One of Atlanta’s Top Pitching Prospects to Have Tommy John Surgery

The Atlanta Braves just saw one of their most promising minor league starters go down with an elbow injury

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Braves are losing one of their best young pitchers. 

And it’s a shame, too, because he was on a heater. 

MLB Pipeline’s Jonathan Mayo broke the news this afternoon that pitching prospect Owen Murphy is set to have Tommy John surgery and will miss the reaminder of 2024 plus some time in 2025. The exact date of the surgery is unknown at this time, but it’s expected to be with Dallas-based Dr. Keith Meister. 

Murphy, 20, was Atlanta’s 1st round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, being taken at #20 overall ouf of Riverside, IL. He spent all of 2023 in the lower minors, mostly with Single-A Augusta, and finished the season with a 6-4 record and 4.72 ERA. In his 21 starts and just under ninety innings, he struck out 113 batters (11.3 K/9) while walking thirty-two (3.2 BB/9). 

Being placed in High-A Rome to start this season, Murphy was electric, going 4-2 with a 1.54 ERA in his first seven starts of the season. Averaging almost six innings a start, he pitched forty-one innings with sixty strikeouts (13.2 K/9) to only twelve walks (2.6 BB/9). 

MLB Pipeline has him as Atlanta’s #5 prospect, putting him behind fellow 2022 prep draftee JR Ritchie, who had Tommy John surgery last May and has yet to resume minor league competition. 

Atlanta’s currently dealing with several pitchers all across the organization who are out after elbow surgery. Blake Burkhalter, a 2nd rounder in 2022 out of nearby Auburn University, made his 2024 debut with Atlanta’s Complex-level team on Monday after requiring Tommy John surgery last spring. Ian Anderson, former major league starter, is expected back from his Tommy John surgery in the 2nd half of the season, as is Huascar Ynoa.