As the Atlanta Braves try to recover from a disastrous start to the 2025 season, they may have some tough decisions to make by the trade deadline.
The 0-6 Braves have been the worst-hitting team in Major League Baseball so far this season, but the struggles aren’t entirely unfamiliar. With stars like Ronald Acuña Jr. and Austin Riley sidelined for much of the 2024 campaign, the Braves met their share of offensive struggles a year ago.
Catcher Sean Murphy was supposed to help pick up the slack, but he ended up hurt for a chunk of the season as well, and when he was available, he didn’t hit much, either. The 2023 All-Star is now sidelined to begin the new season with a ribcage fracture.
In the interim, top prospect Drake Baldwin has taken over the starting job, and there are many who think he’s the long-term solution behind the plate in Atlanta. That would pose a problem for Murphy, because his six-year, $73 million extension runs through 2028.
That prompted FanSided’s Austin Owens to make a surprising request of the Braves on Tuesday: trade Murphy before it becomes obvious that he’s nothing but an expensive backup.
“Since it seems pretty obvious that Baldwin is the backstop of Atlanta’s future, parting ways with Sean Murphy could result in a decent return for the Braves,” Owens wrote.
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“This trade is unlikely, though, because Atlanta will want to give Murphy another chance to regroup once he returns from injury. Catching depth is also always a top priority for the Braves organization.”
Last season, Murphy slashed .193/.284/.352 in 72 games. He was worth 4.0 rWAR in just 108 games the season before, but the Braves have learned that injuries and slumps are both lingering possibilities for a player with All-Star talent.
Baldwin is more of a mystery box than the 30-year-old Murphy at this point. But if the former proves in a short amount of time that he deserves to be the starter, perhaps the idea of a blockbuster isn’t totally out of the question.
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