Former All-Star, NLCS MVP one step from return to majors two years after retiring
Daniel Murphy is one step from returning to MLB nearly three years since his last game in the majors and over two years since he announced his initial retirement.
Murphy and Tejada were, ironically, teammates for five seasons with the New York Mets from 2011-15, when the former made his first All-Star team (2014) and helped carry the Mets to the 2015 World Series behind a record setting NLCS performance that ended with him earning MVP honors. The duo was New York's starting middle infield for a stretch of a few seasons, with Murphy at second base and Tejada at shortstop.
Tejada's most memorable moment in a Mets uniform came during Game 2 of the 2015 NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers, when Chase Utley (a former member of the Mets' rival Philadelphia Phillies) slid into and took out the shortstop while trying to break up a possible inning-ending double play. Tejada fractured his fibula during the collision and MLB suspended Utley for two games. However, the decision was appealed, Utley remained active for the rest of the Dodgers' playoff games and the league dropped the suspension in March 2016.
The Long Island Ducks signed infielder Tejada in February.
Murphy, who turned 38 in April, had the best regular season of his career with the Washington Nationals in 2016, making his second All-Star team, earning his first of two straight Silver Sluggers and finishing as the NL MVP runner-up. He led the senior circuit that year in doubles (47), slugging percentage (.595) and OPS (.985), while posting career highs in home runs (25), RBI (104) and batting average (.347) as well.
Murphy made his third and final All-Star team in 2017 with the Nationals, before being traded to the Chicago Cubs in 2018 and spending 2019 and 2020 with the Colorado Rockies.
He announced his retirement in January 2021, but reentered the game earlier this year in late March, signing with the Ducks of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. "Murph" had two home runs and 19 RBI to go with a .331/.410/.451 slash line across 142 at-bats in 37 games with Long Island this spring.
If Murphy were to make a return to the big leagues, he'd likely need a combination of poor play and/or injuries to some of the Angels current infielders, which include Jared Walsh, Gio Urshela, Brandon Drury, Luis Rengifo, Zach Neto and Murphy's former Nationals teammate, Anthony Rendon.
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