421: Whit ties KC's consecutive games mark

KANSAS CITY -- Whit Merrifield has a simple answer for why he has been able to play in every Royals game since June 25, 2018.

“You’re in the big leagues,” Merrifield said. “What’s not to enjoy about being here playing a big league game? I know this isn’t going to last forever. So I want to take as much advantage as I can and play every day I can.”

The reasons behind Merrifield’s consistency aren’t so simple. They involve having a discipline, regimen and attitude unlike any other, and those things have gotten him here, to Friday night at Kauffman Stadium against the Cardinals. Merrifield played in his 421st consecutive game, tying a Royals franchise record held by Alcides Escobar from Sept. 26, 2015-July 7, 2018. Merrifield went 0-for-3 and drew a walk in the 6-0 loss.

“There’s just so many minor disciplines that allow a guy to be able to do that, the discipline of rest, discipline of work, the balance of the two,” manager Mike Matheny said. “It’s hard for a player to understand how to do that until they jump in this thing for a while. And then there’s a level of toughness and grit and grind, and that’s something Whit’s always showed by how he goes and plays the game.

“But he’s not half-stepping out there. He’s one of the dirtier players that walks off the field. So when you have that mix of grit and grind and durability, you know that you’re watching something pretty special.”

Merrifield credited the Royals' trainers when he spoke about his streak before Friday’s game, both the athletic trainers and strength and conditioning coaches who help him prepare to play every day no matter what he’s working through. Merrifield has a workout and treatment plan in-season and a workout plan in the offseason that prepares him for a full 162-game slate.

It’s also mentality. Merrifield wakes up every day ready to play baseball. It’s not his call to put him in the lineup, but he’s going to come to the ballpark ready for it.

“It’s 25 percent physically preparing yourself, as far as workouts and diet and regimen,” Merrifield said. “And 75 percent is mentality. Waking up excited to play that day. Being able to wake up every day, excited to come to the field, no matter where things are as a team or individually. If you don’t have that mindset every day, you’re not going to play 162 games.”

His consistency with his preparation and mindset match his consistency on the field with the Royals as their leadoff hitter and most versatile defender.

Because that’s the other thing about this streak: The Royals need him in the lineup and in the field. That is noticed across the league.

“It doesn’t surprise me, actually,” said Cardinals manager Mike Shildt, who managed against Merrifield and other Royals in the Minors. “We saw this guy in Double-A and Triple-A. We were always, on our side of it, going, ‘This is a good player that does a lot of things, likes to play. He’s a tough player. And a very smart player.’ He’s always in there. It’s a nice accomplishment and well deserved.”

Merrifield has always been consistent in his play, but he wasn’t always doing it at the level he’s at now. And that fuels this streak, too. The 32-year-old didn’t debut until 2016, six years after the Royals drafted him in the ninth round out of the University of South Carolina. He was on the verge of the Majors for a long time before he got an opportunity; he thought he would be called up to play for the eventual 2015 World Series champions, but he didn’t. The next spring, he was passed up for the Opening Day roster.

He made his debut on May 18, 2016, but still only played 81 games that year. And then in 2017, he became the everyday player he knew he was capable of being, even though there were points that he doubted his big league future.

“That was always a mantra [my dad] said to me: It’s hard to get to the big leagues, harder to stay here,” Merrifield said. “Once I finally jumped that last hurdle and finally became an everyday guy, I don’t ever really want to come here and take a day off. I don’t want to sit out. It was a long time for me to get here. I know it’s a short window of being up here, so I want to cherish and enjoy every day and go out and play every game.”

The Royals were fielding a good team in 2015, and that makes it harder to break in for a Minor Leaguer.

Once Merrifield did, he never looked back.

“To Whit’s credit, he broke in and then knocked the door down,” Shildt said. “You come in, you get opportunities, but they’re not unlimited. A guy like that, he broke in a little later and took advantage of it. He said, ‘You’re not getting my spot.’ I appreciate the hunger of that.”

After Friday’s game, Merrifield will go home and wake up Saturday ready to play another one. He’ll break Escobar’s record and stand alone on top of the Royals' record books. And, barring any significant injury, he will continue to repeat the process.

“It’s going to be a cool moment,” Merrifield said. “Something I’ll be able to appreciate down the road. But I’m not looking to stop any time soon.”