Murphy’s Law

There are no laws that can contain him.

When you think of the Texas Rangers you think Michael Young, or Hank Blalock. Since these two all-star sluggers broke with the team, there hasn’t been a player to dazzle you at the plate or have a plate appearance so domineering it send chills down a pitcher’s spine…until now. His name is David Murphy. Murphy spent most of his playing days in the minor leagues until he broke in the Bigs last season as a regular player. Though he saw limited action, he showed plenty of promise by batting .340 in just 43 games in 2006. Acquired in a trade from Boston that sent Eric Gagne to the Red Sox this move proved to be worth the Rangers’ money.

Making the 40-man roster this year in an outfield that is suspect, Murphy is filling in nicely as the everyday starter in Right Field. His talents on the field also make a great addition at the plate. In a recent series against Seattle, he bat .400 and accumulated 2 RBIs and a double. He is reminiscent of last year’s National League Rookie of the Year, Ryan Braun, wit his speed and power.

Now, Murphy is coming back to his home state to play baseball. He played baseball at Baylor where his Bears’ teams consistently went to the Regional and Super Regional rounds of the NCAA tournament. Murphy was also First Team All-Big 12 and an All-American as a junior. He was drafted in 2004 and it didn’t take him long to rise in the ranks. Drafted by the Red Sox in 2004, he quickly achieved Double A status within his first season. He spent the majority of the season in Triple A in 2005 and quickly became a star. In 2006 he saw limited action with the Red Sox batting .227 in just 20 games, but the potential in this player became apparent. Though Murphy didn’t crack the 40-man roster in 2007 with the Red Sox, due to their powerful line up, he kept slugging away and found himself in the Bigs once again. He only played 3 games with the Sox before being traded to Texas in which the Rangers got the better end. While with Texas in 2007, he played 43 games and bat an astonishing .340.

His power and defense makes him a viable candidate for the American League Rookie of the Year and it doesn’t look like the Rangers are going to replace his strong defensive skills in Right Field anytime soon. It is his job to lose, but look for him to be an everyday starter at Left Field, Right Field or DH. In his limited time with the Rangers last season, he threw out 4 runners from Right Field, all going home, and no errors.

Keep an eye out on his production this year as he will have a full season under his belt. Barring he stays healthy he will light up the offensive side of things and help the Rangers stay competitive in a very tough AL West. Murphy will be batting against dominating pitching playing in the West division, but that shouldn’t deter him from having a break out year. He adjusts at the plate and he eyes the defensive alignment before each pitch. Alex Rodriguez does that and look at where he is today. That strategy isn’t practiced by veterans in the league like Manny Ramirez or Vladimir Guerrero. He is my candidate for the American League Rookie of the Year and it has only been one week into the season.

He stays relatively healthy and he doesn’t take unnecessary risks in the outfield. Outfielders have a tendency to make tough daring catches in the outfield, but his low risk-high reward style of play will keep him off the DL. He is batting a whopping .409 and with 3 RBIs.

David Murphy will be staying with the Rangers for a long time; he’s young, good at the plate, defense-oriented, and he’s already a fan favorite in Texas. Watch out for him to be in all-star discussions.

He’ll make you take notice. I did.