As Cleveland Indians pitcher Ryan Merritt and his fiancée, Sarah Brushaber, prepare for their wedding later this month, the couple found time to express gratitude to the many Tribe fans who helped ease their material transition into marriage.
The engaged pair recently sent signed thank-you notes to those who bought gifts off their online wedding registry following Merritt's memorable performance in last season's American League Championship Series. Cleveland summoned the 24-year-old southpaw to start Game 5 against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre, where he finessed his way through 4⅓ shutout innings in guiding the Indians to a 3-0 victory that sent them to the World Series.
What a way to cap this story: Ryan and his fiancée sent thank you notes to Tribe fans who bought gifts off the couple's registry.
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) January 14, 2017
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 https://t.co/HIMiFTSade
Great Saturday! We got a thank note from Ryan Merritt in the mail!! @Indians @CleveFan76 pic.twitter.com/Xq9tCF86YG
— Julia Kleppel (@JuliaKleppel) January 14, 2017
Each note features a photo of the couple under a message of thanks describing how they "never imagined that this is what would come out of Ryan's playoff experience." After all, the spot start was Merritt's only appearance of the postseason. Prior to that game, the McKinney, Texas, native had only 11 major league innings under his belt.
The Indians selected Merritt in the 16th round of the 2011 draft out of McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas. His marriage to Brushaber is scheduled for Jan. 27 in Rochester, Minnesota.
-- Nick Ostiller