Daniel Murphy first broke into the Major Leagues with the New York Mets in August 2008 as a focused contact hitter drafted from Jacksonville University. Initially, without a fixed defensive position, he moved between first base, third base, and outfield corners before settling at second base. Though his defense often drew media criticism, Murphy was a relentless line-drive hitter in the middle of the order.
Murphy was a mainstay for the Mets, hitting .286 in 2012 and a career-high 181 hits in 2013, leading with 38 doubles. In 2014, he hit .289 with 37 doubles, earning his first NL All-Star. He was efficient, striking out only 38 times in almost 500 at-bats in 2015.
Over seven summers in Queens, Murphy compiled a superb .288 career average and 967 hits. He secured permanent, golden immortality in franchise folklore with an absolute masterpiece of an outlier during the 2015 postseason. Carrying the team on his back, he delivered a high-voltage display of sudden power that shocked the baseball world. He launched home runs off premier aces Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, and Jon Lester, setting an all-time Major League record by homering in six consecutive postseason games. In the National League Championship Series, where he batted a mind-boggling .529 with four home runs to easily claim the 2015 NLCS MVP Award and propel the Mets to their first World Series appearance in fifteen years.
Right after that remarkable October run, the front office thought his power spike was a temporary anomaly and chose not to extend a lucrative long-term contract. As a result, he became a free agent and signed with the division-rival Washington Nationals in December 2015. This decision quickly backfired for New York, as Murphy reached new heights of performance in the nation's capital, winning the NL slugging and OPS titles and finishing as the close runner-up for MVP in 2016.
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