Braves Sean Murphy Suffers Season-Ending Injury

The Atlanta Braves starting catcher will be said for an offseason of rehabbing after he has surgery

That's all she wrote for Sean Murphy's season | Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

Sean Murphy’s season appears to be over. The Atlanta Braves announced on Monday that he is heading to the 10-day injured list with a right hip labral tear. 

Murphy will require surgery and will require about four months of rehab. Murphy told The Athletic's David O'Brien that it's been a lingering issue for three years and became worse as of late.

He is expected to be ready for Spring Training.

Drake Baldwin should be the starting catcher the rest of the way, and Sandy León will come up from Triple-A Gwinnett in a backup role. 

He started off the season on the injured list (cracked rib), and he’s looking like he’ll end the season back on it. 

It’s the second year in a row that Murphy has been faced with injuries. He dealt with an oblique injury during the early months of 2024 as well. 

At this point, the goal is for him to get healthy and be ready for next season. In 94 games, he has batted .199 with 16 home runs and 45 RBIs. It’s been a streaky season for him. There were times when home runs came in bunches, and there were times he couldn’t find a hole for the life of him. 

Overall, it was a better season than 2024, and perhaps a healthy Murphy can be more consistent. s

León will have his second stint in the Majors with the Braves this season. He came up for a few weeks when Brian Snitker was trying to pencil in both Muprhy and Baldwin as the catcher and designated hitter. 

With one of them serving as the DH, they needed another catcher who could substitute. He struck out in the lone at-bat he had last season. 

He’s been a mainstay in Triple-A Gwinnett for the last two seasons and caught two of Chris Sale’s rehab starts. The two were previously a battery in Boston, winning a World Series together. 

Because of this move, it wouldn’t be too surprising if León were in the lineup on Wednesday. It would give the two another chance at a reunion. Sale said after his second rehab start that he would like the chance to partner up with him in the Majors again. 

Braves Shuffle Pitching Again

The Braves also shuffled the pitching staff for the second time on Monday. They announced that prospect Hayden Harris was optioned to Triple-A, and long reliever Dane Dunning was being recalled.

Harris made three appearances with the Braves during his first stint. He allowed an earned run in 2 2/3 innings pitched.