Merrill, Tatis Jr., and Morejon are still finding their groove, battling early-season slumps despite the San Diego Padres' winning streak.
The San Diego Padres are off to an 8-2 start through a little over two weeks of action in 2026, enough for second place in the National League West division. Though they have found the wins, there have been multiple players who are still waiting to adapt to the new year. Here they are:
Jackson Merrill, CF
The 23-year-old saw a dip in his offensive numbers in his sophomore 2025 season, but they have fallen off a cliff to start the 2026 campaign. The former All-Star has just 10 hits through 53 at-bats, thanks largely in part to his extremely high chase rate, which has carried over from his first couple of seasons.
Merrill’s slash line reads .189/.259/.340 with a .598 OPS. While many of the Padres’ bats have yet to wake up early in the season, Merrill’s struggles certainly stand out. Fans are desperately waiting for the $156 million version of Merrill to return to the field soon.
Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
It’s a similar story for Tatis Jr. The base numbers tell the story of a struggling superstar with a .189/.274/.245 slash line and .519 OPS. With just 10 hits and 16 strikeouts in 53 at-bats, Tatis Jr. has not done anything to separate himself from what has been a poor Padres lineup thus far.
A deeper dive into the numbers may suggest Tatis Jr. has had an unlucky start and success is on the horizon, however. As of Saturday morning, he’s ranking in at least the 90th percentile in barrel percentage, hard-hit percentage, and average exit velocity. One look at his Baseball Savant page tells a completely different story than what his slash line tells. It may not all be coming together just yet, but it seems inevitable for the superstar.
Adrian Morejon, LHP
After a dominant 2025 season in which he earned All-Star honors for the first time in his career, Morejon has looked like a completely different reliever to start this year. His velocity is still there, but his strikeout rate has plummeted while his expected ERA and batting average have skyrocketed.
He’s made six appearances for 6 ⅔ innings heading into Saturday morning, where he’s recorded a brutal 10.80 ERA and 2.40 WHIP. Compared to his numbers from last year, 2.08 ERA and 0.89 WHIP, something is clearly going wrong for the All-Star. Whatever it is, Morejon needs to find his 2025 self again as the Padres look to return to the postseason.