ATLANTA – Although it's not the move almost every Atlanta Braves fan is waiting on, it is another move by the organization.
In a three-team trade with Oakland and Milwaukee, the Braves acquired catcher Sean Murphy from the Oakland Athletics. As part of a three-team trade that included the Milwaukee Brewers. Atlanta traded LHP Kyle Muller, C Manny Piña, RHP Freddy Tarnok and RHP Royber Salinas to Oakland, while C William Contreras and RHP Justin Yeager headed to Milwaukee.
Oakland also acquired OF Esteury Ruiz from Milwaukee, while the Brewers received RHP Joel Payamps from the A’s.
Murphy, 28, appeared in 148 games for the A’s last season, batting .250/.332/.426 with 18 home runs and 66 RBI. He led all American League primary catchers in hits (134), doubles (37), RBI (66), and total bases (229) and ranked second in home runs (18) and runs scored (67). He compiled a career-best 5.1 fWAR on the season, the highest for a qualified catcher in the A.L. and trailing just J.T. Realmuto for most in the majors.
Murphy, who bats and throws right-handed, threw out 19 baserunners on the season, tied for fifth most in the majors, and his caught-stealing percentage of 31.1 was third-best in baseball among catchers with as many attempts. He led American League backstops in games (116) and ranked second in assists (40). Murphy has thrown out 32 baserunners over the last two seasons, the third most in the A.L.
Originally drafted by Oakland in the third round of the 2016 First-Year Player draft, Murphy debuted with the club in 2019 and has played all four of his major league seasons with the A’s. He is a career .236/.326/.429 batter over 330 games and won the A.L. Gold Glove award in 2021. A native of Peekskill, NY, he was tabbed by MLB.com as the No. 33 prospect in the minors entering the 2020 season and the third-best catching prospect in baseball.
