From The New York Times:
When Putz sees him in the morning, Murphy is sitting by his locker holding a bat. When Putz sees him in the afternoon, Murphy is often on his way back to the batting cage. When Putz sees him in the evening, usually over a steak dinner, Murphy peppers him with questions about pitch sequences. The other 10 percent of the day, Murphy said he sleeps. Then he wakes up, maybe fires off a text message to the hitting coach Howard Johnson, and thinks about hitting some more.
Thinking ahead, the Mets have discussed the possibility of Murphy moving to first base next season, should they decide not to re-sign Carlos Delgado, rather than find a replacement through a trade or from a largely unimpressive crop of free agents (Nick Johnson, Adam LaRoche). An alternative, which some fans probably wish had been implemented already, is second base, where Murphy played 15 games for Class AA Binghamton and again in the Arizona Fall League
i can't say this enough: as a binghampton resident, i have seen this kid play and he doesn't have the hands, arm, footwork, and jumps to play in the infield.
ReplyDeletegranted that was at the hot corner, but he just seems to lack that smoothness that comes naturally to good infielders.
committing almost an error a week is not acceptable for a 2b, especially with a pitching staff that pitches for contact.
i don't know if all that translates to a successful move to 1b, but if i were omar i would trade murphy right now while his stock is high for either a catcher, right handed outfield bat, or middle infielder.
I 100% agree.
ReplyDeleteMack