Former Blue Jays All-Star Merrifield dumped by his new team

Former Toronto Blue Jays infielder Whit Merrifield has been designated for assignment by the Philadelphia Phillies.

Prior to tonight’s game against the Oakland Athletics, the Phillies released utility player Whit Merrifield. To fill his spot on the 26-man roster, infielder/outfielder Weston Wilson was recalled from Lehigh Valley (AAA).

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 12, 2024

The Blue Jays acquired Merrifield late in the 2022 season in a trade with the Kansas City Royals. Despite limited playing time for the remainder of 2022, he came out blazing to begin the 2023 season and was selected to play in the All-Star Game for the third time in his career.

Merrifield’s numbers regressed over the second half of the 2023 season, however, and the Blue Jays decided to let him hit free agency. He wound up settling on a one-year, $8 million deal with the Phillies, but things haven’t gone according to plan.

The 34-year-old has been used sparingly by the Phillies this season and has failed to do much with the limited opportunities he’s been given. Through 53 games, he has a lowly .199 batting average and a .572 OPS.

Despite Merrifield’s struggles this season, he has been a solid hitter throughout his career, and his speed allows him to steal plenty of bases. Thanks to his versatility, he should be able to garner some solid interest from a number of teams looking to shore up their infield. Many Phillies fans even seemed to be caught off guard by the decision.

This was a surprising move!!👀😳

— sportsfan⭐️🇺🇸 (@hrm4449) July 12, 2024

WOW

— Josh Reynolds (@JoshReynolds24) July 12, 2024

Obviously the numbers he put up this year were simply not good enough, but it feels like a weird time to make this move, he’s a great dude and it never hurts to have that kind of experience on the bench. Is this really just Wilson performing that well or is there something else?

— DynoHusky (@dynohusky) July 12, 2024

Why he’s a veteran and he’s going to sign with the Braves and be a all star in the second half of the season

— Will McKernan (@WillMckernan) July 12, 2024

wasn’t huge on whiz but it was nice having someone who could basically play anywhere

— gerb kazzaz (@gerbzaz) July 12, 2024

While the struggling Blue Jays won’t be an option, Merrifield’s other former team, the Royals, which sits just one game shy of a wild-card spot, may consider bringing the veteran back for the remainder of the season.

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