The San Diego Padres have a bonafide talent on their hands. Rookie Jackson Merrill earned some hardware for his impressive play during the first season of his career.
Padres CF Jackson Merrill becomes fifth rookie to ever win Silver Slugger Award
Padres rookie Jackson Merrill won the 2024 Silver Slugger Award in the National League at center field. With the win, the 21-year-old became just the fifth player in MLB history to take home the accolade as a rookie. The MLB shared the impressive nature of the feat on X on Tuesday.
Merrill joins Julio Rodriguez (2022), Aaron Judge (2017), Mike Trout (2012), and Ichiro Suzuki (2001) as the only other rookie to have done so. The Maryland native registered 24 home runs, 90 RBIs, 77 runs, and 16 stolen bases with a .292/.326/.500 slash line to show for in 2024. He led his National League counterparts at center field in each major statistical category, save runs and steals, and topped off his campaign with a show-worthy .826 OPS.
Merrill’s excellent offense fueled Padres in 2024
The Padres relied heavily on his effective bat out of the cleanup and fifth slots in their batting order. Not only did he post a bragworthy 4.4 WAR, exemplifying the great impact he had on the team winning games last time out, but the Padres also went 37-7 when he connected on multiple hits in a game.
San Diego will look for their budding young star to continue to spring up, beginning next spring when they kick off the 2025 MLB campaign. Merrill looks to have a bright future on his horizon. The momentous Silver Slugger Award win should give him the confidence to continue striving for accolades that’ll ultimately help his Padres win.
