Jackson Merrill Reveals Why He Signed Team-Friendly Contract Extension With Padres

With so much talk this offseason about if/when Merrill would get extended, Friar Faithful can take a giant sigh of relief — but let's not ignore the obvious: Merrill could have easily secured a significantly larger deal.

With his kind of talent, the market of recent contracts, and his .292/.326/.500 line and .826 OPS during his rookie season in 2024, many around the league are wondering why he didn't ink a more lucrative extension.

Bobby Witt Jr. signed an 11-year, $288 million deal ahead of an electric 2024 campaign that easily could have been more expensive without the Kansas City Royals' savvy move. Witt ended the year with a .332 batting average, 32 home runs, and an OPS of .977.

Jackson Chourio signed an eight-year, $82 million deal with the Milwaukee Brewers before he had even played a single MLB game. He finished 2024 with 21 home runs and 79 RBIs.

Even Merrill's fellow superstar teammate, Fernando Tatis Jr., signed for a 14-year, $340 million deal in the 2021 offseason. It is not a stretch to put the 21-year-old in the conversation with these kind of names.

President of baseball operations A.J. Preller spoke on the character of Merrill, and given some of the young outfielder's values and expectations, the answer becomes much clearer.

"He was very clear in terms of I want to be able to take care of my family for years to come and I want to do it in a way that there can be a great team built around me," Preller said at Wednesday's press conference to announce the extension. "He wants to make a commitment to the organization. Very straightforward, very clear."

As for Merrill, he may have been willing to sign a deal from the day San Diego first scouted him.

"I think just hearing the opportunity to sign with the San Diego Padres was enough for me," said Merrill. "You can’t just sign for $700 million and expect everything to be perfect," noting that he wanted to ensure the team could still spend and put a solid team around him.

Winning is clearly one of the main principles in Merrill's motivations, and not only has he shown he wants to do that, but he signed a deal that can allow more pieces to comfortably be put around him to get this team back to October.

The Padres couldn't be luckier to not just have a player of Merrill's caliber on the field, but a person like Merrill in the clubhouse who will now be a pillar of the franchise for years to come.

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