Owen Murphy was the first player the Braves took off the board with the 20th pick. MLB Pipeline’s No. 48 prospect is a two-way player that has proven to have success on the bump and in the batter’s box.
Murphy led all pitchers with 10 strikeouts in four scoreless innings and went 4-for-9 with a home run at the PDP League last July before pulling double duty on the U.S. 18-and-under national team in September. Gatorade’s 2022 Illinois state player of the year, he posted a 0.12 ERA with 137 strikeouts in 58 1/3 innings while also batting .548 with 18 homers.
The Braves picked up another arm in MLB Pipeline’s No. 47 Draft prospect JR Ritchie with the 35th pick. A player hasn’t been drafted from Bainbridge Island, Ritchie’s hometown, since Brian Coleman went in Round 55 back in 1990.
The 19-year-old has four lethal pitches since adding a nasty slider that he uses as his main breaking pitch, but his curve and changeup complement his mid-90s fastball beautifully.
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