Minnesota Sports Forum

Wtf is going on

Who the hell is John Ryan Murphy?

Hicks lack luster attitude must've finally got him shipped out. This also means that were signing the Korean guy and Sano is going to the outfield and that there rolling with Buxton in centerfield.

Love the trade for a young catcher with major league experience.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/player/_/id/31477/john-ryan-murphy

In his first year as the full-time backup, Murphy was very serviceable. He showed signs that he could one day be a starting catcher, though with McCann signed for three more years, it probably won't be in the Bronx anytime soon.

http://www.nj.com/yankees/index.ssf/2014/04/yankees_what_you_need_to_know_about_call-up_catcher_jr_murphy.html

This isn't Murphy's first time in The Show. The 22-year-old made his debut last September, appearing in 16 games for an injury-riddled Yankees team. Drafted in the second round of the 2009 draft, Murphy converted from outfielder to catcher late in high school and is now regarded as the team's best all-around catcher in the minors. He falls between No. 2 and No. 7 on most Yankees' top prospect lists. Murphy has been lauded by the team's front office and scouts for his game management and pitch-calling ability.

He's still getting better. Though he doesn't have incredible arm strength, Murphy threw out 37 percent of base stealers last year. With his progress behind the plate over the last two years, there's no question Murphy will be a major league catcher. "It's been a long process," he told Dave Laurila of Fangraphs. "I was not very good when I was drafted. I've come a long way. We have very good player development here in the organization, including some really good catching guys, so I've learned a lot. In many ways, I'm completely different from when I signed. Slowly, but surely, there's been a total evolution."

He is no slouch at the plate. He may not have the offensive ceiling of top Yankee prospect and fellow catcher Gary Sanchez, but Murphy hit .269 between Double-A and Triple-A. He won't hit for a tremendous average, but Murphy has patience, power and sprays balls across the field with a line-drive approach. As his offensive game matures, Murphy is likely to hit 10 to 15 home runs annually. He's projected to be an average to above-average hitting catcher with plus defense, which makes for a very valuable player.

Hit .277 last year in 155 at bats.

More
http://yanksgoyard.com/2015/01/10/john-ryan-murphy-present-future/

I was a big fan of Hicks but Murphy looks like a legit young catcher. It seems like the Yankees have a surplus of catchers it's good they wanted/needed a guy like Hicks. I wish Hicks the best hopefully it works out well for both teams.

Seems like a solid deal considering our lack of major league catchers and wealth of outfielders. I'm a little disappointed that we won't get to see what Hicks could become, it seemed like he was finally starting to put it all together.

If this guy lives up to his potential, it may be an ok deal...but on first glance, I don't like it. His hitting stats are unremarkable, except for his strike outs...he strikes out more than once in every four ABs. Msybe acceptable if he were a power hitter, but he's not...only 4 career HRs in 270 ABs. And even though the article says he threw out 37% of base stealers last year, it was actually 27% (17% the year before). I get that we have a log jam in the OF if Buxton and the Korean pan out, but I don't see this guy as an upgrade over Suzuki. Let's hope he starts playing like a second round pick (although I think it's more likely that Hicks will start playing like the first round pick that he was). I love Terry Ryan, but he must see something in this kid that he hasn't shown in the majors yet.

The Rage Monster wrote:Seems like a solid deal considering our lack of major league catchers and wealth of outfielders. I'm a little disappointed that we won't get to see what Hicks could become, it seemed like he was finally starting to put it all together.

Same here.

What makes it easier for me is getting a young catcher in return that has legit upside and actually has done something at the major league level. It's the perfect outcome for that position for me this offseason. If Buxton becomes the guy we assume he is going to be (fingers crossed) Hicks would become a luxury at some point. The Twins have like 75 outfielders with some sort of promise. They have a poor defensive catcher with concussions in Pinto and that's it at catcher behind Kurt in the foreseeable future before this deal. It's basically a no-brainer and like you I liked Hicks. I think he is gonna be a nice player because I think he will figure it out enough to be pretty effective as a hitter.

The Twins were 13th in Catcher OPS (.704). Congrats to LAA and CWS for somehow managing to be worse than Suzuki and the Rochester gang.

This guy was .734. If he can duplicate that in MIN, it's a great deal.