Padres Make Massive Roster Move, Activate Jackson Merrill Off Injured List Ahead of Yankees Game

The San Diego Padres have made the roster move that fans have waited so long for: Jackson Merrill has been activated.

In a corresponding move, Luis Campusano has been optioned to Triple-A San Antonio.

We have reinstated OF Jackson Merrill from the 10-day IL and optioned C Luis Campusano to Triple-A El Paso.
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 6, 2025

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Campusano made just three appearances with the Friars this season before being optioned back to Triple-A. He went hitless with four walks in six at-bats.

Merrill has been out since April 6 with hamstring issues. He is back batting cleanup for the Padres on Tuesday.

The Kid is back. pic.twitter.com/yqKYBsoJkL
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 6, 2025

In what started as a precautionary move due to tightness, it turned out to be a month-long injured list stint with a strained right hamstring as the cause.

The superstar had a tumultuous month of April, beginning with him inking a nine-year, $135 million extension on April 2. The extremely team-friendly deal was a shock to many around the baseball world who felt Merrill could have taken home more money, but the young centerfielder opted to make it simple for the team who believed in him from the start.

He spoke on when he first knew that he wanted to be in San Diego long for years to come.

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“Literally from the moment that A.J. even talked to me for the first time,” Merrill said. “Before the Draft ever even happened in 2021. The Padres were the first team that ever reached out to me, ever scouted me. They believed in me from Day 1. … So from that first instance, just talking to him, I wanted to be here forever.”

Four days after putting pen to paper, Merrill landed on the injured list.

His squad was 9-2 when he was first moved to the IL, and has gone 14-9 without him. Now that he is back and healthy, he will hopefully be a key contributor to extending the six-game winning streak the Padres have amassed.

In his 10 games before the injury hiatus, Merrill had three home runs, 10 RBIs, and was batting .378 with a 1.090 OPS. Having his presence back in the clubhouse and his bat back in the lineup will both be extremely positive boosts to an already red-hot team.

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