Baseball is a game of inches and the difference between successful big leaguers and those that flame out is not as much as fans think. This is particularly pronounced with pitchers as the ability to just barely clip the strike zone is a hard-earned skill. For young Atlanta Braves starter Hurston Waldrep, he seems to have taken some big steps in the right direction and, as it turns out, a Braves veteran's advice may be one reason why.
Waldrep's development stalled at Triple-A as he battled problems with his fastball shape as well as struggles with command. A lot of Braves fans had effectively written him off after his big league debut in 2024 didn't go very well and he fell down prospect rankings.
However, a chance encounter (along with some hard work) seems to have put Waldrep back on track. After shutting down the Marlins on Saturday, Waldrep was very quick to give credit to Sean Murphy for his improvement after Murphy gave him some advice while both were in the minors.
Hurston Waldrep gave a lot of the credit for his improvement this season to #Braves catcher Sean Murphy, who urged him to throw a sinker when Murphy was at Triple A on rehab early in the season. It's made a major difference added to his repertoire.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) August 9, 2025
Sean Murphy's advice may have given the Braves a future rotation mainstay in Hurston Waldrep
Murphy's time in the minors was short this season as he was rehabbing after breaking a rib, but it seems to have made an impression. According to Waldrep, Murphy was who suggested that he pivot to throwing a sinker and it is hard to argue with the results thus far.
Given Waldrep's arsenal, a sinker makes a lot of sense as it is be easier to tunnel with his breaking stuff and splitter and is a pitch that induces a lot of weak contact when thrown well. Given that Waldrep's four-seam fastball A) wasn't impressing anyone and B) wasn't a pitch that he could reliably throw for strikes anyways, switching to a sinker to be able to challenge hitters in the zone more and get them to chase after his splitter more was a stroke of genius.
It is still too soon to say that Waldrep is a finished product and will live in the Braves' rotation for years. Opposing hitters are going to adjust to his new approach and Waldrep will have to continue to stay ahead of hitters and outsmart. However, for the first time as a pro, it appears as though he has the right tools to go about doing just that and everyone can thank, at least least in part, Sean Murphy for it.