Ethan Murray

It’s a bit surprising that Murray went under the radar out of high school considering he played on the same team as highly-touted Clemson catcher Adam Hackenberg. Murray put himself squarely on the map after hitting .305/.391/.445 with five home runs and starting all 58 games at shortstop in a 2019 Freshman All-American season. He slumped a bit in the shortened 2020 season before having a strong summer in the Coastal Plain League, and this spring Murray managed a solid .297/.397/.440 slash line. While Murray has exclusively played shortstop with Duke, scouts wonder if he will be an everyday shortstop at the next level. He has solid hands and above-average arm strength for the position, but he’s a below-average runner and some scouts think his defensive actions are just light enough that he’d be better served playing all over the infield and outfield as a super-utility type. Listed at 6 feet, 200 pounds, Murray has below-average power but he swings with intent and takes massive hacks trying to do damage. That has led to some swing and miss in his game and an 18% whiff rate this spring. A team that thinks Murray has a chance to be an everyday shortstop could take a shot at him somewhere in the middle of Day Two.