Braves back out of letting first-round pick Owen Murphy be a two-way player

Of course, the Atlanta Braves were never going to let Owen Murphy become a two-way player.

Although the Atlanta Braves used a first-round pick on top prospect Owen Murphy in the 2022 MLB Amateur Draft, they only view him as a pitcher.

Atlanta took Riverside High School product out of Brookfield, Illinois with the No. 20 overall pick. While he does play third base too with a great deal of pop at the plate (.548 batting average and 18 home runs during his senior season), Atlanta sees the Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year as a pitcher and nothing more. Thus, it kills the dream of Murphy becoming the next Shohei Ohtani.

Unlike whatever the Los Angeles Angels are doing to waste Mike Trout’s career, The Braves Way of selecting predominantly pitchers in the early rounds of drafts has worked out well for them historically (Ian Anderson, Kyle Wright, etc.). While Murphy has been committed to Notre Dame since his sophomore year of high school, it is hard to turn down first-round money from Atlanta.

The Braves took four pitching prospects (Murphy, J.R. Ritchie, Cole Phillips, Blake Burkhalter) with their first four picks in the draft, all coming inside of the top 100.

Murphy seems to be very exciting about becoming a Brave as well after his latest tweet.

Atlanta Braves do not view first-round pick Owen Murphy as a two-way player

Let’s be real. The Braves are in the business of winning championships. They have a massive, nationwide fanbase and have no problem putting butts in seats. For as cool as it has been to see Ohtani do things only Babe Ruth could do, it does not change the fact the Angels are absolutely horrendous. So if Murphy really wants to play like a champion, then he should put pen to paper.

For those who want to see him try his luck as a two-way player, that is not going to get him to Atlanta any faster. Whose spot is he taking on the Atlanta roster? Pretty much the Braves’ entire infield is under 30 and under contract. Dansby Swanson could walk, but that’s not the point here. The key to getting to the big leagues the fastest in Atlanta is to be developed as a starting pitcher.

Charlie Morton is in the twilight of his career. While the rest of the Atlanta rotation still has youth on its side, not all of them are going to be fixtures in Atlanta forever. Tom Glavine and John Smoltz were, but someone may become Gen-Z’s version of Steve Avery. Regardless, good for Atlanta to be in position to draft the best player from Illinois and maybe keep him from going to South Bend.

If the Braves see value in you as a pitching prospect, just sign your name on the dotted line then.