The Chicago Cubs are set to get a boost to their offense.
Per ESPN’s Jeff Passan, top first base prospect Matt Mervis is getting called up to the big leagues.
Mervis has been off to a hot start for the Iowa Cubs this season, mashing six home runs in 24 games with a .286 average and a great .402 on-base percentage. Per MLB.com, Mervis is the No. 3 overall 1B prospect in baseball. Mervis’ rise up the prospect rankings came after an incredible 2022 season in the minors where he hit 36 home runs while leading the minors with 78 extra-base hits and 119 RBIs while ranking second in doubles with 40.
Production from the first base position has been a sore spot for a Cubs offense that’s been productive at every other position on the diamond. Cubs 1B Eric Hosmer has started the season in mediocre fashion with a .250 batting average and below-average power (just two home runs in 80 at-bats).
The Cubs have been scuffling of late — they were swept in Miami last weekend and have lost two of the first three games of their series against Washington. The Cubs are currently 15-15 and third in the NL Central, just 4.5 games behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers. Calling up Mervis signals the Cubs aren’t going to accept middling play from any position player. Veterans like Hosmer must produce or they’ll ride the pine.
The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Mervis can clearly crush the ball and it’s time to see what he can do as a major leaguer. If things go right, Mervis will make Cubs fans miss their former first baseman and World Series Champion Anthony Rizzo a little less.
