I am pretty sure this does not come as a shock to anyone here but Tom Murphy C, who came to camp in the best shape of his life, is going for an MRI after missing several bullpen sessions. Murphy has a long history of injuries of all imaginable types so it raised some of our eyebrows when we heard the Giants were counting on him to be the back up catcher behind Patrick Bailey who faded in the second half of the last two seasons. It seems whatever bothered Murphy's knee last season is fully healed but now it's his back, described as back spasms. Sigh.
The only other catcher on the 40-man roster is Sam Huff who actually looks like a better than decent hitter and is reportedly good at framing and blocking and has a strong arm albeit possibly with a release on the slow side. As for non-roster catchers there is Max Stassi who has health issues of his own. He has not played since 2022 and in the meantime underwent hip resurfacing surgery. What is hip resurfacing, you ask? I didn't know either so I looked it up. It's basically lining both the ball and socket of the hip joint with metal. Yikes! I am not sure if anyone has ever played major league baseball after undergoing that procedure. You will have to color me skeptical.
Back up catcher seems like it could be an area where Buster could have been more aggressive in the Hot Stove League especially with Patrick Bailey's history of fading in the second half. And yes, I get it, back up catcher is about as close to a fungible asset as you are going to get, back spasms are usually a benign condition that gets better spontaneously and Sam Huff will probably do just fine if it comes to that. Not Buster's fault but Joey Bart would sure look good in a Giants uniform right now.
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It's official! Lamonte Wade Jr is in the best shape of his life. He concentrated all offseason on healing his hamstring and getting his legs in better condition with a running program. Now he is volunteering to play some outfield. He did mention that his loss of power last year was due to weakness in his legs after the hamstring injury which prevented him from driving the ball. I seem to recall some commentary about it looking like that's what was happening last year. Stay healthy, LMWJ!
I looked up “hip resurfacing” and it looks like an alternative to total hip replacement and intended for younger and more active patients. Recovery time is three to six months. It’s intended to preserve more of the original bone than a total hip replacement and consists of a metal cap on the femur and and metal plate on the hip bone.
ReplyDeleteIn my mind there is a gap between "more active" and playing MLB, especially at the catcher position. Wish Stassi the best and it seems like it might be a breakthrough if he is able to play.
DeleteAthletes who have returned after hip resurfacing are few and far between. Andy Murray in tennis had a resurfacing and Bo Jackson had a replacement although he was never the same as before the surgery. I guess Buster is willing to take a flyer on Stassi but I'm not optimistic and he did not hit well even before the hip injury.
DeleteStassi is a lifetime .212 hitter but better than average defensively. I would be surprised if he makes the team over Huff. His hip procedure is well documented and was done at a special hospital in New York. His weak bat will likely be his problem.
ReplyDeleteSigh....Tom Murphy's games played since 2019:
ReplyDelete2019-75 games
2020-Did not play, injured
20221-97 games
2022-14 games
2023-47 games
2024-13 games
Hope is about all we have with him playing a full season. The MRI scheduled does not bode well.
DeleteAfter reviewing Sam Huff's stat lines and scouting reports, I am rooting for him to get the back up catcher job or at least for the Giants to find a way to keep him in the organization if he doesn't. I think he is out of options so has to make the active roster or be exposed to waivers.
The best predictor of future injuries is past injury history.
DeleteHuff's the way to go. Just 1 yr 4 months older than Bailey, he compares well, not the D (although he's not bad), but very quite good hitting.
DeleteThey owe Murphy $4¼M, but Huff is preArb so won't add much.
Johnson can afford it.
Update: It's a mild oblique strain. Not sure there is any such thing as a MILD oblique strain, but they are saying out about 10 days. Even if he has to start the season on the 60-day IL he needs to make sure it's completely healed before he comes back.
ReplyDeleteGoing on the 60-day IL is perfect.
DeleteThen Huff (or whoever "wins" the job) can be signed and the decision can be put off until June. Or later.
Wade (and YtY) in his 'walk' year, so he's motivated to add anything he can to his resume. Performance could mean millions in his case. Look for him to be very focused this season.
ReplyDeleteMore walk years: Rogers and Flores — a healthy Wilmer will earn his reduced pay and then sum.
DeleteI remember last season, the organization was gaga about Murphy. So much so, that there was talk of him even unseating Bailey as the starter. Surely such a great player that they were able to sell Joey Bart in exchange for a bucket of BP balls. WOW! FZ was awful for this team. SMH
ReplyDeleteNot sure what you mean by "gaga". Murphy was brought in to be a back up catcher to Bailey. I believe one of the reasons for trading Bart was to emphasize that Bailey was the #1 guy and avoid controversy and perhaps other players taking sides. When healthy, Murphy has swung a potent bat. Unfortunately he has never been able to stay healthy for long. I would say one of FZ's weaknesses was that he saw players with injury histories as undervalued assets. He forgot that the #1 risk factor for injury is a history of injury.
DeleteI'm not sure if Zaidi was "gaga" over Tom Murphy but they kept mentioning that he hit .290 and 8 homers in 47 games and on defense, he could handle a pitching staff and occasionally play some outfield. The contract even has a club option for a third year. I guess Zaidi felt that Murphy's injury history made him an undervalued asset but, as with most players who have an injury history, they will usually continue to have an injury history. If they give Anthony Davis the nickname "street clothes", Tom Murphy's nickname should be "trainer's room".
DeleteFarhan Derangement Syndrome (FDS) seems to permeate your blog, Doc!
DeleteI might be the one who kept mentioning what a good hitter Tom Murphy is/was. The guy can hit. If we put ourselves in FZ's shoes, it's not unreasonable to think he was under the gun to produce a postseason team last season. It's also not unreasonable to think Murphy might be a whole lot better hitter for that one season than Joey Bart. It's always easy to see things in retrospect. Looking long term some of us still saw some upside in Joey Bart, but maybe FZ didn't have the luxury of looking long term.
DeleteGood point that maybe FZ was under the gun to produce a post season team so he signed Murphy who had a track record of being a good hitter. Bart hit 207 BA for Giants in 2023.
DeleteDid I read correctly that Fitz is again having back issues?
ReplyDeleteI have not seen that. Hope it's not the case. Where did you see it?
DeleteBaggarly, The Athletic, Feb 17, 2025:
Delete"So this might be the most remarkable thing about an otherwise placid and unremarkable first week at San Francisco Giants camp leading up to Monday’s first full-squad workout: Aside from catcher Tom Murphy and infielder Tyler Fitzgerald, who are dealing with minor back tightness, manager Bob Melvin’s group reported to Scottsdale Stadium with no physical restrictions. Everyone is full go."
The Athletic (Baggs early Monday): “Aside from catcher Tom Murphy and infielder Tyler Fitzgerald, who are dealing with minor back tightness, manager Bob Melvin’s group reported to Scottsdale Stadium with no physical restrictions. Everyone is full go.” He added: “Murphy already won the prize that nobody wants: the first MRI exam of the spring.”
ReplyDeleteAlex P mentioned Murphy in his updated on NBC Sports Bay Area but not Fitz. Hopefully it's just some passing soreness.
DeleteI would have preferred a 1A/1B setup at catcher this season to keep Bailey fresh for the second half.
ReplyDeleteThat seems like an obvious goal but easier said than done. Catchers who are good enough to be 1B are going to prefer signing with teams that offer them a starting role and catchers who will accept a 1B role have back up talent. I think FZ might have seen Murphy as a 1B candidate. I am intrigued by Huff and wonder if he might have potential for a 1B role.
DeleteThose "down grading" the Giants off-season (for example, see The Athletic Feb 18, 2025: "MLB offseason grades for all 30 teams, from the Dodgers (A) to the Cardinals (F)" by Chad Jennings, Aaron Gleeman and more who gave the Giants a "C") leave out (perhaps rightfully) the Key Signing of Matt Chapman in September to an extension. Had this not been done, Chapman would have opted out on November 1, and the Giants would have had trouble signing him and his 7+ bWAR on the open market.
ReplyDeleteSay then, Posey and the Giants were successful in signing Chapman, the off-season would have been an A.
Given the bad luck the Giants had in 2024 with injuries and the slow rehab of players coming off injuries, SF still came within a snell of .500.
With a little luck in 2025, it is not unreasonable that the Giants could win 8 or 10 more games and make the playoffs.
Luck can run both ways as we all know too well, but I don't think it's unreasonable to think the Giants will start 2025 with 2 upgraded positions: Adames at SS and Lee recovered from injury in CF. They also have two other potential upgrades with full seasons from Ramos in LF and Fitz at 2B. I would rate the pitching as approximately even except we hope for one or two of the post-prospects to break out.
DeleteIn addition to those you mentioned, we can expect, at least hope for, more like 2023 levels from healthy Flores & Wade, a stronger/durable Bailey, full seasons from Ray, Hicks, Harrison, and the yuts, anything from Verlander, a heady Doval, continued improvement from Schmitt and Encarncion, emergence from Matos, Luciano, McCray, and Wisely:
Deletethere is a lot to look forward to!