Could it actually be possible that Daniel Murphy always chattering with the home plate umpire has a negative effect on the New York Mets?
By Aniello Piro
One of the biggest assets the New York Mets had coming into the World Series was the bat of Daniel Murphy. Prior to Game 1 of the Fall Classic, Murphy had homered in six straight games and had a grand total of seven home runs in the playoffs.
Since the NLCS, however, Murph has cooled off.
Despite his drop in production, one particular area has picked up. Murphy has always been know to talk with umpire before, during, and after at bats. He has shown that in full effect during the World Series.
It can both help and hurt Murphy at times, but right now it seems that it is backfiring on him big time. For instance, in a number of at-bats in Game 2 the umpire would call border line pitches strikes. Not liking the call, Murphy will turn his head and begin to clarify with the umpire where and how that pitch was called a strike.
After receiving yet another call he does not like, Murphy will again turn towards the umpire and say something like “are you sure that pitch is low” and proceed to step back in the batters box.
After recognizing Murphy is frustrated with the calls, Royals catcher Salvador Perez will come back with the same pitch that was called a strike the previous time. The end result becomes a strikeout with Daniel Murphy complaining and shaking his head contemplating how that pitch is a strike.
We saw this first hand during his first at-bat against Johnny Cueto in Game 2 of the World Series.
By engaging in hostile conversation with the umpire, it only hurts his chances of maybe getting a call or two from the umpire. It also frustrates Mets fans to see a player complain and not produce.
Disagreeing a couple of times a game is ok, but doing it too many times during an at-bat can hurt. By talking to the umpire, it lets the Royals catcher know what makes him comfortable and uncomfortable as well as where the umpires strike zone is on a specific hitter.
Around the majors most batters complain when pitches are called strikes when they deem the pitch to be out of the strike zone, but Daniel Murphy takes this to a new level. It seems that virtually every pitch that is close he doesn’t swing at he either complains or shakes his head in denial.
The Royals game plan towards Murphy was to pitch him inside and make him uncomfortable at the plate. Thus far the plan has worked fairly well limiting Murphy to only two hits in nine at bats.
Daniel Murphy has to stop shaking his head in despair when a pitch close enough to swing at is called a strike. Its baseball you take what you can get and as a professional you are expected to produce not pout and whine about a call.
Murphy is an aggressive emotional player we get that ,but now more than ever the Mets as a team ,and fan base need their free agent to be second basemen to come through ,and go back to his ways of hitting like he did back in the NLDS and NLCS.
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