The San Diego Padres are getting a major boost back to their lineup this weekend. The team announced on Sunday that outfielder Jackson Merrill was reinstated from the 7-day concussion IL. OF Brandon Lockridge was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move.
Merrill suffered the injury on June 14 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was involved in a collision at second base, with Ketel Marte applying a hard tag to the face of Merrill. After staying down for a few minutes, Merrill departed with the training staff.
Erring on the side of caution, the Padres elected to place Merrill on the concussion IL to prevent further injury. Merrill had already missed time earlier this season with a hamstring injury.
The Padres will be getting back one of their most productive players in Merrill. 2024 NL Rookie of the Year runner-up has picked up where he left off last season, hitting .305 with 5 home runs and a .823 OPS in 44 games this season.
It’s been a rough go of late for San Diego. Losers of seven of their last ten games, the Padres sit at 41-35, firmly in third-place in the NL West. They trail the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers by five games, and are 0.5 games behind the NL’s third Wild Card spot.
