Late on Tuesday night, as the sun set off the coast of Puget Sound, Whit Merrifield reached for his cell phone near the 18th green at Chambers Bay Golf Course, the site of the 2015 U.S. Open.
Merrifield had just finished a round of golf with a group of teammates, the perfect entry into a day off after the Class AAA Omaha Storm Chasers finished a four-game series against Tacoma.
As he peered at his cell phone, Merrifield saw a text message from Omaha manager Brian Poldberg. The moment stunned him, he said. But once he saw the text, he essentially knew.