This Padres bounce-back pick from an MLB writer is hard to dismiss

When it comes to players looking to bounce back, there are levels to it. Some had bad seasons are are looking to make an improvement, some are returning from injuries, and some are Jackson Merrill.

Merrill had such an exceptional rookie season in 2024 that his efforts in 2025 were viewed as suboptimal despite producing a 112 OPS+ and 2.7 bWAR. This now puts him in line for a "bounce back" season, even though he was great for the Padres in 2025.

Padres' Jackson Merrill is a prime "bounce back" candidate for 2026

Merrill hit .333 in three postseason games in 2025 with a home run and two doubles. That alone is enough for Padres fans to be excited about Merrill next year, because well, no one else really hit for San Diego in the postseason.

Merrill hit the injured list a couple times in 2025, so it's understandable to view him as a bounce back candidate for 2026. But still, the guy was 19th in extra-base hits among National League outfielders, and he was straight-up exceptional in the field.

To be fair, his strikeout rate did go up, and his slugging went down. You can mostly draw that up to not getting consistent playing time from the injuries. But, in a way, Merrill was already bouncing back. On top of his solid postseason, Merrill muscled seven home runs, seven doubles, and two triples in September, which was the third-most extra-base hits among any hitter that month.

With Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, and Ramon Laureano around Merrill in the starting lineup, we can expect him to continue blossoming into a star player - not just a hitter. The expectations are unfortunately high for Merrill after a ninth-place MVP finish his rookie year, but he showed that he can maintain an All-Star status now that other teams are aware of him.