Chris Murphy

Murphy showed swing-and-miss stuff but also shoddy control in the Cape Cod League last summer. He elevated his draft stock with a dominant turn at the front of San Diego’s rotation this spring, but wildness continues to afflict him. Murphy boasts an attractive power arm from the left side. He sits 90-91 mph on his fastball and can ramp up to 94-95 mph, pitching in and out and elevating for swings and misses. His breaking ball is alternately referred to as a power curveball or slider and draws above-average grades, and his average changeup is an effective third pitch. Murphy’s stuff allows him to miss bats and keep runs off the board, but he gets into a lot of deep counts and falls into long innings because of below-average control. He walked more than six batters per nine innings this spring, with 15 hit batters on top of it. Murphy has the stuff to start, but his control may push him to the bullpen. Evaluators are split on his eventual outcome but want him regardless.