First baseman Matt Mervis has signed with the Algodoneros de Unión Laguna of the Mexican League. The club announced the deal on Monday. Mervis went 0-4 with three strikeouts in his team debut last night.
The 28-year-old appeared at the MLB level each season from 2023-25. A former undrafted free agent signee by the Cubs, Mervis put himself on the prospect radar by slugging 36 homers between three minor league levels in 2022. The Duke product made his big league debut one year later, striking out 32 times in his first 99 plate appearances.
Mervis hasn’t been able to get the elevated swing-and-miss numbers in check. He fanned at a 30% clip in Triple-A in 2024, only appearing in nine MLB contests. The Cubs traded him to Miami going into the ’25 season. Mervis was the Marlins Opening Day first baseman last year. He had a power barrage in the middle of April, slugging six homers through April 16. It remained an all-or-nothing approach, however, and Mervis slumped to a .175/.254/.383 batting line by the time the Marlins waived him at the end of May.
Subsequent minor league contracts with the Diamondbacks and Nationals haven’t gotten him back to the highest level. Mervis was in big league camp with Washington this year. He played one game for their Triple-A club in Rochester before being released. He’ll hope to put things together in a hitter-friendly league in Mexico and play his way back to affiliated ball on a minor league contract.
