New York Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy is putting on a show during the MLB postseason, and that could mean big bucks in the offseason.
To say that New York Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy is enjoying his first postseason would be an understatement. The 30-year-old spent seven seasons toiling in relative anonymity with New York’s proverbial second sons and now that he has a chance to shine on the game’s biggest stage, he’s making the most of it.
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After ranking ninth among second basemen with a 2.5 fWAR during the regular season, Murphy has stood as a man among boys during the playoffs. In just seven games, he is hitting .357/.379/.929 with five home runs, eight RBI, and seven runs scored. To put that into perspective, the Mets as a team are hitting just .212/.269/.382 with 10 home runs, 30 RBI, and 30 runs scored during the postseason.
Needless to say, Daniel Murphy is carrying his team, seeing them through a thrilling five-game series win over the Los Angeles Dodgers and now handing them a 2-0 lead in the NLCS. If he keeps it up, Murphy may even carry them all the way to the bank.
Murphy has been a relative bargain for the Mets over the years, reaching a pinnacle of $8 million during his last year of salary arbitration in 2015. Meanwhile, Murphy’s been valued a little higher than $14.5 million on average over his seven-year career, including seeing a $20.1 valuation for 2015 per FanGraphs.
That kind of value will be extremely appealing when Daniel Murphy hits free agency this winter. Undoubtedly, opposing general managers are at home already carving oout their game plans for the Hot Stove season and Murphy’s dominance during the postseason is front and center for those looking for upgrades in the infield. That type of exposure could be significant for a player entering what appears to be a weak middle infield market that features only Chase Utley, Ben Zobrist, and Murphy as potential starters.
Unfortunately for the Mets, that means New York gets to ride Murphy’s coattails during this postseason and then face the almost certainty of losing him to a higher bidder. The Mets are already a cash-strapped team and Murphy’s current salary was a reach for them as it was. Facing the need to try and retain Yoenis Cespedes, the Mets will take whatever payroll flexibility they can get and that likely doesn’t include a return for Daniel Murphy.
Given the lack of competition on the market, Murphy will undoubtedly decline a qualifying offer, valued at $15.8 million for one season. Instead, Murphy will hit free agency and look to cash-in. with Joel Sherman of the New York Post pegging a potential four-year, $52 million deal in the offing. That’s significantly higher than the Mets will be willing to go, especially with Wilmer Flores and Dilson Herrera available as cheaper in-house options.
For Murphy, that would represent quite the raise, especially for a player who gets by with his bat and a relatively weak glove in the field. Regardless, many teams will be looking for upgrades and with Daniel Murphy putting on one hell of an audition this October, the offers are likely to pour in fast.
His free agency could literally last a New York minute.