Atlanta Braves sign infielder Donnie Murphy to minor league contract

Earlier today, the Atlanta Braves made a minor move with the signing of infielder Donnie Murphy and assigning the 31-year-old former Ranger to Triple-A Gwinnett. Here’s what the folks over at MLB Trade Rumors (article linked above) had to say about the transaction:

"As MLB Daily Dish’s Chris Cotillo tweets, that likely means Murphy opted out of the minor league deal he signed with the Reds last month. Murphy, 31, hit .196/.268/.330 in 128 plate appearances with the Rangers earlier this year, mostly playing second base."

As you probably assumed from the triple slash mark shown above, Murphy isn’t any kind of big addition and is undoubtedly a depth move for the organization. After being drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the fifth round of the 2002 draft, Murphy has bounced around many different organizations, logging time at the MLB level with five different clubs.

In his nine years in the bigs, Murphy has hit .212/.279/.395 while playing mainly third base, shortstop and second base. He’s also played games in the outfield, at first base and as a DH.

Back when he was drafted, Baseball America said that while Murphy was a below-average runner, each of his other tools looked “playable.” I would be shocked if Murphy made an appearance with the big league club this year.