Report: Former All-Star still perplexed by his lack of inclusion in the starting lineup

Whit Merrifield is all praise for the Phillies despite the way things ended, but he still doesn’t understand why he wasn’t able to make it work.

The Philadelphia Phillies let go of veteran utility player Whit Merrifield more than a month ago. Even though Merrifield had an All-Star year with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2023, he appeared to be lacking motivation while wearing the Phillies uniform this season.

However, as he just disclosed in an interview on Foul Territory, we now know that his difficulties didn’t detract from the amazing time he truly spent with the crew. He also had some wonderful things to say about the organization in general.

Merrifield remarked, “I really did love my time in Philadelphia.” “They’re just a top-notch organization; the staff and front office are such a great group of guys.”

If there was one thing, though, he would certainly like to go back and change his lackluster performance with the club.

Whit Merrifield, a former Phillies cut loose, is still perplexed by his lack of fit in the starting order.
“I thought it was terrible that things didn’t work out better than they did. For whatever reason, I just didn’t take advantage of the opportunities I did get to play,” Merrifield said.

He had a miserable.199 batting average in 53 games with a.572 OPS, just 21 runs scored, four doubles, three home runs, and 11 RBI. It was unquestionably a far cry from what Merrifield was capable of during a typical season. The fact that he didn’t end up fitting in well with the Phillies’ lineup as he had first anticipated genuinely perplexed him.

Even while it seemed like a nice fit heading into the season, it didn’t work out well from a playing standpoint. Which is unfortunate since I had a great time there,” Merrifield remarked.

His close relations with other Phillies organization members were unaffected by all of his flaws.

Merrifield remarked, “Leaving those guys was hard.” “Even for the short amount of time I was there, [I] developed some great friendship and great chemistry with those guys.”

Merrifield nevertheless sent the Phillies his best wishes and added a little comedy to make a lighthearted poke at his previous colleagues.

“Send them only the best wishes. I informed them that, at this point, I think I wish them somewhat less than the best. Since he is now a member of the very competitive Atlanta Braves, Merrifield said, “I’m always cheering for those guys, just not quite as hard anymore.”

Overall, considering their incredible winning record throughout Merrifield’s tenure with the team, the Phillies may be missing him a little. But regardless of friendships, one thing is certain: if they do wind up playing each other again in the playoffs on a larger platform, there will be no mercy shown by either team.