Braves second-half storylines: Aggressive trades unlikely, Sean Murphy's status

New York Times

4 days ago

ATLANTA — When the Braves welcome the New York Yankees to town to kick off the season's figurative second half Friday — both teams have already played at least 95 games — Atlanta will do so coming off a long-awaited offensive flurry from its two-city trip that led into the All-Star break.
But the sober reality is the Braves have been the National League's most disappointing team, with a 42-53 record that's the NL's fourth-worst. It's the first time Atlanta's lost 50 or more before the break since 2016, two years before their run of seven consecutive postseason appearances began.
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That was when they were still in rebuild mode. They are not about to go into another rebuild. The Braves are not going to dump long-term assets at the trade deadline, and probably won't move anyone under club control beyond 2025 because the team fully expects to be contenders again in 2026.
But neither are they expected to make aggressive moves for a postseason push this year, since they are 12 1/2 games back in the NL East and ninth in the wild-card standings, 9 1/2 games out of the third and final postseason spot with two weeks of games left before the trade deadline.
There is hope.
And there is realism.
To keep alive their postseason streak would require not just a tremendous turnaround — their series win at St. Louis leading into the break was their first in seven series — but they would also need assistance from five teams ahead of them in the wild-card standings. Not two or three. Five.
For that reason, the Braves don't expect to dump any long-term assets to add a starting pitcher — something they would have done, given their urgent need for one, if the team were closer in the standings.
But the team will still look to make deals that make them better, for now or the long term. They could target a rental player whom they think they can keep beyond 2025, as they did when they acquired Pierce Johnson in a trade from the Colorado Rockies in 2023.
Or they could trade for a controllable power-hitting shortstop, even though the Braves took three shortstops with their first three draft picks Sunday. If they found a deal for such a player or controllable pitcher, the Braves might do that before the trade deadline, rather than wait until the offseason when they'd typically make such moves.
If a deal involved designated hitter Marcell Ozuna, the Braves might be more inclined to do it after the impressive performance they got in several recent games using catchers Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin in the lineup together at DH and behind the dish. If Ozuna goes on a tear in the first week or so after the break, there could be interest.
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And while they don't intend to trade long-term assets or anyone under control beyond this season, the Braves also won't rule it out. They will listen and keep options open.
At the very least, they should have a better idea of what deals might be possible this winter after the deadline.
In the two weeks before the break, Murphy reminded everyone why the Braves traded for him in December 2022: He has serious power, in addition to being a strong defensive catcher pitchers love throwing to.
He had seven homers in a span of 11 games (seven starts) between June 28 and July 12, including the two longest homers of the season at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
It was a reminder of why Atlanta gave up so much to get him, notably catcher William Contreras, who was coming off a 20-homer All-Star season at age 24 and went on to win Silver Slugger Awards and get MVP votes each of the next two seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers.
It's also why the Braves signed Murphy to a six-year, $73 million extension days after acquiring him, which includes $15 million salaries this year and the next three, plus a $15 million club option for 2029 with no buyout. He'll be 34 then, same as Ozuna now.
And it's why the Braves have no intention of trading Murphy this month, despite much speculation to the contrary. Maybe they trade him later, but it's also easy to imagine Murphy staying for all or most of his contract and splitting duties with Baldwin, or eventually moving to DH if his defensive skills deteriorate.
Murphy is a valuable asset who's also been a big factor in Baldwin's development into a solid defender and game-caller. The two have combined for MLB's second-most team homers from catchers with 24, behind the Seattle Mariners (34) with Cal Raleigh on his record-smashing pace (he has 31 as a catcher, 7 as DH).
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The Braves have hit just 12 homers with two or more runners on base, and Murphy has five.
We've seen how quickly things can change with a catching injury. The Braves are better suited to handle one than any team, and they don't intend to give up that advantage anytime soon.
The Braves have four frontline pitchers on the 60-day injured list — starters Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach and Reynaldo López, and reliever Joe Jiménez — all potentially returning in the second half. But not for a while.
Jiménez, rehabbing from a complicated cartilage surgery in October, has begun throwing off the mound and hopes to return in August. But he's the only one of the four who could potentially return before late August or September, and there's a chance Schwellenbach (fractured elbow) doesn't pitch again this season.
The prognosis for third baseman Austin Riley is much better. He went on the 10-day IL with an abdominal strain in the last series before the break. He could possibly return during the homestand that begins Friday.