The Philadelphia Phillies and free agent utility man Whit Merrifield have agreed to a one-year, $8 million deal, reports Ken Rosenthal.
Merrifield, 35, was an All-Star final season – his third journey to the Midsummer Basic – for the Blue Jays. He hit .272/.318/.382 (94 OPS+) with 27 doubles, 11 homers, 67 RBI, 66 runs, 26 stolen bases and 0.7 WAR in 145 video games. He can nonetheless hit for common, albeit not almost in addition to his prime, and run some, however he does not present a lot defensive worth as of late and he is probably ticketed for a utility backup function.
The Phillies are set with Bryson Stott at second base and Nick Castellanos in proper area, so if there are any at-bats available, it might probably be left area. With Johan Rojas the on a regular basis middle fielder, Brandon Marsh can maintain down the left aspect of a platoon in left area whereas right-handed hitting choices could be Merrifield and Cristian Pache.
This might be Merrifield’s first foray into the Nationwide League, as he beforehand spent seven seasons with the Royals and elements of two with the Blue Jays.
The Phillies are coming off back-to-back journeys to the NLCS, which incorporates the 2022 NL pennant, although the franchise hasn’t received the World Sequence since 2009. Merrifield will look to be a part of the answer as this Phillies ballclub makes an attempt to interrupt by means of and win the World Sequence.
