1
2012
Daniel Murphy: Pumped, Excited, Ready To Rake!
An article by 
Last night at the 32nd Annual Thurman Munson Awards Dinner in New York, Daniel Murphy told reporters that expectations for the Mets this season are to make the playoffs.
“Expectations for us this year are like any other. We expect to go to the playoffs.”
His thoughts on Terry Collins seeing him batting in the leadoff spot:
“I am gonna hit wherever he tells me, I am gonna hit wherever he sees best fit. If I am hitting No. 1 that means I am in the lineup. That’s a good sign for me.”
Murphy reserved his best comment on him raking in 2012 and busting out with Ike Davis:
“I sent Ike Davis a text. I told him I was putting in a request with TC to hit somewhere near him to get some good pitches. That guy is a killer and I want to be near him,” Murphy said. “He kind of laughed and texted back: ‘Let’s go dominate.’ I think we’re ready and excited for the season.”
This guy is sumthin else and I’m glad he’s on our side… I’m with 28 too…
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
I'm a lifelong Mets fan who loves writing and talking about the Amazins' 24/7. From the Miracle in 1969 to the magic of 1986, and even the near misses in '73 and '00, I've experienced it all - the highs and the lows. I started Mets Merized Online in 2005 to feed my addiction. Follow me on Twitter @metsmerized.
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I love Murph, always will. I like guys who are given limited chances and make the best of them… I hope Teufel can turn him into a 2B that doesn’t make you wince when he’s out there.
My hope is Murph returns to the patient hitter we’ve seen in the past. I feel like sometimes he feels he has to prove himself, like in 2009.
Gimme 2011 Murph and I’m a happy guy so long as he stays healthy.
In 2011, Murph batted 4th more times than he batted 2nd and 3rd combined. So I’m not sure Reyes batting in front of him really made that big of a difference, especially since he did his worst batting 2nd…
Hopefully he either slides higher up in the order or lower, because he is not a #4.
Murphy’s a good hitter, but not a patient one. He’s pretty aggressive in my opinion. But thats a good thing since last season he was making a lot of contact.
Give him another try at the #2 spot with Wright and Ike hitting behind him. He’ll get some good pitches.
He doesn’t walk enough I agree, but that’s not the only aspect of patience. When he first came up, he was very selective with the pitches he’d go for. He took over 4 pitches per plate appearance. There were less than 30 hitters who did that in 2011.
If he gets back to that type of patience, he can become an even better hitter in my view.
Last year he saw 3.7 pitches per plate appearance which is down from 3.8 in 2009 which means he was slightly more patient than Pagan.
If Murph can get back to the 3.8-4.0 range it makes a world of difference
Well, it depends. Is he seeing less pitches because he got more aggressive/less patient, or is it because opposing pitchers know he doesn’t chase junk and is willing to work a count? anyone got his fx data?
He may be just as disciplined as he ever was. Only now the opposition’s approach to him has changed. If he keeps that OBP around .350, I’d rather it be through more hits.
I like him for the 2 hole, especially if they go without a lead off hitter that is a big SB guy. Meaning, no real need for a guy to take a bunch of pitches, to give the lead off man a chance to steal. Or with Terry, bunt him over…
This lineup shold have enough power to put up runs in bunches, but if 2 things happen they can score a lot:
1) whoever hits leadoff (tejada? torres?) gets on at a reasonable rate
2) Bay actually earns some of his money, and/or they platoon him with someone that rakes RHP
Assuming that is the lineup is: teada/murphy/wright/davis/bay/duda, those 2 things playing out means they should score plenty. Torres and the Catcher being at all productive in the 7-8 hole would just be a bonus.
i agree with marte, why would anybody want Murphy to walk more? Maybe he was a better hitter last year because he walked LESS. He’s a contact hitter, maturing, getting more confident, he has a good eye and hits in big spots. Hitting in big spots with his offensive talent is his best attribute – you do not want a guy like this walking more.
But that’s just my offensive review – he still doesn’t belong at 2B and is not gonna last again.
It’s not really as much about walking as it is about being selective. As long as you are hitting then yeah why walk? But are you swinging at your pitch or theirs? His call up year he was very selective and only swung at his pitch thus his over all numbers (not just his OBP) were high because of that. What can be wrong though with a guy that is mostly a contact hitter getting on base more? Isn’t getting on base 40% of the time better than 36% of the time if your game is mostly singles and doubles to start with?
Numbers Drunk.
If during that 36% of the time you’re driving in more runs and winning games give me that. For all we know that 25% of that 40% could be being left on base driving in no runs and not scoring any runs.
Numbers Drunk people. Lots of time figuring things out with numbers and less time understanding what the hell baseball is all about.
“For all we know that 25% of that 40% could be being left on base driving in no runs and not scoring any runs.”
listening to you try to talk about baseball seriously makes my brain hurt.
If Murphy is hitting second, his job isn’t to drive in runs, it’s to get on for the guys in the middle of the order and score them. If he hits them in great. He’ll hit in his fair share from the amount of doubles he hits. But his main job is to get on. If he is left on base, that is not his fault. his job was done. And also if he is walking more it probably means he is swinging at less pitches out of the strike zone, which probably means he is getting himself out less, which probably means he is hitting for higher average, which in turn means he’s getting on base even MORE. See how all this works?
Also, a runner is stranded well more than 25% of the time on average. Which shows how very little you actually know about the game, from a statement like that. or you just don’t think before you speak. I’m guessing the former. So yes you are correct, for all we know 25% of that time he IS getting left on base. plus many other times.
oy..
Sorry but i’d rather have the 36% where he’s driving in runs and winning games. That’s his game, wise guy, not walking. When he’s swinging with confidence more he’s hitting better so NO i do not want him walking. He has a good eye naturally so don’t worry about it.
I don’t care where he’s hitting in the order (except leadoff) if he’s driving in more runs 36% of the time and winning games that that is THAT, I will take that over being on base 40% of the time without knowing what is going to happen. Especially when you have a choking Wright and an unsure Bay at this point. Ike I have no problem with.
You’re just wanting him on base for what might happen. I’m not into what “might” happen.
Don’t jump the gun and pat yourself on the back so fast wise guy. If Murphy hits at a clip like he did last year than they better move him to 3rd, not 2nd
“You’re just wanting him on base for what might happen. I’m not into what “might” happen.”
So you’re positive that guys with .360 OBPs drive in more runs than guys with .400 OBPs?
If Murphy continues to hit for a high average,why wouldn’t you want him to walk more as well. It only gives the team a better chance at scoring more runs. Last year he hit 320 and got on base at 360. Replace some of those outs with walks and his on base goes up 20-30 maybe even 40 points.That’s a good thing.
I gues they’re going to start the year with Torres batting leadoff but if that doesn’t pan out and Tejada continues to progress and get on as well as last year.They should then go 1 Tejada,2 Murphy,3 Ike,4 Wright,5 Duda,6 Bay,7 Thole,8 Torres. I don’t worry about Murph and Ike back to back cause they hold their own against LH pitching.
I certainly like the attitude. And it will certainly will be nice to see the team exceed expectations and surprise a lot of people.
All going to come back to the SP unfortuneately. I actually do think that the offense can put up runs.
I agree. Despite losing Reyes, this team is going to score runs in bunches.
LMAO, whatever it is you drink, please let me know
What you said….
You can’t fault Murphy at all for his no nonsense, take no prisoners type baseball attitude.
Here’s a guy you could probably never accuse of getting a single, then chatting it up on first base with the opposing first baseman.
I have a feeling that by the trade deadline, Murphy’s gonna be our new third baseman. And I wouldn’t have a problem with that, especially if Reese Havens comes up to take over at 2B and starts dominating at the plate.
I’ll say this for Murphy, when it comes to his Heart and Work Ethic they are of Hall Of Fame caliber.
memo to murphy, now that reyes is gone you will see more offspeed pitches.. not the fastballs you were accostum to see hitting behind reyes. or when reyes was creating havoc on base..
thsi guy hit 398 when reyes was on base!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Murphy is going to bat .310, have 50 extra base hits, and score 100+ runs at the top of the order batting first or second.
Actually 50 extra base hits might be low AND 100 runs might be hard pressed unless some others rebound.
I figure he may be a lock for 35 doubles, and figured 15 on triples + homers. I hope it is low! I think Wright and Davis will have solid rebound years, bay not so much.
Well last year in only a little over 100 games he had 36…. in 2009 he had 54 so I would expect the 50 if he gets regular playing time.
Actually, his thinking is, “thank god I am on this awful team, because if I were anywhere else, I would not even get a chance to be an everyday starter. Please, Terry, please let me hit in front of Ike so I can get good pitches to hit and hopefully increase my value, which is probably low right now since I am coming off of 2 season ending injuries, and trade me to a contender”
What did you expect him to say? “We stink.”
I’m a big Daniel Murphy fan and his exploits with the glove and baserunning have made me refer to him as “Marvelous Murph” in tribute to one who also seemed victim to Murphy’s Law back in 1962 – “Marvelous” Marv Thronberry.
I think part of those miscues was Murph pressing having to still learn second base while then being asked to play first while knowing he had to improve with his glove and prove to the team that he had the bat.
Always thought Murph to be a good contact hitter and we know last year he had the ability to come through in the clutch. Not claiming to know how to put together a line-up outside of Stratomatic, I would still prefer to see him hit third so to knock in runs and be on base for Davis, Wright, Duda and Bay. All this talk about trading him to an American League team I felt would undercut the team of a solid player for years to come.
Yes, his future might be at third for I see David being offered a contract as much as Jose was. And like Sandy had Tejada as insurance at short, so is Marvelous Murph insurance at third.
anyone wanna bet me the Mets lead the division in runs scored AGAIN, like they did last year?
just a friendly bet, not for money. I feel like I’d be stealing.
I’ll take that bet considering that the Mets no longer have Reyes and Pagan hitting 1 and 2 in the lineup and are being replaced by Tejada and Torres. They’re losing .035 of OBP using last seasons stats. Not to mention, they also no longer have Beltran.
They scored more runs in the second half last year than the first. That is without Beltran and very little of Reyes (who wasn’t even running much when he did play).
Those percentages don’t tell the whole story.
We all know stats are compiled on the amount of runs scored and driven in and then broken down for even more detailed calculation and analysis, however, what is equally important is a stat I do not know if it even exists – runs helped to create.
For example, runner on first, one out. Marvelous Murph singles, driving him to third. Davis comes up next and runner scores on sacrifice fly. Though he gets credit for a hit where would Murphy get credit for more importantly helping to contribute to that run? Same thing if Davis left the runner on base. If Wright followed with a two out single, the base runner scores because he was in scoring position due to Murphy’s hit which otherwise would have contributed to three outs and Wright without a chance to bring the runner home.
Now, later on in the same game, two runners on, two outs and Murph draws a walk. Then Davis singles them in. By drawing the walk Murph extended the inning and gave Davis the chance to drive in those two more runs but all he gets is improving his OBP.
That’s three runs Murph helped build that won’t appear in the box score.
Setting up the run – not scoring it or driving it in – that’s a reputation one earns through observation and the baseball grapevine and (unless there is some sort of formula for that after all) an important attribute one does not derive through statistical analysis.
….. but as TW points out, without the table setters in front of him, there is less Murphy can do to help contribute to creating those runs. That’s why this aspect of one’s profile can so easily be overlooked and why it can’t be treated as a stat because creating runs is truly based on what the supporting cast in front and behind of the batter does as well. The closest we might have is hitting with runners on base, whether they eventually score or not.
” what is equally important is a stat I do not know if it even exists – runs helped to create.”
Umm, actually
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runs_created
Thanks Donal for the link.
Now what I want to stress that while this formula does provide a statsitical analysis I was unaware of, at the same time I was indeed aware of the value of a player who can create runs not credited to him in the box score. In Murphy’s case, seeing him day in and day out, I saw the steps he took to create runs beyond those he would score or drive in. That’s why I contend that computer analysis is an essential tool that provides quicker and more extensive analytical data but also does not reveal any earth-shattering information that a good baseball insider wouldn’t know already in non-mathematical terms.
That’s essentially the argument between us traditionlists and fans of sabremetrics. The credit given to general managers like Beane and Alderson is that computer analysis enables them to see things in players that other general managers might overlook. I contend that both sides wind up seeing the same thing only from different venues and the decisions they would make (regarding how the player would then fit in with the current roster) would not be any different no matter which venue they used. The advantage Sandy and Beane would have is that less effort and time would be required to get the statistical information they required.
And that means it just comes down to whether or not sabrermetrics (i.e., automation) is another case of machine taking over man or something in between. Sabremetics being a source of information revealing things insiders otherwise would never know, it is not – as my own personal example suggests. That’s my only gripe with fans of sabremetrics who contend the whole way of understanding baseball changed with Bill James. It didn’t. It just took advantage of modern day technology to express baseball in terms of infinite termonology which, in many cases, becomes trivial other than for those who love statistics (and there is nothing wrong with that). Us traditionalists like to express baseball more in what we see, that’s all.
” In Murphy’s case, seeing him day in and day out, I saw the steps he took to create runs beyond those he would score or drive in. That’s why I contend that computer analysis is an essential tool that provides quicker and more extensive analytical data but also does not reveal any earth-shattering information that a good baseball insider wouldn’t know already in non-mathematical terms.”
A good insider would have these tools available. There are over 2,000 games a season. It is not reasonable to expect anyone to know exactly what happened in every PA of every game without some sort of reference guide.
Even for the Mets, it doesn’t matter if you sat through every pitch of all 162 games. you are human. You have preconceived notions and biases. Your memory is for helping you cope with the world, not for recording events. Also, the fact is, you don’t know everything to look for or how to interpret all of what you saw.
“That’s essentially the argument between us traditionlists and fans of sabremetrics.”
Not really. For some people it might be a reliance on numbers over instinct. Here, I see some people making it “new stuff sucks” whether or not that new stuff is actually new.
Also, it can also be a case of new numbers vs old numbers. We’ve got people on here ranting about respecting things like batting average? Respect it? How? Why? If we find we have a more in depth stat, then we use that. Plain and simple.
There are so many silly contradictory things about the whole argument. Supposed traditionalists who call me stupid for not buying into the idea of a 1 inning closer (a concept that became fashionable maybe 20 years ago) but rail against pitch counts and OBP (both of which have been around since at least the 1950s)
” The advantage Sandy and Beane would have is that less effort and time would be required to get the statistical information they required.”
Good heavens, no. You need to spend time collecting the data, sorting it out, interpreting it and presenting it in a way to shows you what actions do the most to help a team win.
“And that means it just comes down to whether or not sabrermetrics (i.e., automation) is another case of machine taking over man or something in between.”
Ya, you are really confused. How do you think the numbers are compiled? Who decides which stats are most helpful? How do you think all of this happens? Computers are not magic boxes. They can only do what someone tells them to do.
” That’s my only gripe with fans of sabremetrics who contend the whole way of understanding baseball changed with Bill James. It didn’t.”
Ya, it did. There is no real way to argue with it. Every decision maker in MLB says so. They may not all like it but no one can deny the change.
“Us traditionalists like to express baseball more in what we see, that’s all.”
See, you say that, but what I really see is people who are clinging to the comfort found in the familiar. And I don’t begrudge you of that at all. Where my problem lies is when you and others have to misrepresent (whether out of malice or your own lack of understanding) what people like myself actually say.
And there is no such thing as a baseball traditionalist. The game has changed too much. Deadball Era, Segregation, Expansion, minor leagues, drafting, television, the World Series, multinational organizations, actual structure for MLB offices, labor unions, and on and on baseball has always changed.
The fact is traditional baseball, much like The Good Ole Days, never actually existed.
Seriously, how do you not love this guy?
Does anybody else notice some of their messages missing or suddenly being removed?
One or two replies I made via email didn’t make it into the discussion. Now, I notice that the latest post I made to Donel appeared on my PC at work but not at home.
Is this a way to rid the forum of us “traditionalists”?
BTW Donal, my response was that the vast amount of specific details fed into the computer was still deemed necessary by baseball people which means these same people knew what they were looking for and were looking for answers. They still told the computer what they wanted to find out — it was not the other way around with the computer telling them what to look for instead. That’s automation. It doesn’t change the basic principles, it just compiles the information in much more precision detail.
Now, the information they get might change their approach but in turn that really means their earlier approaches were wrong. How often has sabremetrics verified that the general and field manager were on the right track and thus their approaches not needed to be tinkered with? In either case, what was found was more detailed information of the game and any no new discovery beyond their own shortcomings.
Remember Davey Johnson used a computer to give him the information he was seeking about where to position the fielders depending upon the pitcher and the hitter, how to pitch to him, whether one hit or pitched well or awful against another, etc. He didn’t need the computer to tell him what to do – he needed the computer because it was more reliable than his memory.
What it might come down to is how smart and insightful the individual is. For some sabermetrics is indeed a learning tool that opened up new insight not considered before, but for others whose knowledge and judgement went much deeper, it was just a way to gather more precise information for the tools they had already mastered, like Davey Johnson.
Enjoy the debate and differences we share with respect to the other.
Look, Optimism keeps a lot of people sane. All we have to look to is this past September 2011.
Did anyone think the St. Louis Cardinals were going to the Playoffs? They are Champs of Professional Baseball.
That same September 2011, as the Football NY Giants, start Losing 6-8 Defensive Players for weeks and unhappiness in several of the Player Contracts. Let’s fire the Coach, General Manger and the Offensive and Defensive Coordinators. The Giants are on the Brink of another Super Bowl Championship.
Oh by the way, The Baseball Giants didn’t do badly with a terrific pitching staff and a bunch of no name hitters. Baseball Champs 2010.
What does this all mean?
The Games must be played in the field. Do the New York Mets have a heart? Only the men who play for The NY Mets will show us. It’s only February. Optimism still reigns SUPREME!!
Hi Michael,
I do believe most everyone playing under Terry Collins this year will have the heart and spirit – it’s just that there are also so many demoralizing things that could happen which can just as easily douse it, just as we saw last year. After their top hitter and closer were taken away from them, we saw the Mets continue to play hard but without the spark that was there beforehand. The players knew they had the rug pulled out from under them by losing two vital components. The losses started mounting and they wound up playing 15 games below .500 the rest of the year.
Now it is valid to point out that there were salary issues that we just can’t ignore and under the circumstances we came up with a Zach Wheeler instead of nothing at all, however, they are human beings and moves like that would easily break one’s spirit when knowing their fine efforts were undermined by the front office, no matter how much they understood the business aspects of the game and the particular situation facing ownership.
And it could happen again this summer.
Joe D. Your thoughts are maybe one sided. I sense the negativism. Look being a Mets Fan since Tom Terrific was a Rookie has had more low points than high.
The one thing most Mets Fans should have is confidence in Management. Ownership is a different story. This team has components in the minors that need some professional experience. As Joe D pointed out there is the Human Element, to consider.
Not since Frank Cashen was GM during the 80′s did Met Fans feel that Management was in capable hands?
I see the Path current Management is taking.Mr. Alderson and company are building a Farm system and a Home Grown Team In New York! The unthinkable is happening right before our eyes.Remember, 1984? We saw the transformation from a train wreck to a team built to be special.
When the Super Bowl is played in 2014, I believe the Baseball Season in Queens, New York
will be something special Met Fans will be proud of. Patience. Patience. Patience.
Hi Michael,
Been a New Breeder from the beginning so I know how vital the minor league system is in turning a team’s fortunes around. Back in 1966 we were drooling having obtained Ken Boyer and having visions of finally escaping the cellar, unaware that the real story was down on the farm with Seaver, Koozman, Ryan, Gentry, Harrelson, Boswell, McAndrew, Garrett, etc. Of course, the same was repeated in the mid-eighties as you well pointed out.
But I’m sorry to disagree with you for the Mets to tell us they are re-building is a bunch of bull.
Let’s take the present. If this was a team getting on in years or was non-competitive and needed a drastic overhaul that’s one thing and I would share in your optimism, however, this was still a team with a good core that with the proper help would have still been a legit contender. Instead of improving the product they already had, they dismantled it so ownership could hold onto the team through their personal financial catastrophe.
It was not a team that became old all at once where re-building thus became necessary (like what we see slowly happening with the Phillies). Having underachieved, most definitely, hampered by injuries, of course, had the disadvantage of playing in an ill-conceived new ball park, yes indeed, but a team that needed a complete overhaul, no.
Now for the future. The path Sandy is probably being forced to take has already ridden us of an all-star shortstop and probably an established third baseman. He has already disclosed that the franchise plans to continue lowering the payroll year by year or a few more seasons to come. So what good is developing young talent that the team won’t keep because ownership doesn’t have the money? If Murphy, Davis, Duda and others become the players we hope they will, they will also be eligible for arbitration and eventual free agency by the time the players now on the farm get their feet wet in the majors. Now, with those lower payroll projections , we are sure to lose some of them as we have Reyes and most likely David.
When Keith Hernandez decided to stay with the last place Mets it was because he saw both the great talent being developed in the minors plus an ownership committed to winning. Today, he would not see that commitment from the ownership. He would see owners who had already pulled the rug from underneath a team that was just five games out of the loss column in the wild card last year and a franchise destined to become nothing more than the perpetual Oakland A’s of the national league – a breeding ground for developing great young talent for other major league clubs once they no longer have command of what they want to pay them.