After the Atlanta Braves took a chance and used their 2022 first-round pick to select Owen Murphy out of high school, things initially looked very promising. Murphy's first two years as a pro were hit-and-miss, but he started the 2024 season looking like a man on a mission with a 1.54 ERA and 60 strikeouts across his first 41 innings. Unfortunately, Murphy required Tommy John surgery after that, and many wondered if he would be able to regain his old form.
Part of the uncertainty around Murphy has centered around his specific arsenal and not necessarily his injury history. His fastball is very live when he is completely healthy, and he has a pair of breaking pitches in his curveball and slider that he can throw like a cutter, but Murphy has never really had an offspeed pitch he could lean on to allow his fastball to play up.
It appears that that has changed down at Braves spring training. According to MLB Pipeline's Jonathan Mayo, who spoke to Braves assistant GM Ben Sestanovich, it sounds like Murphy has added a splitter to his arsenal, and that could change his outlook as a prospect dramatically.
Owen Murphy adding a splitter could be exactly what he needs to adjust to his career post-elbow surgery
While Murphy's heater was fine after he returned from surgery, there is no denying that he wasn't throwing it as hard as he was before he got hurt. A post-surgery velo drop is not uncommon, and very often, the velocity comes back with time. However, unless you are throwing absolute gas that hitters can't catch up with, you have to keep them guessing with good pitch tunneling and changing speeds to prevent disaster. That is where Murphy's new splitter comes in.
Murphy has been looking to add a real offspeed option for a while, but had not found success previously. There are certainly MLB pitchers who have excelled without a passable changeup, but it is a lot easier if the option is available. By adding a splitter, Murphy doesn't have to rely on hitters not being able to pick up spin out of his hand to keep them from sitting on his somewhat diminished fastball. By having it in his arsenal, assuming it is a pitch that sticks, which it sounds like it will be, all of his pitches could play up.
At least, that is the theory. Execution matters a lot, and if he alters his delivery with each of his pitches, Murphy isn't going to fool anyone. He has to throw his pitches in the same tunnel for his new splitter to be a net-positive. However, it is a tool that he now has at his disposal, and if he uses it well, there is reason to believe he could shoot through the minors in a hurry.