Royals Report: Friday’s Win And Hanging With The President

Jul 7, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield (15) connects for a double in the ninth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

3) Whit Merrifield Busts Out Of Slump

After an almost dream-like first month in major-league baseball, Whit Merrifield has fallen to earth. Merrifield is hitting a mere .170/.250/.255 since July 1, as major-league pitchers have figured him out a little bit.

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In fact, Merrifield came into Friday’s game riding a horrendous 0-12 streak before smacking his second-inning single to score Alex Gordon. Merrifield went 1 for 3 with a single and RBI, plus 2 strikeouts.

Merrifield is slashing a much more typical .275/.309/.386 for a second baseman. He’s still a valuable player due to his ability to play plus defense at seven positions along with his speed on the bases, but he’s simply striking out too much. Merrifield has whiffed 49 times in 207 at bats in 2016, which isn’t very good for a player with limited power.

Merrifield needs to make an adjustment to put the ball in play more, and his ability to fix the hole in his swing will go a long way toward determining if he can continue as a starter in major-league baseball.

Next: Three-Headed Monster Returns

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