Braves' Merrifield rips pitchers, calls for changes after HBP to head

Atlanta Braves infielder Whit Merrifield sounded off on the current state of pitching after a fastball struck him in the head during Tuesday's game against the Colorado Rockies.

Merrifield took a 94-mph pitch from Rockies reliever Jeff Criswell off the back of the helmet in the seventh inning. He left the game after being tended to on the field, but not before appearing to direct some words at Criswell.

Though he seemed OK postgame, Merrifield felt the incident underscored serious issues related to pitchers' inability to control the baseball.

"It's ridiculous. Where the game's at right now, it's just ridiculous," Merrifield said, per Bally Sports Braves. "We lost (Austin) Riley, we almost lost (Michael Harris II), we almost lost (Travis) d'Arnaud (because of inside pitches) in the span of two or three weeks. The way pitchers are throwing now, there's no remorse or regard for throwing up and in. Guys are throwing as hard as they can, and they don't care where the ball goes. And it's bullshit. ...

"Teams are bringing pitchers up that don't know where the ball's going. They throw 100 miles an hour, so we're like, 'All right, we'll see if he can get the guys out. Just set up down the middle and throw it as hard as you can.' It's driving me nuts, and I hate where the game's at right now with that."

Criswell was erratic during his 1 2/3 innings on the mound Tuesday, issuing three walks, while 18 of his 41 pitches were balls. The rookie right-hander's average fastball velocity has sat at nearly 96 mph during his brief big-league career.

Merrifield underwent a CT scan that came back clean Wednesday but won't be in the lineup for that evening's game, according to David O'Brien of The Athletic. The infielder is in a unique position to effect change as a member of MLB's rules committee. He said he planned to raise these issues and push for changes during the committee's previously scheduled meeting Wednesday in hopes of finding a way to protect hitters.

"It's happening at an exponential rate. ... Mookie Betts broke a bone in his hand this year," Merrifield continued Tuesday. "It's just ridiculous, and it has to be adjusted, it has to be fixed. Or, you know, God forbid, something terrible's gonna happen. If this hits me in a different spot, I mean - it's just pathetic. It's frankly pathetic that some of the pitchers that we're running out there that don't know where the ball's going at the major-league level."