Prep baseball: Murphy happy with his decision to turn pro

(minorleaguebaseball.com)

TAMPA - While in high school at IMG Acadamies, J.R. Murphy lived out a dream when he accepted a full scholarship to play baseball at the University of Miami.

Then the pro game came calling.

Murphy was taken in the second round of 2009 draft by the New York Yankees, who offered Murphy a $1.25 million signing bonus.

He accepted, and the 20-year-old catcher is now with the Yankees' high Single-A affiliate in Tampa.

He's happy to be there.

"I think about it all the time. All my buddies are in college, so I talk to them all the time," the Bradenton resident said Wednesday at George M. Steinbrenner Field. "But I don't have any regrets. This is definitely the right decision I made."

Murphy is a career .271 hitter in 165 pro games with the Yankees, and made the South Atlantic League's All-Star game this year while with the Yanks' low Single-A affiliate in Charleston.

So it appears he has indeed made the right choice - even if he grew up a Boston Red Sox fan.

"You can't beat playing for the Yankees. But I was a Red Sox fan, so it was kind of ironic when that happened," he said. "But you can't beat this."

For more on my chat with Murphy, including his thoughts on playing for an organization stockpiled with catchers and coming home to face the Bradenton Marauders later this month, check out bradenton.com this weekend.

Prep baseball: Murphy shines in Tampa debut

(photo from minorleaguebaseball.com)

Pendleton School grad J.R. Murphy wasted little time making an impact with the Tampa Yankees.
The Bradenton native went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored Thursday during Tampa's 8-1 win over the Dunedin Blue Jays at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Murphy was bumped to the high Single-A team Thursday from the Yankees' low Single-A affiliate in Charleston.
Murphy batted third and played catcher Thursday for the Tampa Yankees, who are the two-time defending champions of the Florida State League and are 1-0 in the second half.
They finished fourth in the FSL's North Division during the first half, going 37-32.
The Yankees selected Murphy during the second round of the 2009 draft. Prior to his promotion, he was batting .297 with six home runs and 32 RBIs with Charleston, which earned him an invitation to the South Atlantic League's All-Star Game.
Murphy and the Tampa Yankees head to Bradenton on July 21 for the first of a four-game series with the Marauders.

Prep baseball: J.R. Murphy promoted to Tampa

(photo from riveraveblues) J.R. Murphy is coming to Tampa.
And maybe McKechnie Field, too.
A Bradenton native and a graduate of The Pendleton School, Murphy was promoted Thursday from the New York Yankees' low Single-A affiliate in Charleston to its high Single-A team in Tampa.
The Tampa Yankees compete in the Florida State League and head to Bradenton to face the Marauders for a four-game series from July 21 through July 24.
The Yankees drafted Murphy in the second round of the 2009 draft and played nine games that summer with the organization's Gulf Coast League team. He spent all of last season with Charleston, batting .255 in 83 games.
Murphy began this season in Charleston, too, hitting .297 in 63 games with six home runs, 32 RBIs and 23 doubles. He was selected for the SAL All-Star team.
Drafted and listed as a catcher, Murphy has also split time at third base and DH this season.

Prep baseball: Murphy, Ohlman meet in SAL All-Star Game

(minorleaguebaseball.com)

J.R. Murphy and Michael Ohlman already have a lot in common.

They are baseball players from Manatee County. They catch. They were chosen during the 2009 baseball draft and passed up on the University of Miami to sign pro contracts.

Their paths met again Tuesday night during the South Atlantic League's All-Star Game in Delmarva, where Murphy's South Division stars beat Ohlman's North squad 6-3.

Murphy, playing with the New York Yankees' Single-A SAL affiliate in Charleston, pinch hit in the seventh and went for 0-2. He was listed as a designated hitter.

Ohlman, whose Delmarva Shorebirds are an affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, was one of three catchers used by the North team. He went 0-for-1.

Prep baseball: Catching up with some area draft picks

(minorleaguebaseball.com)

Now that Palmetto grad Granden Goetman has begun his professional baseball career with the Gulf Coast Rays, we check in to see how other area draft picks are faring on their road to the big leagues.

If you know of any we may have missed, please email me at jlembo@bradenton.com.

MICHAEL OHLMAN - Ohlman, pictured above, was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 11th round of the 2009 draft, and is currently with the franchise's Single-A affiliate in Delmarva. In 51 games this season, the Lakewood Ranch grad is hitting .247 with three home runs and 23 RBIs and a .367 slugging percentage. Ohlman, 20, has been behind the plate for 41 games and has thrown out 26 percent of runners trying to steal.

J.R. MURPHY - The New York Yankees selected this Pendleton School alum during the second round of the '09 draft, and like Ohlman, Murphy is playing with his team's Single-A club based out of the South Atlantic League. Murphy, 20, is hitting .297 with the Charleston RiverDogs and is sixth in the league in hits (76) and tied for first in doubles (23). He has driven in 23 runs and slugged six home runs while slugging a .476 clip, and has split time between third base, catcher and DH. Both Ohlman and Murphy have been picked for tonight's SAL All-Star Game.

TYLER PASTORNICKY - Another Pendleton grad, Pastornicky was picked by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2008 and dealt to the Atlanta Braves last summer. A shortstop, the 21-year-old Pastornicky is hitting .301 with the Braves' Double-A team in Mississippi, with 14 stolen bases (good for fifth in the Southern League) and 33 RBIs in 66 games.

RYAN POPE - The Bayshore grad made history in 2007 when the New York Yankees made him the first baseball player drafted out of the Savannah College of Art and Design. A third-round pick, the 25-year-old Pope is with the Yankees' Triple-A team in Scranton/Wikes-Barre, but has struggled. He is 2-1 with a 8.14 ERA in 14 games, allowing 19 earned runs and 29 hits in 21 innings. Pope showed promise last year, when he saved 17 games and posted 4.20 ERA with the Yanks' Double-A club in Trenton.

Prep baseball: Bradenton's Murphy beginning season in Charleston

(minorleaguebaseball.com)

As expected, Bradenton's J.R. Murphy has begun the baseball season with the Charleston RiverDogs, the low Single-A affiliate of the New York Yankees.

Murphy, who graduated from The Pendleton School, spent all of last season with the RiverDogs. The next step could be a promotion to high Single-A Tampa, which competes in the Florida State League with the Bradenton Marauders.

Murphy is batting .207 in seven games this season, but has hit three home runs and driven in seven runs, upping his slugging percentage to .552.

The Yankees picked Murphy during the second round of the 2009 draft. A catcher in high school, Murphy has also logged time as a designated hitter and third baseman this season.

Prep baseball: Murphy coming to McKechnie?

(riveraveblues.com)

Bradenton's J.R. Murphy made his professional debut two summers ago at Pirate City with the Gulf Coast Yankees.
If all goes according to plan, he may return to Bradenton this summer with another Yankees affiliate - the high Single-A team based in Tampa.
Tim Bontemps, who covers minor league baseball for the New York Post, said Murphy will most likely begin the season with the Yankees' low Single-A team in Charleston, but could get a bump to Tampa if he plays well.
That could result in a homecoming of sorts. The Tampa Yankees compete in the Florida State League, as do the Bradenton Marauders, the Pirates' affiliate set to begin season No. 2 at McKechnie Field.
Tampa visits Bradenton for a three-game series beginning July 22.
Murphy, a graduate of The Pendleton School who turns 20 in May, spent all of last season with Charleston, batting .255 with seven home runs and 54 RBI in 87 games. Baseball America ranked him the Yankees' 14th best prospect, according to Bontemps.
Murphy is part of a deep pool of Yankees catchers that includes Jesus Montero and Austin Romine, both of whom are competing for the major-league back-up job this spring.
In his report, Bontempts said Murphy's "bat is ahead of his defense" - he committed 11 errors in 53 games behind the plate last year, but threw out a respectable 23 percent of runners trying to steal - and he could possibly shift to third base or an outfield spot in the future.

Yankees high on Murphy

It appears that J.R. Murphy, a Bradenton resident and graduate of The Pendleton School at IMG Acadamies, has been impressing the right people with the New York Yankees.
Murphy was promoted from the Yankees' GCL rookie team last week to the organization's low Single-A team in Charleston. He's batting .286 in seven games with the RiverDogs with six RBIs, and is showing he belongs in the Yankees' deep pool of catching prospects.
The Yankees took Murphy in the second round of last year's draft after he batted .627 with 11 home runs during his senior year at Pendelton.