Kansas City, Mo. - The Central Methodist baseball duo of Robbie Merced and Nick Merkel were recognized as NAIA All-Americans by the national office Tuesday. 

Merced was elected as a First Team All-American, while Merkel earned Honorable Mention honors. This marks the first recognition for Merced and the second-consecutive year for Merkel. 

The first and second teams are also recognized as ABCA/Rawlings All-Americans by the American Baseball Coaches Association and Rawlings Sporting Goods. The ABCA began recognizing All-Americans in 1949 and named the first ABCA NAIA All-America team in 1969.

Merced served as Central's primary shortstop in 2022, appearing in 57 games and batting .444 with 76 hits including 11 doubles, four triples, and a single-season program record 24 home runs. He also recorded 86 RBI, a new single-season record, and was top five nationally in both RBI and home runs. 

For his efforts in conference play, the Springfield, Mo. native was named a Heart First Team All-Conference performer and the 2022 Heart Player of the Year. 

Merkel was recognized as an Honorable Mention All-American after being named to the second team a season ago. The Spokane, Wash. native appeared in 16 games with 16 starts, tossing 106 total innings and throwing 136 strikeouts. Overall, Merkel posted an 11-4 record and a 2.29 earned run average, earning him Heart First Team All-Conference honors.

He leaves Central as the single-season record holder in strikeouts (136, 2022), innings pitched (106, 2022), wins (14, 2021), complete games (nine, 2022), and the career record holder in both strikeouts (285) and wins (29). 

Central finished the year with a 42-15 overall record, a conference tournament championship and a trip to the national tournament for the sixth consecutive season. 

To view the complete list of this year's NAIA All-Americans, please click here. 

#TakeFlight