Matt Mervis Bio
Matthew Jared Mervis, born on April 16, 1998, is an American professional baseball first baseman. He currently plays in the Washington Nationals organization, where he signed a minor league contract in December 2025. Mervis has also played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs and the Miami Marlins, building a reputation as a powerful right-handed hitter. Known for his patient plate approach and pop at the plate, he is nicknamed “Mash,” a fitting label for a player who led Minor League Baseball in RBIs in 2022.
A graduate of Georgetown Preparatory School and Duke University, Mervis was not selected in the shortened five-round 2020 MLB Draft. He signed with the Chicago Cubs as an undrafted free agent and steadily climbed the minor league ladder. In March 2023, he represented Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic, an experience that reflected both his Jewish heritage and his standing in the game.
Early Life and Background
Matthew Jared Mervis was born in Washington, D.C., to Jeffrey Mervis and Ellen Van Bergen, and grew up in Potomac, Maryland, with an older brother and a younger sister. His family is Jewish, and his paternal grandmother, Bertina “Tina” Mervis, was born and raised in Givatayim, Israel, before moving to the United States as a young adult. That dual American-Israeli family background later played a role in his international career with Team Israel.
Mervis attended Georgetown Preparatory School in North Bethesda, Maryland, where he starred on the baseball diamond. As a junior in 2015, he batted .409 with 39 runs batted in, and as a pitcher he posted a 0.10 earned run average and threw a 92 mph fastball. He earned multiple Perfect Game Preseason honors, including First Team Atlantic-All Region recognition in 2016. That year, the Washington Nationals selected him in the 39th round of the MLB Draft, but he did not sign, opting instead to continue his playing career in college.
Path to Professional Baseball
After high school, Mervis enrolled at Duke University, where he majored in political science and played four seasons of college baseball. He worked as a pitcher, first baseman, and third baseman, gradually transforming from a two-way player into a polished hitter. Across his freshman and sophomore seasons, he showed flashes with the bat while also developing on the mound, including summer stints in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, the Cape Cod Baseball League, and the Northwoods League.
His junior season in 2019 marked a clear offensive breakout, as he slashed .274/.358/.421 with six home runs and 31 RBIs. That summer, he starred for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League, batting .325/.418/.571 with four home runs and 24 RBIs on his way to an all-star selection. Heading into a shortened 2020 senior season at Duke, Perfect Game ranked him as the 19th-best senior in the country and named him team captain, before the COVID-19 pandemic cut the year short.
Matt Mervis Career
Early Career (2021–2022)
Mervis signed with the Chicago Cubs in June 2020 as an undrafted free agent and received a $20,000 signing bonus under the unique rules of that year’s shortened draft. He made his professional debut in 2021 with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of the Low-A East, also appearing in three games with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs. It was a learning year, as he batted .208 with nine home runs and 44 RBIs across both levels.
The 2022 season announced Mervis as a top prospect. After opening with the High-A South Bend Cubs and earning a mid-May promotion to the Double-A Tennessee Smokies, he climbed again in mid-July to Triple-A Iowa. His combined totals featured a .309/.379/.605 slash line with 36 home runs and 119 RBIs, leading all of Minor League Baseball in RBIs and extra-base hits. He was named the Cubs 2022 Minor League Player of the Year and an MiLB Organization All Star, then capped his year by being named Arizona Rising Stars MVP in the Arizona Fall League.
Chicago Cubs Era (2023–2024)
Mervis opened 2023 at Triple-A Iowa before earning his first big-league call-up on May 5, 2023, when he started at first base and batted seventh against the Miami Marlins. Less than two weeks later, on May 16, he hit his first major league home run off the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. The Cubs optioned him back to Iowa in mid-June, where he spent the rest of the year, finishing the International League season among the leaders in on-base percentage and OPS.
In January 2024, MLB Pipeline ranked Mervis sixth on its Top 10 First Basemen Prospects list, but a pair of stints on the injured list slowed his momentum. Between Triple-A Iowa and the Cubs, he combined to bat .235/.329/.434 with 15 home runs and 43 RBIs, while going 3-for-26 in the majors. Despite the uneven results, his underlying power remained, and he entered the offseason still viewed as a young corner-infield bat with upside.
Miami Marlins Era (2025)
On December 29, 2024, the Cubs traded Mervis to the Miami Marlins in exchange for Vidal Bruján, giving him a fresh start in a new organization. He earned a spot on Miami’s Opening Day roster on March 27, 2025, and made an immediate impact by slugging six home runs in his first 13 games, tying a Marlins franchise record. Through mid-April, he was tied for fourth in the major leagues in home runs, a torrid stretch that briefly put him in the National League Rookie of the Year conversation.
The momentum faded in May, and Mervis was designated for assignment following the promotions of Heriberto Hernández and Jack Winkler. In 42 appearances with Miami, he slashed .175/.254/.383 with seven home runs and 14 RBI. After clearing waivers, he was outrighted to the Triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, where he bounced back to slash .250/.309/.625 with 13 home runs in 149 plate appearances, before being released by the Marlins organization on August 4, 2025.
Driving Style and Strengths
Mervis is a left-handed hitting first baseman whose game is built around plus raw power and a patient approach at the plate. He consistently posted walk rates above 10 percent in the upper minors and uses the whole field, generating high hard-hit and barrel rates that play in any park. Defensively, he profiles as a steady first baseman with a strong arm inherited from his high school pitching days, and his offensive ceiling is tied to how often he taps into his pull-side power.
Notable Events and Milestones
Mervis’s signature stretch came in the summer of 2025, when his six home runs in his first 13 Marlins games tied a Miami franchise record and briefly made him one of the most talked-about sluggers in baseball. He was also a 2022 Arizona Rising Stars MVP and the Cubs’ Minor League Player of the Year, and he represented Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Matt Mervis Career Wins and Performances
While Mervis is better known for his power production than for championship hardware, he has built an impressive collection of awards and statistical achievements across the minors, the Arizona Fall League, and the majors. He is a former Cubs Minor League Player of the Year, an MiLB Organization All Star, and a 2022 Arizona Rising Stars MVP. His 119 RBIs in 2022 remain the headline line on his resume.
Minor League Highlights
Mervis led all of Minor League Baseball with 119 RBIs and 78 extra-base hits in 2022, while finishing tied for second in doubles and third in home runs. Across three levels, he slashed .309/.379/.605, showing the kind of consistent run production the Cubs had hoped for when they signed him out of Duke. In the Arizona Fall League, he batted .291/.344/.655 and led the league in home runs and isolated power, earning Fall Stars Game MVP honors in the process.
Other Wins and Performances
Mervis’s résumé also includes a strong 2023 showing at Triple-A Iowa, where he hit .282/.399/.533 with 22 home runs, 78 RBIs, and a 15.2 percent walk rate, finishing sixth in the International League in OPS. Earlier in his career, he earned a Cape Cod Baseball League all-star nod with the Cotuit Kettleers and was named a Perfect Game Preseason All American at Georgetown Preparatory School. His 2025 rebound with Jacksonville, where he slugged 13 home runs in 149 plate appearances, was a reminder of the power that made him a top prospect.
Matt Mervis Family
Family Background and Heritage
Mervis was raised in a close-knit Jewish family in Potomac, Maryland, by his parents, Jeffrey Mervis and Ellen Van Bergen. His paternal grandmother, Bertina “Tina” Mervis, was born and raised in Givatayim, Israel, and later moved to the United States. Mervis has an older brother and a younger sister, and his Israeli family connection later led to one of the most meaningful experiences of his career.
Personal Life
Mervis is currently single and is based in Potomac, Maryland, the same community where he grew up. He played for Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, representing his grandmother’s homeland on the sport’s biggest international stage. Off the field, he has been active on social media, sharing glimpses of his baseball journey with fans.
2025 Season Performance and Outlook
Mervis’s 2025 season was a study in contrasts, beginning with a red-hot Marlins debut that set a franchise record for home runs through 13 games and had him sitting among the National League leaders in long balls. Even as his average dipped, his underlying barrel and hard-hit rates kept him in the lineup, until the Marlins opted to give younger corner bats Heriberto Hernández and Jack Winkler a look in late May.
After clearing waivers, Mervis landed with the Triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, where his power returned in a big way. In 149 plate appearances for Jacksonville, he slashed .250/.309/.625 and slugged 13 home runs, reminding scouts of the pop that had once made him a Top 10 first-base prospect. On August 12, 2025, he signed a minor league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks and joined the Triple-A Reno Aces, hitting .245/.320/.518 with six home runs and 24 RBI across 30 appearances.
Following the 2025 season, Mervis elected free agency on November 6, then signed a minor league deal with the Washington Nationals on December 24, 2025, returning to the organization that had drafted him out of high school nearly a decade earlier. The reunion sets up a pivotal 2026, with Mervis aiming to translate his track record of minor league power into a sustained big-league role. With his patient approach, plus raw strength, and a fresh opportunity in Washington, he remains one of the more intriguing power bats on the minor league free agent market.