*Photo from Fish Stripes*
If you've run 9 miles recently, then that's one mile for every player that's in this trade. The Atlanta Braves have acquired Sean Murphy as part of a 3 team trade with the Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. All 3 teams have confirmed the trade.
Murphy is the only player joining the Braves. The Brewers receive C William Contreras and RHP Justin Yeager from the Braves plus RHP Joel Payamps from the Athletics. Oakland will receive C Manny Pina, LHP Kyle Muller, RHP Freddy Tarnok, and RHP Royber Salinas from the Braves, plus OF Esteury Ruiz from Milwaukee.
Alex Anthopoulos, the Braves president of baseball operations, said of getting Murphy that "It's always hard to trade guys away. It’s just a rare opportunity to get a premium defensive player at a premium position. We gave up a lot of talented guys that we like. But we look at Sean and how he fits with this core and this group, and it’s a really good fit."
The 2022 season was another productive one for Murphy. He ended his 4th big league season with a .250 batting average, .426 slugging percentage, and .332 on base percentage, hitting 18 home runs with 66 RBI's in 148 games for the Athletics.
Murphy was worth 5.1 fWAR last season, 3rd best among qualified catchers in the major leagues. He finished 4th in AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2020 and collected a gold glove in 2021. He is also under team control for 3 more seasons before being eligible for free agency after the 2025 season.
Contreras is the headline of the trade for the Brewers. Coming over from the Braves, he made the NL All Star team in 2022 as a DH. He posted a .278 batting average, .860 OPS, and .506 slugging percentage, hitting 20 home runs to go with 45 RBI's in 97 games.
The other major league piece going to Milwaukee is Payamps. He spent 2022 with both the Athletics and Kansas City Royals, ending the season with a 3.23 ERA, 4.24 FIP, and 1.37 WHIP, throwing 55 2/3 innings over 41 relief appearances.
Yeager is the other piece, not included on the Braves top 30 prospects list. Across time with High A Rome and Double A Mississippi last season, Yeager posted a 3.10 ERA and 1.17 WHIP, striking out 81 hitters in 52 1/3 innings pitched, making 49 relief appearances, 38 of which came for Double A Mississippi.
Brewers GM Matt Arnold said of the trade that "Look, we’re definitely not spiking the football on any trade. I think that it’s important to recognize that there are a lot of different ways organizations value their players. For us, it worked out. For Atlanta and Oakland, it worked out. I think that’s a really good thing for everybody."
Pina is one major league piece coming back to the Athletics. He was limited to just 5 games with the Braves last season due to needing season ending wrist surgery. In the 2021 season, he suited up for the Brewers, hitting .189 with a .732 OPS, hitting 13 home runs with 33 RBI's in 75 games behind the plate.
Muller joins the Athletics as the top ranked prospect in the Braves system. Over parts of two seasons in the majors, Muller has posted a 5.14 ERA, 4.05 FIP, and 1.37 WHIP, throwing 49 innings across 11 starts and one relief appearance.
Tarnok was the 6th ranked prospect in the Braves system prior to the trade to Oakland. He made his MLB debut in 2022, pitching 2/3 of an inning out of the bullpen. With Double A Mississippi and Triple A Gwinnett, Tarnok posted a 4.05 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in 106 2/3 innings pitched, making 23 starts and two appearances out of the bullpen.
Salinas comes to Oakland as the 18th ranked prospect in the Braves system. Across Low A Augusta and High A Rome, Salinas recorded a 1.25 WHIP and 3.55 ERA, throwing 109 innings with 175 strikeouts in 25 starts, 20 of which were with Rome.
Ruiz is the lone piece from the Brewers, making his big league debut in 2022, and is the 8th ranked prospect in Milwaukee's system. Split between the Brewers and San Diego Padres, Ruiz posted a .171 batting average with a .452 OPS, driving in two runs with no homers in 17 games played.
Athletics GM David Forst said of the players acquired that "All five players involved are here for a reason. Different stages of their development. We tried to balance helping out the Major League team right away, trying to get better, with also a lot of upside in this deal. Young players, guys who are Major League ready, with big tool sets that we were out there looking for."
In Atlanta, Murphy joins forces with Travis D'Arnaud as the catching duo. Contreras will join Victor Caratini as the catching duo with the Brewers, while Payamps will compete for a bullpen spot, with Yeager likely starting in Double A in 2023. The A's will use Pina as the backup catcher to Shea Langeliers, while Ruiz and Muller will likely have opening day roster spots. Tarnok will likely have to compete for a spot, while Salinas projects to open 2023 at High A.
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