SEAN MURPHY MOVES TO ATLANTA
In a three-team trade, the Atlanta Braves acquired catcher Sean Murphy from the Oakland Athletics; the Milwaukee Brewers acquired catcher William Contreras and pitcher Justin Yeager from Atlanta, and pitcher Joel Payamps from Oakland; and the Athletics acquired catcher Manny Pina and pitchers Kyle Muller, Freddy Tarnok and Royber Salinas from Atlanta, and outfielder/infielder Esteury Ruiz from Milwaukee.
What does it give the Atlanta Braves
In Murphy, the Braves get a solid bat to go along with his excellent defense (his framing ranking was in the 88th percentile in 2022). He will pair with veteran Travis d'Arnaud to form arguably the best catching duo in MLB
What does it give the Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers get Contreras, who is coming off a season where he started as the DH for the NL in the '22 All-Star game. He goes from catcher of the future in Atlanta to that for the Brewers. He is mainly an offensive catcher under team control for the next five years. Yeager is a young reliever with some promise, while Payamps is a veteran reliever who has a chance to break camp with the Brewers in spring training.
What does it give the
For Oakland, this trade is all about the prospects. They received three pitchers from the Braves who all ranked among Atlanta's top twenty prospects, with Muller the top prospect. He will look to crack Oakland's rotation as early as next season. The A's also received Pina to mentor young catcher Shea Langeliers, while Ruiz is a true speedster who made his MLB debut with San Diego in 2022.
Fantasy impact
Most of the players dealt in this transaction should benefit from the change of scenery, but not all are fantasy-worthy options for 2023. Muller could be the biggest winner and should be drafted in virtually all formats, both keeper and non-keeper leagues. Murphy should be drafted among the top 10 catchers in '23, and he could possibly be better than that. Contreras has a better bat than Murphy, and is arguably the better fantasy catcher as long as he maintains eligibility behind the plate. He must improve defensively for his keeper value to stay strong, however. Tarnok and Salinas have some keeper appeal, while Ruiz is a budding fantasy stud who is a true keeper. He is a bit of a gamble for 2023 in non-keeper formats, though. Yeager, Pina and Payamps are off the draft radar for the time being.
