By all accounts, Chicago Cubs rookie Matt Mervis is off to a good enough start in his debut season. The first baseman has played in 17 games, and is batting .200/.273/.317. Defensively, he's been about as good as Trey Mancini, just a few percentage points below him in success rate, according to Statcast.
A story in The Athletic profiling Mervis's ascension to the MLB and the Cubs hones in on Billy Swoope (subscription required), who has scouted him since he was a high schooler for the Cubs.
While there was plenty in the article about Mervis's very clear athletic capabilities and skills on the field, what earned him a lot of respect with Swoope and the Cubs was actually his demeanor off the field.
Swoope noted in the article that Mervis always picked up the phone, listened closely, and didn't act as if he knew, "everything."
His humility was a huge reason the Cubs maintained an interest in Mervis the person as well as Mervis the player.
Matt Mervis has weaponized his opportunity
Personality and being a respectable young man can get you noticed. But keeping that attention requires production. Mervis slashed .293/.387/.573 at AAA after .301/.370/.596 at AA.
This season hasn't been a storybook one for Mervis, but the Cubs understand he's going to pick it up on the fly. He didn't make the roster after spring training, getting reassigned along with 10 other players before the season began. Early in May, he had his contract selected, and only just recently started apartment hunting in Chicago.
Then, his first seven games didn't go as desired. He hit .179/.233/.214, hitting the ball just five times. Since, he's improved to .219/.306/.406, even with a lower BABIP. He's not blowing the world away just yet, but he's improving.
He's a known puzzle lover, and looking to figure out the puzzles of batting in the big leagues.
Chicago has Trey Mancini on the roster through next season, but Mancini could be an easy piece to dangle in trades if Mervis proves capabilities ready to take the role on full-time in the future. The Cubs are a long way away from being forced into that sort of a decision, but Mervis gives hope for the future.
