Daniel Murphy continued his offensive onslaught on Tuesday night, blasting a three-run homer to help defeat the Yankees 12-7 in the Bronx. He is now batting .320 after a productive two nights at Yankee Stadium.
“He’s gotten hot, and when he gets hot, he is a good hitter,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “He’s got power, he’ll hit to all fields.”
As I wrote yesterday, Murphy is currently among the elite at second base and his .840 on-base plus slugging is bested only by the Phillies’ Chase Utley.
After dabbling with Murphy in the cleanup spot last month, Collins has kept Murphy in the two-spot since April 29 and the Irish Hammer has responded.
“I’m seeing the ball pretty well, not trying to do too much,” said Murphy. “And I don’t think it’s an accident that I get more pitches to hit with as well as David’s swinging the bat.”
Lets get that extension paperwork started…
May 13
Second baseman Daniel Murphy was the first one to embrace Ruben Tejada after Sunday’s 5-4 comeback win over the Philadelphia Phillies.
“We just needed a win,’’ said Murphy, who blasted a huge two-run homer in the ninth to bring the Mets within one.
After a solid campaign in 2013, Murphy is well on his way to even bigger things in 2014 and has already amassed a 1.4 fWAR for the season.
With another three hits in yesterday’s contest, Murphy has raised his average to .317, which ranks third among all second basemen in the majors behind Chase Utley and Dee Gordon.
Murphy leads the Mets in almost every offensive categories including hits (46), doubles (12), runs (25), and On-Base Percentage(.367). His .822 OPS is also tops on the team and third best among all MLB second basemen.
Remarkably, Murphy has just 19 strikeouts representing a 12.0 strikeout percentage to lead all the regulars on the team – most of them who strikeout more than twice as much.
What is most surprising about Murphy is the job he’s done defensively at second base. While he’ll never win a gold glove at the position, his range, glove work and instincts at second base have improved so much, it’s no longer the concern it used to be and I’d go as far as saying he’s transformed himself into an average defender.
Back in February, Murphy told reporters that he was open to signing a contract extension with the Mets, however nothing seems to be in the works at this time.
Murph has been on tear of late, batting .375/.444/.648 in his last 11 games with two homers, a triple and seven doubles in 54 plate appearances.
He has become such an integral part of this team and a leader in the Mets clubhouse. I couldn’t imagine this team without him.
