Out
Injury Knee
Est. Return 2/1/2025
2024 Stats
W-L
1-1
ERA
6.60
WHIP
1.80
K
14
SV
0
2025 Projections
2025 Fantasy Outlook
It was a disappointing, injury-riddled campaign for Merryweather in 2024. The veteran reliever missed a chunk of time early in the year due to a rib stress fracture. He rejoined the roster in late July but then hit the shelf again about a month later with right knee tendinitis, which ultimately ended his season following surgery in September. Merryweather finished with a rough 6.60 ERA and 1.80 WHIP across 15 innings in as many appearances. The righty should be ready for spring training, and he'll be looking to quickly turn the page from 2024. Merryweather was much sharper in 2023, when he posted a 3.38 ERA and recorded 98 strikeouts across 72 innings. The 33-year-old's strikeout upside, which is fueled by a strong fastball and slider, makes him an intriguing option for high-leverage work. However, Merryweather will need to show he's healthy in 2025 before slotting into a role near the back of Chicago's bullpen. For now, Porter Hodge is the favorite for save opportunites. Read Past Outlooks
Avoids arbitration
Merryweather (knee) agreed to a one-year, $1.225 million contract with the Cubs on Friday to avoid arbitration, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Merryweather missed the majority of last season due to rib and knee injuries. He wasn't very effective when healthy, logging a 6.60 ERA and 1.80 WHIP in 15 innings. He'll officially stick around for another year in Chicago, though there is still no word on if he'll be ready for spring training after undergoing surgery on his right knee in late September.
Merryweather missed the majority of last season due to rib and knee injuries. He wasn't very effective when healthy, logging a 6.60 ERA and 1.80 WHIP in 15 innings. He'll officially stick around for another year in Chicago, though there is still no word on if he'll be ready for spring training after undergoing surgery on his right knee in late September.
Pitching Stats
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2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
18
Last 10 Games
18
Last 5 Games
16
How many pitches does Julian Merryweather generally throw?
1-10
11-20
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61-70
71-80
81-90
91-100
101-110
111-120
121+
What part of the game does Julian Merryweather generally pitch?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-4%
BAA vs LHP
2024
-1%
BAA vs RHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2022vs Left | .242 | 58 | 26 | 44 | 6 | |||
| Since 2022vs Right | .252 | 77 | 26 | 63 | 6 | |||
| 2024vs Left | .296 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 0 | |||
| 2024vs Right | .294 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 0 | |||
| 2023vs Left | .219 | 43 | 18 | 25 | 4 | |||
| 2023vs Right | .219 | 55 | 18 | 33 | 4 | |||
| 2022vs Left | .268 | 9 | 3 | 11 | 2 | |||
| 2022vs Right | .308 | 14 | 4 | 20 | 2 | |||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | |||||||
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2022
-26%
ERA on Road
2024
-73%
ERA at Home
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2022Home | 5.22 | 1.52 | 60.1 | 12.4 | 4.0 | ||||
| Since 2022Away | 3.88 | 1.26 | 53.1 | 8.8 | 4.2 | ||||
| 2024Home | 3.12 | 1.27 | 8.2 | 11.4 | 5.2 | ||||
| 2024Away | 11.37 | 2.53 | 6.1 | 4.3 | 5.7 | ||||
| 2023Home | 5.12 | 1.53 | 38.2 | 13.5 | 4.7 | ||||
| 2023Away | 1.35 | 1.05 | 33.1 | 10.8 | 4.3 | ||||
| 2022Home | 6.92 | 1.69 | 13.0 | 9.7 | 1.4 | ||||
| 2022Away | 6.59 | 1.17 | 13.2 | 5.9 | 3.3 | ||||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | ||||||||
Stat Review
How does Julian Merryweather compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
K/BB
1.56K/9
8.4BB/9
5.4HR/9
0.0Fastball
96.0 mphERA
6.60WHIP
1.80BABIP
.389GB/FB
1.27Left On Base
59.3%Exit Velocity
84.2 mphBarrels/BBE
2.1%Spin Rate
2078 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
28.4%Swinging Strike
10.1%Prospect Rankings History
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2024
2022
2021
2018
Injuries have marred Merryweather's career, but he finally stayed healthy after he was claimed off waivers by the Cubs last January. The out-of-options right-hander won a bullpen role out of spring training and with prevailing health, he went on to pitch a career-high 72 innings for Chicago. This was more than his previous three seasons combined. Merryweather was a pleasant surprise for the Cubs, demonstrating increased velocity on his 4-seam fastball (98.1 mph on average), while throwing more sliders (49.3% usage) with great success (45.3% whiff percentage). Merryweather's numbers (2 saves, 17 holds, 1.31 WHP) weren't overwhelming for fantasy purposes, but he racked up 5 wins and was 6th among qualified relievers with a career-high 98 strikeouts. Banking on a repeat of last year's numbers might be a mistake given his health history, but Merryweather is still a solid target for those speculating on saves in 2024.
More Fantasy News
Shifted to 60-day injured list
The Cubs transferred Merryweather (knee) to the 60-day injured list Sunday.
ANALYSIS
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Surgery scheduled
Merryweather will undergo surgery on his right knee Friday, Mike McGraw of the Chicago Daily Herald reports.
ANALYSIS
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Rehabbing at Triple-A
Merryweather (knee) made his second rehab appearance at Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday, striking out one and giving up no hits and one walk over a scoreless inning.
ANALYSIS
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Out with knee injury
The Cubs placed Merryweather on the 15-day injured list Tuesday due to right knee tendinitis, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
ANALYSIS
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Struggles badly Sunday
Merryweather allowed four runs on five hits and a walk across an inning of relief in Sunday's 7-2 loss to the Marlins.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Receiving trade interest
The Cubs are receiving trade interest for Merryweather, reports Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic.
ANALYSIS
The right-hander has spent most of the season on the injured list due to a stress fracture in his ribs, but he's allowed just two runs over 6.1 innings after posting a 3.38 ERA in 69 outings last season. Merryweather's 12.2 K/9 in 2023 should be particularly appealing to contending teams, though that was accompanied by a 4.5 BB/9.
The right-hander has spent most of the season on the injured list due to a stress fracture in his ribs, but he's allowed just two runs over 6.1 innings after posting a 3.38 ERA in 69 outings last season. Merryweather's 12.2 K/9 in 2023 should be particularly appealing to contending teams, though that was accompanied by a 4.5 BB/9.