The young 'Jackson 3'? Merrill loves 'every bit of it'
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It’s a good year to be a top baseball prospect named Jackson.
The Orioles’ Jackson Holliday (MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 prospect), Brewers’ Jackson Chourio (MLB Pipeline’s No. 2 prospect) and the Padres’ Jackson Merrill (No. 12) have each made their MLB debuts this season. The “Jackson 3” also happens to be the youngest trio of players in the Majors. The latter certainly found this circumstance of events to be fun.
“I love every bit of it,” Merrill said on MLB Network Radio. “I think it’s pretty cool. I don’t know another time when the three youngest players had the same name.”
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It’s been quite the start for Merrill, who is hitting .286/.388/.405 in his first 15 games with the Padres. Known for his excellent approach and bat-to-ball skills, the 20-year-old Merrill is walking at a healthy 14.3 percent clip with a 20.4 percent strikeout rate that’s below the league-average mark.
Merrill also had a unique start to his MLB career, as the youngster was batting ninth and playing center field for the Padres in the Seoul Series in Korea on March 20.
“It was interesting not debuting in the States. That’s kind of how I always pictured it,” Merrill said. “But it was cool to see the different culture over there and how they appreciate the game of baseball.”
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