Jim Merritt - Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins

Merritt originally signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers out of Edgewood High School in West Covina, California, but was plucked from their organization by the Minnesota Twins in the 1961 first-year draft before pitching a game for his home team. He went 54-45 with a 3.39 earned run average and 719 strikeouts over four seasons in their farm system when he was called up to the majors in 1965 by the first place Twins just before World Series rosters were set. He made two appearances in the 1965 World Series against his former franchise, pitching 3.1 innings and giving up one earned run.

Merritt got off to a horrible start in 1966. Despite a respectable 2.95 ERA, his record stood at 0-6 on July 1 thanks to a lack of run support. He turned his season around on July 21 with a three hit gem against the Washington Senators in which he struck out twelve and matched an American League record with seven strikeouts in a row. He ended the season at 7-14 with a 3.38 ERA.

He established himself as one of the better control pitchers in the AL in 1967 by striking out 161 batters while giving up just thirty walks. He also logged the league's fifth lowest ERA at 2.53. Following the 1968 season, he was traded even-up to the Cincinnati Reds for shortstop Leo Cárdenas.