Jackson Merrill, Padres see move to lead-off spot as more of same

Jackson Merrill has moved to the top of the order, at least for a day.

It is merely the next step.

“Just kind of the same thing I’ve been doing — getting on base, creating havoc on the basepaths, just trying to create runs in any way possible,” the kid who is just less than a week from his 21st birthday said Saturday afternoon.

By now, he can be believed.

Merrill keeps checking boxes with both exuberance and nonchalance.

New position. Skipping Triple-A after 46 games in Double-A. Coming through in the 11th inning of a tie game at Dodger Stadium after being down 0-2.

Merrill is here to play, be himself and have fun.

And get stuff done.

Like the single he hit in Friday’s 11th inning, poking a fastball from left-hander Alex Vesia through the left side to score José Azocar with the deciding run in an 8-7 victory over the Dodgers.

“Just shorten up, keep your eye on the ball and make something happen,” Merrill said of his mindset. “Regardless of if I got out or not, I would rather put something in play and make them work for the out rather than just strike out. … I think naturally this is how I am as a hitter. In the box, I didn’t take it as a different AB in the 11th inning (than) I did in the first inning. You can be the hero by doing the small things sometimes.”

Saturday is the first time this season Xander Bogaerts will not bat leadoff. In addition to not wanting to move too many players around in a lineup that has produced more big innings than any in the league, Shildt professed confidence in Merrill’s ability to handle the top spot.

“He’s done a nice job, taking great at-bats, not making situations — clearly last night as an indicator — bigger than they are,” Shildt said. “Just taking good at-bats and recognizing what he needs to do in the situation. Tonight presented an opportunity with Bogey getting a well-deserved day off. Just take a little break for him.”

Shildt said Bogaerts, who is batting .219 and is 2-for-21 over the past five games, is healthy and available to pinch-hit Saturday.

It is not known whether further change could come. Perhaps if Merrill does well Saturday, Bogaerts could move down in the order.

Merrill is batting .304/.407/.413 with two doubles, a home run and eight walks. His average and on-base percentage are second on the team behind Jurickson Profar.

On March 20, he became the youngest MLB player to start his team’s first game in center field since 1998. He is the youngest Padres player since Fernando Tatis Jr. in 2019. Saturday, Merrill became the third-youngest Padres player ever written in atop the lineup card — behind Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar in 1988 and Tatis in ‘19.

While they are different players, Merrill’s start to his career is reminiscent of Tatis’ arrival in 2019. Merrill is maybe a smidge less flamboyant and doesn’t toss his head with the same frequency or flair. But he has been no less impressive and exhibited no less bravado.

“He’s a baller,” Tatis said Friday night. “I love watching that kid play baseball. I’ve been saying since day one he’s gonna play winning baseball, and that’s what he has done since day one. … It’s huge. The amount of help he has brought us already — how he’s playing defense, how he’s playing offense, how he runs the bases. He’s just a game changer. Hopefully he can keep it that way for the long season.”

Even aside from putting the Padres up for good, Merrill had himself a good game Friday. It was the fourth time in five games he reached base multiple times, and he made his finest defensive play to date.

He ran 77 feet (with a top speed of 29.5 feet per second) to make a fully extended diving catch on the warning track to rob Shohei Ohtani of extra bases and end the second inning. In the seventh, with the Padres down 7-4, he walked with one out, went to third on a single by Tyler Wade and scored on Bogaerts’ groundout. He also singled in the ninth.

“I think he’s a superstar in the making,” Manny Machado said.

Practically from the time the minor-league shortstop arrived in spring training and went about securing the starting job in center field, Padres players and others in the organization have expressed almost as much confidence in Merrill as he has expressed in himself.

And he keeps giving them every reason to think that way.

“I think it’s a confidence boost for the whole team,” Merrill said in response to a question about Friday’s performance helping to build his belief in himself. “I feel like they have a lot of confidence behind me now. So being in the leadoff spot, I don’t think they’re going to think anything otherwise. It’s the same hitter in the box.”