Jirvin Morillo and Ryjeteri Merite of the Daytona Tortugas were named the Cincinnati Reds’ Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Month, respectively, for July.
Morillo, a catcher and Cincinnati’s No. 8 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, batted .344 (22-for-64) with four doubles, three triples, seven home runs, 23 RBIs and a 1.277 OPS in 18 July games between the Arizona Complex League Reds and the Daytona Tortugas. The Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, native hit .321/.449/.652 with 13 home runs, 53 RBIs and 44 walks in 54 games with the Arizona Complex League Reds before his promotion to Daytona.
Ryjeteri Merite Earns Two July Honors
Merite, a left-handed pitcher, also was named the Arizona Complex League Pitcher of the Month for July. He posted a 0.64 ERA in three starts with the Arizona Complex League Reds, allowing one run on three hits over 14 innings while striking out 24 and walking four.
Among Arizona Complex League pitchers with at least 11 innings in July, Merite led the league in ERA at 0.64, WHIP at 0.50 and opponent batting average at .070. He allowed exactly one hit in each of his three starts and matched his career high with 11 strikeouts against the Arizona Complex League Guardians on July 4.
Merite was promoted to Daytona on July 29 after representing the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Across 79.1 professional innings, he has a 2.04 ERA and 121 strikeouts while averaging 13.7 strikeouts per nine innings.
Both prospects joined the Daytona Tortugas during the second half of the season as Daytona pursued a Florida State League postseason berth.
Source: Original report