There’s nothing Whit Merrifield can do to fix what is a very clear player safety issue in MLB.

Sep 3, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves second baseman Whit Merrifield (15) on ground after being hit in the head with a pitch against the Colorado Rockies in the seventh inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Sep 3, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves second baseman Whit Merrifield (15) on ground after being hit in the head with a pitch against the Colorado Rockies in the seventh inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Braves won their game on Tuesday, shutting out the Colorado Rockies 3-0, but the win wasn’t as sweet as it should have been thanks to yet another hit-by-pitch. Whit Merrifield was hit by a 94.5 mph fastball from Jeff Criswell and was understandably not happy.

Every team gets hit by pitches, but it feels as if no team has suffered more than the Braves in that department with the injuries that the team has suffered. Ozzie Albies missed time due to a fractured toe after getting hit earlier this season, and now Austin Riley is currently out for the remainder of the regular season with a fractured hand. This doesn’t even include other close calls that the Braves have had.

Somehow, Merrifield appears to have dodged the worst as he was able to walk off the field on his own power, but this is an issue. He expressed his frustration with the media after the game.

There is no real solution to very clear problem

Merrifield is spot on. All pitchers care about nowadays is velocity and movement. Command is secondary, if not tertiary. All Criswell was trying to do was throw the ball as hard as he could to get an out, but he missed his spot badly. He knows that there’s no intent, but when this keeps happening, it’s hard to give pitchers much of a pass.

Merrifield cited major injuries suffered by guys like Taylor Ward and Justin Turner who were hit in the face last season, and as pitchers prioritize velocity even more, it’s easy to imagine more of these brutal face injuries occurring.

As much of an issue as this is, and it is an issue that pitchers cannot command their pitches, there is no clear solution. Retaliating won’t fix the problem if pitchers aren’t hitting anyone on purpose. Suspensions won’t suddenly teach pitchers how to locate. Teams might throw outside a bit more, but once they start getting hit harder, they’ll revert back to throwing inside and risking injury to batters.

Pitchers have to throw inside at least sometimes in order to succeed. It stinks that a lot of them cannot command pitches inside, but that won’t be removed from the game.

Ultimately, this epidemic falls on teams who care more about seeing their pitchers throw hard than it does on the pitchers trying to make it in this league. Until teams start to prioritize those who might not hit triple digits but can command their pitches better, this will continue to happen. Unfortunately, it feels as if teams are only prioritizing velocity more.

Yes, it stinks that hitters keep getting hit by pitches, particularly in the head. Unfortunately, until teams start to prioritize command over velocity, it’s hard to envision this stopping anytime soon.