Why is the Braves’ clubhouse such a welcoming place for newcomers?
Whit Merrifield thought about the question. Initially, he did not know. Then he came up with a good place to start.
“I mean, nobody’s a (jerk),” he said. “That helps.”
Then he continued.
“A lot of guys here have had success and know what that looks like, and know this isn’t a football season,” Merrifield told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “If you lose a game, it’s not the end of the year and it’s not gonna set you back. You’re gonna lose games. There’s a sense of no panic. Even though we’ve gone through some injury stuff, there just doesn’t seem to be much panic in here. As an older player, when you get here, you sense that. You get a sense that it’s a clubhouse that loves the game and knows what’s going on, and it helps just kind of take your foot off the gas a little bit and just settle in.”
Despite all the injuries, the Braves enter Saturday five games behind the Phillies – Merrifield’s former team. The Braves sit in the National League’s third wild-card spot.
To get there, the Braves have needed contributions from Merrifield, Gio Urshela and Ramón Laureano – three players who were designated for assignment by other teams earlier in the season.
Did you expect this in the spring? You could not have.
But here we are. And somehow, the Braves are finding a way to stay afloat.
Yes, they have used players who didn’t work out here. But they’re receiving significant contributions from the three mentioned above. They’re all playing every day.
Part of the reason: The Braves’ clubhouse is a positive environment. New guys feel comfortable.
“And you know what, those guys have seen us from afar,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “They’re not coming in here not knowing what they’re getting into because we played all those guys that we’ve gotten. So, I think they’re all excited about being a part of this.”
Merrifield has better circumstances here. He can play every day – something he couldn’t do with the Phillies. He hit .199 over 156 at-bats with the Phillies before they designated him for assignment.
Now, as Ozzie Albies recovers from a fractured wrist, Merrifield is the everyday second baseman. It has made all the difference for a guy who has said, simply, that it just did not work out in Philadelphia.
“Well that’s why I said it didn’t work out,” he said of the playing-time topic. “Where was I going to play? I was hoping I could do better in the role. I knew what role I was getting into – I just was hoping I could do better at it. That was my first time kind of in that position. From the time I was there, didn’t do a good job when I was given the chance to play. I only had 140, 150 at-bats. I could’ve had three or four good games in a row and now my numbers are looking OK. There’s a lot.
“It just didn’t seem like it was meant to be for me to be there. Which is unfortunate, because I really did enjoy it. I have nothing bad to say about Philly. The people, the city, it was amazing the time I was there. It just wasn’t meant to be for me, so happy to be here now.”
On Friday, Merrifield extended his season-long on-base streak to 17 games. When he knows he’ll be in the lineup the next day, Merrifield can set up his series. He can, for example, see more pitches in his first at-bat of a series to feel his way through those games. He doesn’t feel the need to do too much.
His double-play partner, Urshela, has fit in nicely. Signed Tuesday, Urshela had four hits over his first four games in Atlanta. He’s also playing tremendous defense.
Braves fans have seen this already. Urshela and Merrifield doubled up Trea Turner – one of the game’s fastest runners – on consecutive nights. Merrifield called the first of those double plays “probably the best double play that I’ve ever seen turned on a guy that can just flat-out move.”
The Braves on Monday received grim news: Austin Riley suffered a fracture in his right hand and will be out for six to eight weeks.
Urshela has been a pleasant surprise.
“That was a huge pickup for us,” pitcher Chris Sale said. “He’s a hell of a ballplayer, on both sides – getting to know him a little bit, and obviously playing against him a lot. But I thought that was a huge pickup, just being able to have a guy like that fill in. What he does defensively is amazing and he’s not afraid to swing it, either.”
Sale would know. He and Urshela used to be rivals when he pitched for the Red Sox and Urshela played for the Yankees.
Snitker can even remember watching Urshela in the minor leagues. And now, all these years later, Urshela is part of Snitker’s Braves club – one that continues fighting no matter the circumstances.
“But you know what, (Urshela is) a guy that’s getting another opportunity and taking advantage of it,” Snitker said. “He’s been really good, and probably better than I even anticipated, defensively, (with) some of the plays that he’s made. And big hits. I admire those guys. He’s been in the major leagues a while now and it’s not like he’s a kid, and a lot of experience. Kind of the same thing with Whit, and Ramón. You get those guys that have track records in the major leagues and it’s good to plug them in.”
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