Shocking news broke on Monday afternoon when the Atlanta Braves announced catcher Sean Murphy would miss the remainder of the season as he is set to undergo surgery to repair a labral tear in his right hip. The Braves catcher had been slumping for a little while now, and it seems fans finally have the answer as to why.
The part that made the hip injury particularly shocking was the report that Murphy has been dealing with this hip issue for the last THREE seasons. In Alex Anthopoulos' announcement of the injury, he revealed that the team doctor could not believe Murphy had been playing the last three years on what he considered to be a significant tear.
The Braves have enough questions heading into an important offseason, but now you can add Murphy's projected four month rehab process to the list of storylines. However, Murphy's desire to grind through the hip injury the last few seasons may have saved Atlanta in a plethora of weird ways in the long run.
#Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos said Sean Murphy has dealt with a hip issue for the last three seasons but had not informed the club until this week when the pain became unbearable. He'd only recently started seeking treatment. He Will have surgery on Thursday.
— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) September 8, 2025
Murphy's hip injury not sidelining him earlier may have allowed Braves rookie Drake Baldwin to blossom on the correct timeline
Plenty of injuries can leave fans wondering, "what if?" on both sides. However, Murphy's injury apparently had a three year window were the hip injury could have sidelined him at any point. Had this occurred at any point last season or the year before, the Braves would have felt pressure to find an answer at catcher as they tried to win games.
Drake Baldwin has been in the organization since 2022, but he was basically an unknown prospect until the 2024 season and would not have been ready to perform at the highest level like he currently is. With that in mind, Anthopoulos may have felt pressure to trade one of his top prospects like Baldwin just to obtain Major League ready help at catcher (which is so scarce it would have cost a hefty price) or to sign a catcher and move Baldwin to address another roster spot.
Thankfully, that scenario never happened, and is all because Murphy is one of the toughest position players in MLB apparently. Now, Murphy gets to rehab a month ahead of his original intention, and Baldwin gets some extra vital reps down the stretch as he will presumably play nearly every day over the final three weeks of the season.
Baldwin's extra reps not only benefits his development, but the added importance of (hopefully) winning NL Rookie of the Year and securing that extra draft pick for the Braves in 2026. Additionally, Baldwin will now get the opportunity to build on his small sample size of at-bats against left-handed pitching. Murphy's lingering hip issue may have brought more questions than expected, but at the same time, Murphy's toughness may have allowed Drake Baldwin to develop exactly how he needed to. It is funny how things work out sometimes.