Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1997
Wake Forest may never again see a hitter like Bill Merrifield. An individual must be judged in comparison with his contemporaries, and in that respect, the All-America shortstop has no equal.
Merrifield came to Winston-Salem after a standout career as a high school player in Rocky Mount, N.C., where he led his team to a state title in 1980. He quickly established himself as a starter on the collegiate level as well, batting .344 and driving in 53 runs as only a freshman. Those numbers were only the beginning.
The next season, still just a sophomore, he set an ACC record with 20 home runs while ripping opposing pitchers for a .389 average and knocking in 61 runs. He was named All-American and ACC player of the Year.
Similar national and conference honors came his junior year as well when he became the first repeat winner of the league's Player of the Year award. There really was no doubt. He hit safely nearly half the time (.476 average) and led not just the ACC but the entire country in both homers (17) and RBI (64). He won the ACC "triple crown" and went on to be named Wake Forest's Athlete of the Year.
Guaranteed to be one of the top professional draft selections in the country, Merrifield elected to leave Wake Forest after his junior season in order to pursue his dream of playing baseball at the highest level. He was a second-round draftee of the California Angels in 1983, and in six professional seasons, he amassed 94 homers and 413 RBI. He played three seasons in Class AAA.
He finished with a career batting average of .400 at Wake and despite playing just three seasons (and far fewer games each season than current college baseball schedules), Merrifield still ranks among the school's all-time list in batting average, home runs and RBI.
Following his professional career, he returned to complete his degree at Wake Forest. His athletic career as a Deacon could be termed complete as well with his most-deserved induction into the WFU Hall of Fame on January 24, 1997.
Merrifield was one of seven Wake Forest players selected to the ACC's 50th Anniversary team which was announced in 2002.
