Jackson Merrill might very well be the favorite for NL Rookie of the Year.
The 21-year-old center fielder was named the NL’s Rookie of the Month for August, his second such honor this season.
Merrill hit .303/.343/.626 with seven homers and 23 RBIs in 27 games in August, with four of the homers tying or winning a game.
It was a showing comparable to June, when he hit .320/.346/.650 with nine homers and 20 RBIs as the NL’s top rookie that month.
No other rookie in the AL or NL has two NL rookie of the month nods and the chic pick at the All-Star break — All-Star Game starter Paul Skenes — has not won the award once this year.
The NL’s other NL rookie of the month winners: the Cubs’ Shota Imanaga (April), the Brewers’ Joey Ortiz (May) and the Giants’ Tyler Fitzgerald (July).
Despite bying Triple-A and having less than a half-season at Double-A, Merrill is hitting .291/.323/.493 with 21 homers, 79 RBIs and 16 steals.
He leads all rookies in fWAR (4.2), homers and RBIs, is second in average and is top-five in runs (68) and slugging.
Notable
RHP Lake Bachar has been claimed by the Marlins. The Padres designated him for assignment on Sunday. A fifth-round pick out of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Bachar was the last draftee from the 2016 class still in the organization. The 29-year-old was 6-3 with a 3.89 ERA, 85 strikeouts and a 1.45 WHIP through 71⅔ innings at Triple-A El Paso this season. He’d been called up in August only to be sent down the same day without making his MLB debut.
