GAMBRILLS, Md. — Jennie and Joshua Merrill of Severna Park have watched hundreds of baseball games in their lifetime. But none were like the one they watched on Wednesday morning.
That's because they watched their son, Jackson Merrill, make his Major League Baseball debut. The 20-year-old was the starting center fielder for the San Diego Padres, who opened the 2024 MLB regular season against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Seoul, South Korea.
"I’m usually pretty low-key. But I was amped up," said Joshua Merrill.
"You are watching it happen and you’re like, ’This is really our child. Our child is about to bat. He is a Major Leaguer’," added Jennie Merrill.
Dad is a school teacher in Arbutus. Mom is the same in Severna Park. They watched the game apart, in their respective classrooms, sharing the same emotions.
"To be honest, when he got out there I was choked up a bit," said Joshua. "There weren’t tears but I got pretty choked up. I held it in."
"Just hearing the beginning when they did the batting order and it’s like, ‘No. 9, center fielder, Jackson Merrill’. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh. That’s him’. You are just sitting there like, ‘That’s my baby’. That’s my baby boy out there. So, it’s pretty amazing. Your heart wants to burst," said Jennie.
The moment was not too big for Jackson. He contributed to the Padres scoring the first run of the regular season. The 6-foot-3, 195-pounder ripped a rocket to center field in his first at-bat. It moved a runner from second to third, a runner who would later cross home. Merrill officially went 0-3 during a 5-2 San Diego loss.
"He texted me and he said, ‘Man I hit the ball hard three times’. I said, ‘I know you did. You barreled them up’," said Joshua.
Joshua and Jennie shared their story with WMAR Sports Reporter Shawn Stepner at Gambrills Athletic Club. That is where Jackson used to train before he was drafted 27th overall by the Padres in 2021 out of Severna Park High School. Before Wednesday the highest level he had played was Double-A.
"He has put in the work on his own. He has done it. He has motivated himself. He was driven from…," Joshua said.
"…day one," his wife continued. "He didn’t like it in T-ball when people were fooling around."
Ever since those days in T-ball Jackson always wanted to be an MLB player. Now he is only the third player since 1989 to be under the age of 21 and start in center field on opening day. The others were Ken Griffey Jr. and Andruw Jones.
When does Jackson get to come home? July 26th. That’s when the Padres visit Camden Yards to start a series with the O’s.
The family can’t wait.
"We have seats. We are ready to go," laughed Jennie.
Jackson's parents were wearing shirts with the hashtag #MerrillMadness. That is the Merrill family's charity. A portion of every shirt sold is donated to the family of a youth baseball player to help with the cost of travel expenses.
You can find more about #MerrillMadness here.
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerWMAR and Facebook
