Notes: Merryweather flexible; Palacios' start

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Julian Merryweather hasn’t had many opportunities to set his feet as a pro. Between injuries, Tommy John surgery, a trade and a move to the bullpen in 2020, there’s always been something to adapt to for the Blue Jays right-hander.

Entering 2021, Merryweather, ranked as the club's No. 21 prospect by MLB Pipeline, is being stretched out as a starter. For now.

“I would just love to be a starter. It’s something that I enjoy doing,” Merryweather said. “That kind of chess game you play with the lineup when you’re going through the lineup multiple times, it’s just a fun challenge to take that on. You really prepare for each hitter and know how you’re going to attack them with your catcher. It’s just a very fun process to plan that all out.”

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Merryweather enjoyed the adrenaline of coming in from the bullpen, too, and he knows the value that brings. The 29-year-old has legitimate back-end upside in the bullpen, with a great fastball, a “parachute” changeup, as catcher Danny Jansen calls it, and a slider that he used effectively in 2020.

The endgame here is probably something in between. Just like the Blue Jays did in 2020, they’ll use many of their young arms in multi-inning or piggyback roles to help cover a full season of 162 games.

“It’s probably a hybrid at this point,” Merryweather said. “I think they want to have the flexibility of using me as a starter for sure. Then, obviously, being able to come out of the ‘pen, too, is a good option. It’s not the easiest role not knowing if you’re going to end up in the rotation or not. For me, it’s not as daunting as it was last year. Being in the bullpen for the first time, I feel like I can do both pretty well.”

Palacios emerging as star of Spring Training

Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo typically shies away from highlighting players who have stood out, not wanting to overlook others, but even he had to highlight outfielder Josh Palacios' strong spring thus far. Coming off the bench in Friday's 13-4 win over the Orioles, Palacios doubled and tripled in his first two plate appearances, before launching a home run in the eighth inning to finish with five RBIs.

Palacios has been playing solid defensively, too, and with a spot on the 40-man roster, it’s easy to see him getting an opportunity in 2021. His development seems to have caught a second wind, as many within the Blue Jays’ organization have loved what they’ve seen from the 25-year-old dating to last summer.

Observations from Dunedin …

• Jansen launched his first home run of the spring -- an opposite-field line drive that snuck over the tall wall in right-center. Jansen later blooped an RBI single to right, too. No. 6 prospect Alejandro Kirk gets the hype at catcher, but this is still Jansen’s job coming out of camp.

“That felt great,” Jansen said, “not only getting the barrel to it, but hitting the ball to right field like that. That’s something I spent all offseason working on with a high finish and my ability to stay in the zone longer with my bat.”

• Outfield prospect Chavez Young has looked fantastic early in camp, and he made the best play of the ballgame in the sixth inning. Coming in to catch a fly ball off the bat of Tyler Nevin, Young made the catch and fired home in time to double up Terrin Vavra at the plate. Young’s throw was clocked at 97 mph and couldn’t have been placed better, arriving in Reese McGuire’s glove on the hop.

• Catching prospect Riley Adams hit a two-run homer in the eighth -- a towering shot that carried over the wall in left field and over the tall netting beyond the concourse and out of the stadium.

• Rowdy Tellez continued his strong Spring Training with a double in the first off Orioles starter Matt Harvey. Down in the count, 0-2, Tellez went below the zone to golf a slider into right field. It didn’t rival the 100-plus mph exit velocities he’s been producing early here in Florida, but he showed some impressive bat control.

• Randal Grichuk’s first plate appearance of the spring was nearly a mirror of Tellez’s, as Grichuk's came with the bases loaded to plate two runs. On a changeup from Harvey, also well below the zone, Grichuk went down and got it, sending a line drive into left field for a double.