Sean Murphy Quietly Putting Together MVP Case
There has been a lot of attention -- rightfully so -- on Ronald Acuna Jr. being the top NL MVP candidate for the Atlanta Braves, but don't sleep on the case for Sean Murphy.
Remember that time when Sean Murphy started the season 0-7 and some fans were calling the trade a bust? Yea, I wouldn't want to remember that either if I were one of those fans.
Since that terrible two-game slump to start the season (sarcasm font), Murphy is slashing .313/.462/.687 with a 1.149 OPS, 202 wRC+, 8 HR, 20 runs, and 23 RBI. Through Wednesday's games, Sean Murphy is tied with Ronald Acuna Jr. and Matt Chapman with 2 fWAR and he's third in all of baseball with a 184 wRC+.
Among all catchers in baseball, it's not really even that close right now -- he's clearly the best offensive catcher in the game. Jonah Heim of the Rangers is the only player remotely close with a 163 wRC+ and 1.5 fWAR.
And we haven't even talked about his defensive side of the game, which is what he was most known for coming from Oakland. He's second in FanGraphs defensive rating at 4.8. Braves fans will find it interesting that the catcher he's behind is William Contreras. The former Braves catcher also leads all catchers with 7 defensive runs saved, but Murphy is second with 3.
Murphy has thrown out 4 base stealers in 18 chances -- that's a 22% average, which might be good in today's game. Another former Brave, Shea Langeliers, leads the league with 10 caught stealing, but he's also allowed 27 stolen bases. The Braves as a team have allowed the 11th fewest stolen bases in MLB and have only had 24 attempts because teams know not to try and run on Murphy's arm.
He's been able to do all of this while transitioning to a new team, in a new league, and having to learn a lot of pitchers he hasn't caught before.
What Sean Murphy has done in his first month with the Braves is truly incredible.
One thing that has helped a ton is him getting everyday reps once Travis d'Arnaud got injured. Early on, he was playing every other day as TDA was getting the reps at DH. But with TDA injured, Murphy has been in the lineup every day and was able to get in a groove.
With the value he brings both defensively and offensively, you can certainly make a case that he's been the most valuable player in baseball so far this season.
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