Dale Murphy
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-->Dale Bryan Murphy (born March 12 1956) is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball, born in Portland, Oregon. Murphy is regarded by many as a premier player during the 1980s. His best years were with the Atlanta Braves, appearing in the All-Star Game seven times, and leading the National League in home runs and RBI twice; he also led the major leagues in home runs and runs batted in over the 10-year span from 1981 to 1990. He led the National League in games, at bats, runs, hits, extra base hits, RBI, runs created, total bases, and plate appearances in the 1980s. He also accomplished a 30-30 season in 1983, at the time only the 6th player since 1922 to do so. In addition he also won five consecutive Gold Glove Awards, and won two consecutive MVP awards in 1982 and 1983, making him one of only four outfielders in major league history with consecutive MVP years, and the youngest ever to do so at the time.
His professional baseball career began in 1976 and ended in 1993; he also played for the Philadelphia Phillies and Colorado Rockies franchises. He finished his career with 398 home runs and a .265 batting average. He reached the playoffs only once, in 1982, where the Braves were eliminated in the first round by the St. Louis Cardinals. His jersey number "3" was retired by the Atlanta Braves in 1994.
Murphy's squeaky-clean habits off the diamond were conspicuous in a league racked by illegal drugs and salary controversies. A devout Latter-day Saint, commonly known as a "Mormon", Murphy did not drink alcohol, would not allow women to be photographed embracing him, and paid his teammates' dinner checks (as long as alcohol was not on the tab). Murphy had been introduced to Mormonism by Barry Bonnell, a teammate early in his career. For several years, the Atlanta Constitution ran a popular weekly column, where Murphy responded to young fans' questions and letters. Murphy's TV commercials usually had him advertising milk, ice cream, and Canon cameras. In a scene reminiscent of The Pride of the Yankees, Murphy once promised a disabled girl in the stands he'd hit a home run for her - and actually knocked out two. In 1987, he shared Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsmen and Sportswomen of the Year" award with seven others, characterized as "Athletes Who Care," for his work with numerous charities, including the [Make-a-Wish Foundation], the Georgia [March of Dimes] and the [American Heart Association].
Interestingly, Murphy did not begin his career as an outfielder. He began as a catcher, but had difficulties throwing out runners attempting stolen bases. He was moved briefly to first base and left field before reaching the peak of his success playing center field and eventually right field, being widely considered the best all-around player in the major leagues for the 6-year span between 1982-1987.
After his baseball career ended, Murphy became more active in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. From 1997 to 2000, he [served] as president of the Massachusetts Boston Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Murphy was at one point said to be considering a run for Utah governor in 2004, but failed to generate enough interest within the Republican Party. He now also lives in Alpine, Utah.
Hall of Fame
Despite his career accomplishments, Murphy has become a highly debated candidate for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
| Year | Votes | Pct |
|---|---|---|
| [1999] | 96 | 19.32 |
| [2000] | 116 | 23.25 |
| [2001] | 93 | 18.06 |
| [2002] | 70 | 14.83 |
| [2003] | 58 | 11.69 |
| [2004] | 43 | 8.50 |
| [2005] | 54 | 10.46 |
In order to be elected to the Hall, a candidate must receive votes on seventy-five percent (75%) of the ballots cast in any given year. The adjoining table shows the number and percentage of votes that Murphy has received each year since he became eligible in 1999.
He will remain on the ballot as long as he appears on a minimum of five percent (5%) of the ballots cast in the preceding election, but at this point Murphy's chances of election appear slim.
Various reasons given for this failure include the lack of success of the teams Murphy played on, and his decidedly mediocre performance in the later part of his career. Murphy's performance suddenly tailed off after the age of 31, and he finished his career with four below-average seasons and two seasons as a bench player.
His career numbers have also been overshadowed by the explosion in offense in the 10-year period just after Murphy's retirement (1993-2002). For example, there have been 50 home runs hit in a season 30 times in the history of baseball: 18 times between 1921-1990 and 12 times between 1995 and 2000. Many believe the general inflation in hitting statistics since the time of Murphy's retirement to the abuse of drugs such as androstenedione and steroids. Perhaps the prevalence of such drug use may cause the Hall of Fame voters to re-evaluate statistics of players such as Dale Murphy and contemporary stars such as Tim Raines, Andre Dawson, and Jim Rice. However, few players with numbers comparable to Murphy before 1993 have made the Hall of Fame. According to [Baseball Reference], only one of the ten players with career numbers most similar to Murphy's is in the Hall of Fame (Duke Snider).
External links
- [Baseball-Reference.com] - career statistics and analysis
- [Plaque at Baseball Immortals]
- [IMNO interviews Dale Murphy]
- [SI.com]
- [Forever a Brave - A Tribute to Dale Murphy]
- [DaleMurphy.com - The Unofficial Dale Murphy Fansite]
- [Georgia Sports Hall of Fame]
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