The Toronto Blue Jays (57-45) made some last-minute noise by trading for second baseman and outfielder Whit Merrifield from the Kansas City Royals (41-62). Merrifield will add a lot of energy to an already exhilarating Blue Jays team with his pure speed.
The Blue Jays already have some excellent middle infielders and outfielders. Unfortunately, they have had some injury issues, most recently with George Springer. Having that extra reliable fielder and bat will give the Blue Jays a little more cushion.
Merrifield has been one of the most fun players to watch in baseball during his seven seasons in Kansas City. He is coming off a spectacular 2021 campaign for a very poor-performing Royals team. Impressively, he played in all 162 regular season games where he led the American League with 664 at-bats, 42 doubles and 40 stolen bases. Along with that, he also had 184 hits, 10 homers, 74 RBIs and a .277 batting average, the lowest of his career.
He is having another excellent season in 2022. In 95 games he is hitting .240 with 23 doubles, six homers, 42 RBIs and surprisingly only 15 stolen bases. He is not known for his power, but he knows how to get on base and with his speed, he is almost always in scoring position.
In return, the Royals have received two prospects in pitcher Max Castillo and infielder Samad Taylor. The Royals are in a rebuilding phase and desperately in need of some reliable pitching and offense. Hopefully, the Royals can quickly turn these two into major contributors in their next phase.
The Blue Jays are in the hunt for a Wild Card spot this season and they made a deadline splash by adding Whit Merrifield. This gives the Blue Jays even more options during each game with their stacked lineup.
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