Whit Merrifield Homers Twice In Royals 6th Straight Win; Ben Lively Tosses Five Scoreless in Philly Victory

Players of the Day for Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Grapefruit League

Lively: 5IP, 3H, 0ER, 4K

In a game shortened to 6 1/2 innings, the Phillies eked out a 2-0 victory over the visiting Blue Jays thanks largely to five innings of shutout ball thrown by Ben Lively.

Lively spent the majority of his 2017 rookie season in the Phillies' bullpen, but is looking to become part of the starting rotation this season.

The effort on Tuesday was his fifth start of Spring, indicating that he's well on his way to making the starting roster come opening day.

Allowing just three hits, no walks, fanning four, Lively, a 6'4" right-hander, earned his first win, against one loss.

One of the youngest teams in the majors, the Phillies had a horrible season last year, finishing last in the NL East, at 66-96, a full 31 games behind the Nationals in the division.

Spring has seen a little improvement, as the Phillies are 10-15, but are seven games out, ahead of only Pittsburgh and the Mets.

Cactus League

Merrifield: 3-3, 2HR, 3RBI

Kansas City won its sixth straight game, but because the Cubs and Indians were idle and the first-place Brewers tied Colorado, 4-4, the Royals remained in fourth place, 2 1/2 games off the pace.

Playing at their Spring home in Surprise, Arizona, the Royals hammered the Giants, 10-1, with starter Ian Kennedy going four innings, allowing San Francisco's only run while second baseman Whit Merrifield supplied the power in the early innings.

Merrifield started with a single and scored in the first inning, then socked a solo homer in the second, following up with a two-run shot in the fourth.

Entering his third season in the pros, Merrifield is having a sensational Spring, batting .465 with four home runs and 11 RBI and three stolen bases.

In 2017, Merrifield proved himself to be a steady, every day player, batting .288 in 145 games with 19 home runs and 78 RBI. Noting his Spring stats, Merrifield could be on his way to an all-star appearance this summer.