There have been flashes of absolute briiiance in the minors, a potential hitting superstar but the cups of coffee in the big leagues had been flat. Not this week, Marlins first baseman Matt Mervis just went off.
Matt “MASH” Mervis is on one heck of a heater. It’s his fifth home run in 6 games. He’s taking advantage of an opportunity he just wasn’t going to get in Chicago.
pic.twitter.com/zokbq87oZR— Greg Zumach (@IvyFutures) April 13, 2025
The Washington Nationals didn’t think enough of their thirty-ninth round pick (2016), drafted out of high school in Bethesda Maryland. They didn’t bother to sign him and he was off to College at Duke.
When his draft time came again in June 2020 nobody drafted him but the Cubs signed him as a free agent and sent him to Single-A Myrtle Beach.
First Season Struggles
Normally Mervis would have had a chance to play most of a minor league season after finishing up at Duke but the pandemic afforded no chance at that, there were no games.
So it was in 2021 at age twenty-three that Mervis began his pro career at low Single-A. The numbers were not good (.676 OPS), but the Cubs liked something and let him finish up two levels at Triple-A Iowa for the final week.
A Monster Season
The Cubs started Mervis out in 2022 at High A the next season and he marched through three levels and owned every one. The totals were eye opening: A .984 OPS. He batted .309, had forty doubles and thirty-six homers. He drove in a hundred and nineteen.
Most importantly for the Cubs, he hit just as well at Triple-A as anywhere else. Suddenly Mervis was a step away from the majors and on everyone’s lips as a top prospect.
He went to the Arizona Fall League and bashed six homers there, he seemed on his way.
Falls Flat in MLB
Mervis began 2023 in Iowa and had no problem carrying his previous season over to the next, he clearly could handle Triple-A pitching. The call from the Cubs at Wrigley came in early May. In ninety-nine plate appearances he managed a paultry .531 OPS.
It was back to the minors and while he was okay there the rest of the 2023 season, the Mervis that came to the big leagues in May had not been seen since. Until this week.
Last season he wasn’t great wherever he was at and that included Triple-A. The Cubs gave him twenty-six more at bats, he managed just three hits, then they just gave up on him.
Trade to Marlins
The Cubs eventually traded Merlis to the Marlins just before New Year’s and invited him to spring training. He won a spot and got an opening day start and it was happening again, he went one for seven. After sitting for four games he played three more and went one for eight.
His time was almost up. Then he hit two homers against the Braves and he hasn’t stopped. Five in all in six games including a pinch hit job on a day off. Now we wait and see if this is real. It’s pretty good right now.
