Braves All-Star Named Most Overpaid Player in MLB at His Position

The Atlanta Braves catcher has to show to some that he's worth the money he's set to receive going forward

Murphy was the lone Braves player on this list | Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Braves have theie fair share of longterm contracts on the books. Some are aging well. Other deals are starting to raise some concerns.

In what was called one of the toughest decisions to make, Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller named Sean Murphy the most overpaid catcher in baseball. For context, Murphy is set to make $15 million yet again next season and has a luxury tax hit of $12.167 million. The latter is an average of his entire contract.

Over the next three seasons, including 2026, he'll have the same salry and if his club option were to be exercised for 2029, then it would still be the same salary. Miller knocks Murphy for two key reasons. One is his inconsistent production.

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"In fairness to Murphy, he did have a solid first half, hitting 16 home runs in his first 220 trips to the plate," Miller wrote. "Not quite Cal Raleigh levels, but he was operating at a 162-game pace of 44 dingers—before failing to homer once in his final 117 plate appearances."

Another, which is more likely the bigger reason, is he has to share time with Drake Baldwin. When you have to pay someone $15 million per season, typically, they are the full time catcher.

A major issue with the argument about Miller's production is that his injuries aren't mentioned. That is an argument in favor of Murphy's contract being an issue, but that still should come up at some point. It is the defining issue behind the ups and downs with his bat.

It's not the first time that a Braves long-term contract was put under the microscope this offseason. Austin Riley's extension was labeled by Bleacher Report as a nightmarish deal. Riley makes $22 million per season, and he's under contract into the next decade. The Braves would benefit from both bouncing back when healthy.

What helps Murphy, and Miller did acknowledge this, the Braves have been planing to make an effort to get both Murphy in the lineup. Walt Weiss even emphasized this at the Winter Meetings. Even with the addition of Mike Yastzremski, the plan likely won't change that much once Murphy returns.

It appears it is growing increasingly likely that he will miss the start of this upcoming season. However, it's one of those surgeries where he should be all healed up once he's back. He finally opted to have his hip repaired after it finally gave out.

So, when exactly Murphy will have the chance to prove his worth is to be determined. But that chance will come, and a healthy version of himself has shown, while sometimes a bit feast or famine, that he has plenty left.