Sean Murphy Newest Ex-All-Star Braves Hope Returns to Form After Rehab

If the Atlanta Braves learn anything from the 2025 campaign, it should be that it's risky to count on players returning to form after injuries. That's true even for All-Star players.

But the Braves will undoubtably still make that bet with a few former All-Stars next season, including catcher Sean Murphy.

The Braves announced Monday that Murphy will land on the 10-day injured list because of a right hip labral tear. With surgery required, the catcher faces a four-month rehab process and is done for the 2025 season.

The Athletic's David O'Brien reported Murphy told him he has been dealing with the hip issue for three years. Murphy was aiming to finish the season, but he finally brought the injury to the training staff's attention Sunday.

According to O'Brien, an MRI indicated a "significant tear" and Murphy will have surgery Thursday.

It's worth mentioning that it's absolutely ridiculous that Murphy played through the same injury for three years. That's arguably worse than Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins gutting through his elbow injury for several weeks during the second half of 2024, but Murphy won't get the same headlines because he doesn't play quarterback.

Looking ahead, though, the discovery of Murphy's injury will be a positive for the Braves PR department. The hip ailment apparently would come and go for the catcher until the pain made it unsustainable to continue. That's kind of like the catcher's hitting has been, which isn't a coincidence.

With a repaired hip, perhaps Murphy can be closer to the hitter who slashed .251/.365/.478 with 21 home runs during his 2023 All-Star campaign. He showcased that kind of power at times this season. In April, Murphy batted .250 with a .633 slugging percentage behind seven home runs in 70 plate appearances.

It's not realistic for Murphy to sustain a .600-plus slugging percentage for an entire season. But the Braves will sell the fan base on the idea the catcher will be closer to that when fully healthy again in 2026 than his final 2025 slash line, which was .199/.300/.409.

With that sales pitch, it's likely the Braves will pencil Murphy in as the team's starting DH next season. From the team's perspective, it's a no-brainer. Designated hitter Marcell Ozuna is projected to leave in free agency, and rookie of the year candidate Drake Baldwin is Atlanta's future behind the plate.

In 2026, Murphy either needs to be traded or hit everyday as the Braves DH and play a couple times a week to give Baldwin a break. After surgery, it's unlikely Murphy will have much immediate trade value this offseason, so the latter is probably the team's only option.

That's not ideal. Again, injured players don't always return to form. They often don't. It's more likely they get injured again. The Braves have plenty of examples of that already on their own roster.

Hopefully for the team, Murphy bucks that trend and returns healthy and consistent enough to be a quality DH in 2026.