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San Diego Padres Rookie Jackson Merrill Moves Up Historic NL RBI Leaderboard

Jackson Merrill notched his 89th RBI of the season in the San Diego Padres' win over the Chicago White Sox on Saturday, inching closer to a record set by Albert Pujols.

Sam Connon

Sep 16, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill (3) is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a home run against the Houston Astros during the fourth inning at Petco Park.
Sep 16, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill (3) is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a home run against the Houston Astros during the fourth inning at Petco Park. / Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images
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With the regular season winding down, San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill has continued to carve out real estate in the history books.

Merrill went 2-for-5 with a run, an RBI and a walk against the Chicago White Sox on Saturday. His RBI single in the bottom of the fifth put San Diego up 4-0, setting the stage for the team to win 6-2.

The 21-year-old rookie is now batting .294 with 24 home runs, 89 RBI, 16 stolen bases, an .833 OPS and a 4.3 WAR. According to TSN's StatsCentre, Merrill's 89 RBI are tied for the fourth-most by a National League rookie age-21 or younger.

Albert Pujols set the record with 130 RBI in 2001, and the only other 21-year-old rookie in NL history to reach the century mark was Ryan Zimmerman with his 109 RBI in 2006. Orlando Cepeda, meanwhile, had 96 RBI when he was a rookie in 1958.

Joining Merrill in fourth place is John Anderson, who was a rookie all the way back in 1895.

Merrill, who made the All-Star Game in July, has established himself as a leading NL Rookie of the Year contender by putting together an explosive second half of the season.

Just since July 23, Merrill is batting .327 with a .994 OPS. Stretching his production in that span over the course of a full season, Merrill would rack up 36 home runs, 129 RBI and 18 stolen bases in 162 games.

The Padres are also notably 38-16 over Merrill's extended hot streak, leaving them just 3.0 games out of first place in the NL West. FanGraphs is giving San Diego a 100.0% chance of making the playoffs, compared to their 34.5% chance on July 19.

Another win over the lowly White Sox would trim the Padres' magic number down to one. First pitch for the series finale between San Diego and Chicago is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a Staff Writer for Fastball on the Sports Illustrated/FanNation networks. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's All Bruins, 247Sports' Bruin Report Online, Rivals' Bruin Blitz, the Bleav Podcast Network and the Daily Bruin, with his work as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk.

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