The Braves sent shockwaves throughout the world of Major League Baseball earlier today when they acquired Sean Murphy from the Athletics in a three-team trade that included William Contreras going to the Brewers. Murphy’s a fantastic player — a top-three catcher in the game — so Braves fans should be excited about their new toy, but the move was an interesting one considering catcher was already a strength for the team. William Contreras and Travis d’Arnaud were among the best backstop tandems in the league. Murphy is an upgrade, but by how much? And are the Braves still capable of upgrading other areas of their roster that need bolstering, like shortstop and left field?
Braves trade away an All-Star, several top prospects for Sean Murphy
I’ll have to wait for the remainder of the offseason to play out before I make sweeping judgments, but Alex Anthopoulos did provide comments on the newest member of the Braves not too long after the move was made. He said they’d discussed a trade for Murphy in the past, but it wasn’t until this weekend that those negotiations created a pathway to a deal.
Alex Anthopoulos said the Braves began to see a path to acquire Sean Murphy on Saturday. They had checked in on him in the past, but it never got far until a couple days ago.
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) December 12, 2022
Anthopoulos also commented on Travis d’Arnaud’s standing with the organization. Some people have discussed him as a potential trade candidate, but after the Braves dealt Contreras and Manny Piña today, it feels unlikely they would trade d’Arnaud in a separate transaction. Every roster needs at least two catchers. Now, the Braves have two of the best.
Alex Anthopoulos assured Travis d'Arnaud will be on the club in 2023, as expected.
"There will be plenty of playing time to go around," Anthopoulos said.
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) December 12, 2022
Murphy is one of the best defensive catchers in the game, and the Braves just gave up a lot to acquire him, so I expect him to be catching more games than not. With that being said, d’Arnaud is no slouch defensively either, and the team will want to keep both of them fresh during the summer months in Atlanta. The DH will also let both catchers play nearly every day. I would expect Murphy to catch a little over 100 games, with d’Arnaud serving as the designated hitter on most nights.
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Photo: Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire
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