Padres have made up nine games on Dodgers in the past six weeks; good pitchers no longer getting best of Padres on regular basis

Making the Padres' Opening Day roster last year as a 21-year-old, Merrill's first year resulted in a top-10 finish in NL MVP voting, an All-Star Game selection, a runner-up to Paul Skenes in the National League Rookie of the Year running, and also a Silver Slugger Award.

Jackson Merrill drops an “awesome” reaction after the San Diego Padres added a pitcher with a 3.16 ERA to their bullpen at the MLB trade deadline.

Additionally, Padres star Jackson Merrill revealed how closely the Friars follow their California rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers. San Diego is set to go through another intense series with Los Angeles as the divisional rivals lock horns again this weekend.

This story was excerpted from AJ Cassavell’s Yankees Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.