Royals send Colon to Omaha, recall Merrifield, DFA Martinez

The Kansas City Royals made several roster moves between games of their split doubleheader Wednesday, not the least of which was the demotion of infielder Christian Colon to Omaha.

Colon had been getting only occasional action with the Royals before being optioned to their Triple A affiliate. He played in 16 of the Royals' first 39 games, batting .250 (11 for 44) with three RBIs.

Colon had the game-winning single for the Royals in their World Series-clinching Game 5 victory over the Mets last fall.

The Royals also selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Whit Merrifield from Omaha and designated outfielder Jose Martinez for assignment.

Merrifield, 27, will be in uniform for Wednesday night's game with the Red Sox. He will wear No. 15.

Merrifield, a ninth-round selection by the Royals in 2010, is hitting .278 with 11 doubles, five homers and 25 runs scored in his first 36 games with the Storm Chasers this season. He also leads the Pacific Coast League with 16 stolen bases in 17 attempts after setting a career high with 32 thefts in 2015. He won the George Brett Award in 2014 as the organization's top hitter and was also named Omaha's Player of the Year that season.