contests amid what's been an injury-plagued campaign, and he hasn't even attempted to steal a base since June 14 after swiping 16 bags during the 2024 regular season.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Lifts 12th homer
Rotowire
Merrill went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 11-3 win over the Rockies.
Merrill has three homers among eight hits over his last seven games, though he's also struck out nine times in that span. Nonetheless, the outfielder appears to have regained some power that was largely absent for much of the of the campaign. He's now at 12 homers, 57 RBI, 48 runs scored, one stolen base and a .257/.313/.432 slash line through 103 games this season.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: First homer since IL stint
Rotowire
Merrill went 3-for-5 with a solo home run, a double and an additional run scored during Sunday's 8-1 win over the Rockies.
The Padres reinstated Merrill from the 10-day injured list Monday, and the center fielder went 1-for-13 with four strikeouts in his first five games. He broke out of the slump in a major way Sunday, delivering a pair of extra-base hits, including a second-inning home run off Tanner Gordon. The long ball was Merrill's 10th in 406 plate appearances this season, which falls well short of his 2024 pace of 24 home runs in 593 plate appearances.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Activated, not starting Monday
Rotowire
The Padres activated Merrill (ankle) from the 10-day injured list, but he'll remain out of the lineup for Monday's series opener versus the Orioles.
Merrill missed the past two weeks of action with a left ankle sprain, but he will bypass a rehab assignment and go directly back onto the Padres' active roster. Ramon Laureano has been filling in in center field in Merrill's absence, but once Merrill rejoins the lineup, Laureano will likely shift to left field, and Gavin Sheets will presumably move into more of a part-time role.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Aiming to return early next week
Rotowire
Merrill (ankle) is getting live at-bats at the Padres' rookie-level affiliate in Arizona and is targeting a return during a three-game series against the Orioles that begins Monday, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports Friday.
Merrill becomes eligible for reinstatement Saturday, but he'll need a few extra days before rejoining the Padres' active roster after sustaining a sprained left ankle. While he's been sidelined, Ramon Laureano has handled most of the work in center field, while Gavin Sheets has moved into an everyday left field role.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Heads to IL with ankle sprain
Rotowire
The Padres placed Merrill on the 10-day injured list Saturday due to a left ankle sprain.
After Merrill was out of the lineup for a sixth straight game Saturday against the Dodgers, the Padres have decided to deactivate the young outfielder with the hope that he'll be ready to return when first eligible Aug. 30. In the meantime, Ramon Laureano should see most of the work in center field while Gavin Sheets handles left field.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: On bench again
Rotowire
Merrill (ankle) is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Dodgers.
Merrill is missing from the starting nine for a sixth straight contest Saturday as he continues to tend to a bruised left ankle. It looks as though the Padres are willing to play a man down rather than move Merrill to the injured list, but if Merrill's injury continues to linger, a move could be made. Ramon Laureano will patrol center field Saturday.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Missing fourth straight contest
Rotowire
Merrill (ankle) remains out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Giants.
It's the fourth consecutive start Merrill has missed as he works his way through a bone bruise in his left ankle. Merrill undoubtedly will be aiming to return to action Friday for the start of a big series versus the rival Dodgers, but it doesn't seem to be a given that he'll be ready. Ramon Laureano will shift over to center field and Gavin Sheets will get a start in left field for the Padres on Thursday.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Dealing with bone bruise
Rotowire
Padres manager Mike Shildt said Wednesday that Merrill (ankle) is dealing with some bone bruising, which can "take awhile to heal," Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.
San Diego continues to take things day by day with its star center fielder, but things might be coming to a head with a big series coming up against the Dodgers this weekend. A trip to the 10-day injured list could be needed. Ramon Laureano and Bryce Johnson have been patrolling center during Merrill's absence the last few days.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Remains day-to-day
Rotowire
Merrill (ankle) is not in the Padres' lineup versus the Giants on Tuesday.
Merrill did not play in Monday's series opener against the Giants after departing Sunday's matchup against the Dodgers early due to a left ankle injury. He had been dealing the the injury since Friday. Gavin Sheets, Ramon Laureano and Fernando Tatis are the starting outfielders Tuesday as Merrill heals up on the bench.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Not starting Monday
Rotowire
Merrill (ankle) is not in the Padres' starting lineup against the Giants on Monday.
Merrill was forced to leave Sunday's game against the Dodgers after aggravating a left ankle injury that he suffered Friday. He's considered day-to-day for the time being, so he could return to the lineup at some point during the four-game series with San Francisco. Bryce Johnson will start at center field and bat ninth in Merrill's absence.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Dealing with ankle injury
Rotowire
Merrill (ankle) was removed from Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Dodgers in the bottom of the fourth inning, Bob Scanlan of Bally Sports San Diego reports.
Merrill rolled his left ankle in Friday's loss to Los Angeles, which apparently got progressively worse over the weekend, per Dennis Lin of The Athletic. The outfielder said following Sunday's contest that "it's frustrating" and that "hopefully, I play tomorrow if I wake up, and it feels brand new, but I can't really say anything right now." Manager Mike Shildt classified Merrill as day-to-day for the time being, placing some doubt on his availability for Monday's series opener with the Giants.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Drives in three in win
Rotowire
Merrill went 1-for-3 with a three-run triple, a walk and a run scored in Sunday's 7-3 win over the Cardinals.
The All-Star break looks to have been exactly what Merrill needed to reset. He hit just .167 with a .560 OPS in his last 20 games before the break, but he's come out of the pause batting .279 with five extra-base hits and 15 RBI over his last 16 contests. The outfielder has a .266/.324/.418 slash line on the year while adding eight home runs, 47 RBI, 39 runs scored, one stolen base, 14 doubles and four triples over 79 games.
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Padres' Jackson Merrill: Goes deep Saturday
Rotowire
Merrill went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to St. Louis on Saturday.
Merrill hadn't homered in 15 games coming into Saturday, but he snapped that drought with a solo shot to center field in the third inning. The second-year outfielder's power output has been tepid for over two months -- he has just three long balls over his past 51 contests after going deep five times in his first 29 games of the campaign. Merrill certainly looks to be going through a bit of a sophomore slump, as his steals are also down (from 16 last year to just one this season) and his OPS (.734) is nearly 100 points lower than the .826 mark he posted as a rookie.
