Chicago Cubs first baseman prospect Matt Mervis hit his eighth home run of the season and third in his past two games on Sunday for Triple-A Iowa. The 26-year-old is hitting .474 (9-for-19) in the last five games since being sent back to Triple-A. Unfortunately, the left-handed hitter hasn't hit well during his time with the big league club, going 15-for-90 (.167) in 2023 and 3-for-26 (.115) in 2024. With Michael Busch excelling and blocking him at first base, Mervis was used as designated hitter while with the Cubs, but they decided to give Miles Mastrobuoni a shot when they sent Mervis back down. Mastrobuoni hasn't seen any more success, hitting .150 over 20 at-bats. If Mervis can keep it up, it's probably not the last time we see him in Chicago this year.
Chicago Cubs infielder Miles Mastrobuoni was called up from Triple-A Iowa on Saturday in a corresponding move that sent Cubs first base prospect Matt Mervis back down to the minor leagues. Mervis disappointed fantasy managers in his second major league stint and will most likely not receive another chance until later in the summer. Mervis posted a .115/.148/.154 line in nine games with the Cubs this season, which is not too different from his .167/.242/.289 line he had across 27 games last year. Mastrobuoni played in 61 games last season with the Cubs and put up a modest .241/.308/.301 stat line. The 28-year-old should be expected to reclaim his utility role once again this season after starting games at second base, third base, and in the outfield last season. He is nothing more than a desperation play in DFS when he is in the Cubs lineup.
Chicago Cubs first base prospect Matt Mervis was called up from Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday and is serving as the designated hitter and batting eighth in his season debut for the Cubs against the Houston Astros and right-hander J.P. France. The Cubs' No. 13 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, could see regular playing time at DH in Chicago, at least until outfielder Seiya Suzuki (oblique) returns from the injured list. The 26-year-old Mervis was taken in the 39th round by the Washington Nationals in 2016. He hit .167 (15-for-90) with three home runs and 11 RBI in his first 27 major-league games in 2023 and had gone 19-for-66 (.288) with five homers and 13 RBI in 18 games for Iowa this year before his call-up. Mervis is hitless in his two career at-bats against France.
The Chicago Cubs are calling up first baseman Matt Mervis and right-hander Hayden Wesneski from Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday. Wesneski has to replace an injured player for the Cubs since he hasn't been down in the minors for 10 days yet after previously being optioned. Mervis will join the Cubs after hitting .288 with five home runs in his first 82 plate appearances at Iowa and could see some at-bats with Chicago as their designated hitter if outfielder Ian Happ (hamstring) is forced to the injured list. Wesneski made his first appearance of the year in the majors on April 17 against the Arizona Diamondbacks out of the bullpen and picked up a win by tossing four scoreless innings with no walks and two strikeouts. It's unclear what role he's going to have this time around.
Chicago Cubs first base prospect Matt Mervis has been off to a nice start for Triple-A Iowa this season. The first baseman didn't break camp with the club, but has responded with a .333 batting average to go along with four homers and 10 RBI over his first 48 at-bats. Mervis has shown plenty of power in the minor leagues and that earned him a promotion in 2023, but he was struggled and was sent back down to finish the year in Iowa. Cubs first baseman Michael Busch has been on fire and the club has corner infielder Patrick Wisdom (back) working his way back to health, but with Seiya Suzuki (oblique) sidelined, there is a chance that Mervis could force his bat onto the roster as a bench bat or DH option should the offense struggle at the big-league level. For now, Mervis remains in Iowa, but he is an intriguing power bat for managers to keep an eye on.
Chicago Cubs first base prospect Matt Mervis is off to an excellent start to his 2024 season. He is hitting .325/.420/.525 with one home run and five RBI. Mervis got a small taste of the majors last season but struggled, so the Cubs felt it was better for him to continue his development at Triple-A. While he has only hit one long ball so far, Mervis hit 22 in Triple-A last season, so expect more on the way. Mervis should see time in Wrigley later this summer and could very well be one of the first of many exciting bats from the Chicago system to be promoted.
Chicago Cubs first baseman Matt Mervis will likely open the regular season on the bench, according to Jared Wyllys of CHGO Sports. This decision is a product of an offseason trade in which Chicago acquired first baseman Michael Busch from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Given that the Cubs are expected to play Busch on a daily basis, Mervis, who didn't occupy any other positions during his rookie season last year, gets pushed out of the lineup and onto the bench. The 25-year-old has the potential for significant power but got off to a shaky start with his .167/.242/.289 slash line and 32.3 BB% in 2023.
Matt Mervis Continues Steady Season With Triple-A Iowa
Chicago Cubs prospect Matt Mervis has hit home runs in two of his last three games with the Iowa Cubs as he continues his solid 2023 season. The first baseman appears to have bounced back from a rough showing in his brief call-up to Chicago, where he hit just .167 with 32 strikeouts in 27 games. Since his demotion on June 15, Mervis has slashed .294/.433/.507 with seven home runs in 40 games. The overall Triple-A numbers for 2023 sit at .291/.420/.529 with 13 HRs and an impressive 17% walk rate over 283 plate appearances. The Duke product appears the be the Cubs' first baseman of the future, and recent roster moves suggest that promotion could come any day. He continues to be an attractive asset in both redraft and dynasty leagues.
Chicago Cubs first base prospect Matt Mervis struggled in his MLB debut, slashing .167/.242/.289 with a 32.3% strikeout rate in 27 games before being optioned by Chicago to Triple-A Iowa on June 15. Despite the setback, the 25-year-old is hitting well with Iowa, slashing .319/.466/.536 with three home runs, 10 RBI, 12 runs, and a 0.88 BB/K ratio in 21 games since his demotion. He's been on fire since the All-Star break, slashing .500/.619/.563 with a 1.33 BB/K ratio in five games. With the Cubs expected to trade starters at the deadline, Mervis could be recalled to fill in the gaps at first base, making him a solid stash option in redraft leagues.
Cody Bellinger Activated, Matt Mervis Sent To Triple-A
The Chicago Cubs activated outfielder Cody Bellinger (knee) from the 10-day injured list on Thursday and optioned rookie first baseman Matt Mervis to Triple-A Iowa in a corresponding move. Bellinger is starting at first base and batting sixth on Thursday against Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Johan Oviedo. The 27-year-old left-handed slugger missed four weeks with a left-knee contusion, but he'll be returning to a .271 average (39-for-144) with seven homers, 20 RBI and nine stolen bases. Hopefully, the former MVP can pick up where he left off at the plate. Mervis hit just .167 (15-for-90) with three homers, 11 RBI and 32 strikeouts in his first 27 big-league games, so he'll head back to the minors for some more seasoning. The 25-year-old should be back again at some point, but he'll need to make more contact if he wants to see more playing time in Chicago.
