SI

Braves' Whit Merrifield Blasts ‘Pathetic’ MLB Pitchers After Getting Hit in Head

Merrifield is not pleased with the current state of MLB pitching.

Tim Capurso

Atlanta Braves infielder Whit Merrifield lands on the ground after getting hit in the head by a pitch during Tuesday's victory over the Colorado Rockies.
Atlanta Braves infielder Whit Merrifield lands on the ground after getting hit in the head by a pitch during Tuesday's victory over the Colorado Rockies. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
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Atlanta Braves second baseman Whit Merrifield blasted the current state of pitching in MLB after he was in the head by a pitch during the bottom of the seventh inning of Tuesday's win over the Colorado Rockies.

Merrifield, facing Rockies relief pitcher Jeff Criswell, took a 94 MPH fastball directly off of the back of his helmet, causing him to fall to the ground, where he remained for a few moments. Merrifield yelled at Criswell before he exited the game and headed toward Atlanta's dugout.

Speaking to reporters after the game, the nine-year MLB veteran angrily took exception to pitchers' propensity to throw "up and in" in the current age of pitch velocity.

"It's just ridiculous," Merrifield said. "Where the game is at right now, it's just ridiculous. ... The way pitchers are throwing now, there's no remorse or regard for throwing up and in. Guys are throwing hard as they can and they don't care where the ball goes."

"It's bulls---. You can't hit a guy anymore back. There's no fear that, 'Oh if I hit this guy, then our guy is going to get hit.' That's not the game anymore. Pitchers don't have to hit anymore, so they don't have to stand in the box."

As MLB has embraced technology and data, the average fastball velocity has skyrocketed. In 2008, the average big league fastball was clocked at 91.9 MPH. Now? Heaters flew in at an average speed of 94.2 MPH in 2023, according to Baseball America.

And pitchers seem to have less control over these increasingly-speedy offerings than ever. Of the top 15 seasons in MLB history in terms of hit by pitch rates, tracked since 1884, seven of them have occurred in the last seven campaigns (2018 to 2024).

Merrifield, who mentioned numerous teammates and MLB stars who have missed time after getting hit, feels something has to change before things become even more dangerous.

"It's just ridiculous and it has to be fixed or God forbid, something terrible is going to happen. If this hits me in a different spot -- it's just pathetic."

"It's frankly pathetic some of the pitchers we're running out there that don't know where the ball is going at the major-league level. And it's got to be fixed."

Merrifield, one of three hitters on MLB's Competition Committee since 2022, said he plans to address this issue during a meeting Wednesday.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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