Whit Merrifield of Advance received a special call last week, getting promoted to Triple-A. Two days later, he debuted for Omaha (Ne.) and he responded with two RBIs.
Whit’s mother, Kissy Merrifield, said her son was called up after an Omaha outfielder was injured. She said Whit could be apart of Omaha’s roster for a few days, a few weeks or the rest of the summer.
One thing’s for sure: Merrifield was having a very productive season for Northwest Arkansas in the Double-A Texas League. Through 44 games, he was first for the Naturals in doubles (13) and on-base percentage (.366). He was second in slugging percentage (.463) and tied for second in walks (22). He was third in average (.278), RBIs (20) and tied for third in stolen bases (five). And he was fourth in home runs (five).
At age 25, this is Merrifield’s fifth year in the minors, all with the Kansas City Royals’ organization. The 2007 Davie graduate is listed as a second baseman/outfielder.
Merrifield got the big call from Omaha on June 5, with the Storm Chasers leading the Pacific Coast League division by a half-game at 32-28.
Merrifield debuted for Omaha on June 7, playing left field and batting eighth in the order. He went 1 for 3.
After getting out his first two at-bats, Merrifield stepped up in the seventh with Omaha trailing 5-0. He roped a two-run triple to end Oklahoma City’s shutout bid. The final score was 5-2 as Merrifield was responsible for one of his team’s five hits.
The next day, Merrifield did not start but appeared as a pinch-runner.