Whit Merrifield, the youngest Atlanta Braves player to be hit by an errant fastball, criticized the “pathetic” state of pitching in Major League Baseball and said “something terrible is going to happen” if the sport does not reinstate penalties for wild inside throws.
“This is bullshit – it’s driving me crazy,” Merrifield said Tuesday after being hit in the head by a 94.5 mph fastball in the Braves’ win over the Colorado Rockies. “I hate where the game is right now.”
Merrifield left the game in the seventh inning after rookie right-hander Jeff Criswell’s fastball hit the part of his helmet just behind his left ear. Merrifield teetered on one knee and angrily yelled at Criswell while on the ground before eventually walking slowly to the dugout.
“It’s just ridiculous,” he said. “The way the game is right now, it’s just ridiculous. … The way the pitchers are throwing now, there’s no remorse or consideration for throwing up and inside. Guys are throwing as hard as they can and they don’t care where the ball goes.”
“That’s nonsense. You can’t hit an opponent back anymore. You’re no longer afraid that if you hit that opponent, you’ll hit our opponent. That’s not the game anymore. Pitchers don’t have to hit anymore, so they don’t have to stand in the box.”
Merrifield is a player representative on MLB’s competition committee and said he plans to have a “long conversation” with other committee members during a meeting on Wednesday.
“Teams put pitchers out there who don’t know where the hell the ball is going,” he said. “They’re throwing 100 miles an hour, so they say, ‘Okay, we’ll see if he can get the guys out. Just stand in the middle and throw the ball as hard as you can.’ And that’s bullshit—.”
Merrifield was the fourth Braves player in less than a month to be hit by a high-and-tight fastball.
Star third baseman Austin Riley is expected to miss the rest of the regular season after suffering a broken hand on a 97-mph pitch last month. Center fielder Michael Harris and veteran catcher Travis d’Arnaud also missed some time last month after being hit, though both avoided serious injury.
Merrifield mentioned all three of his teammates on Tuesday and also cited other major league players who have recently suffered serious health problems due to inside fastballs.
“I saw Taylor Ward get hit in the face last year and have to have reconstructive surgery,” Merrifield said. “Justin Turner got hit in the face last year. It’s happening more and more. Guys get hit in the hand. Mookie Betts broke a bone in his hand this year.”
“It’s just ridiculous and it needs to be fixed or, God forbid, something terrible will happen. If it hits me somewhere else – that’s just pathetic. It’s frankly pathetic that some of the pitchers we put out there don’t know where the ball is going in the major leagues. And that needs to be fixed.”
Braves manager Brian Snitker said Merrifield passed concussion protocol and could possibly play Wednesday, but the nine-year veteran was still upset after the game.
“I’m out of the game, but (Criswell) gets to stay and throw,” Merrifield said. “I probably won’t be able to play (on Wednesday) – no consequences for him. I mean, without being overdramatic, my life was on the line.”
“I’m fed up. There’s too much going on out there.”
