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Jackson Merrill had been ice cold at the plate, stuck in a brutal 3-for-42 slump and searching for answers. But on Saturday night at Petco Park, the San Diego Padres' 22-year-old center fielder reminded everyone why he was once the frontrunner for NL Rookie of the Year.
Facing one of the game’s toughest arms in Phillies ace Zack Wheeler, Merrill erupted for two game-tying home runs and three RBI in a dramatic 5-4 Padres victory that clinched the series against the National League East leaders.
“Felt unfamiliar, almost,” Merrill said postgame. “It felt great to help the team win — in a game that actually was, like, big. The Phillies are a good team. To win the series, yeah, it felt good.”
His first blast came in the second inning, turning around a 98 mph fastball from Wheeler and sending it into the left-centerfield seats to erase a 2-0 deficit. That two-run shot—his first home run since May 27—brought Gavin Sheets home and gave the slumping slugger a much-needed sigh of relief.
Jake Cronenworth followed with a double and later scored on a single by Martín Maldonado, capping a three-run inning and giving San Diego a 3-2 lead.
Jackson Merrill put the Padres on his back in Phillies takedown
Yu Darvish, making his second start of the year, couldn't hold the lead. After the Phillies loaded the bases in the fifth, Edmundo Sosa delivered a two-run single to reclaim the lead, 4-3. Still, Padres manager Mike Shildt kept Darvish in to stretch his pitch count and preserve the bullpen, noting, “A guy like Darvish, who was wanting the moment — we’re going to give the benefit of the doubt.”
Merrill wasn’t finished. In the sixth inning, he jumped on another Wheeler fastball—this one up in the zone—and crushed it to right-center to tie the game at four. It marked the first time in Wheeler’s career that he’d allowed multiple home runs to a single player in a game. Merrill joined elite company, becoming just the third player to accomplish the feat against Wheeler, alongside Cody Bellinger and Buster Posey.
“The best thing for me, honestly,” Merrill said of facing Wheeler. “It’s probably the best fastball I’ve ever seen. So it was definitely a good matchup… Just compete. Stop thinking about my swing and just compete.”
With Wheeler out after six innings, the Padres’ offense came through again. Fernando Tatis Jr. singled in the seventh and moved to third on a Luis Arraez single. Manny Machado then delivered a deep fly to right field, scoring Tatis for the go-ahead run on a sac fly.
From there, a patched-together Padres bullpen locked things down. With high-leverage arms unavailable, Bryan Hoeing, Wandy Peralta, David Morgan, Yuki Matsui, and Jeremiah Estrada combined for 4.1 scoreless innings. Estrada, pitching for a third straight day, slammed the door for his third save of the year.
“Outstanding team win,” Shildt said. “They showed up and got after it.”
Merrill’s performance, particularly against Wheeler, was a huge sign of life. After weeks of mechanical tweaks and mental strain, the left-handed slugger finally got back to being himself.
“Just going into the break, I was a little concerned,” Merrill admitted. “So it was good to see something today.”
With the All-Star break looming, Merrill’s timing couldn’t have been better—for himself or for the Padres.
