Pat Murphy just taught his 22 year old rookie shortstop a lesson the whole clubhouse is going to remember. Cooper Pratt got benched in the middle of an inning Tuesday against the Mets because he did not run hard out of the box on a pop-up.
Here is what happened. Fifth inning at Citi Field, Pratt puts a pop-up in play, and instead of sprinting to first he takes his time. Video shows he could have easily reached second on a pop up that was misplayed. Instead he settled for first. Murphy replaced him with David Hamilton on the spot.
The Brewers did not score that inning. They lost the game 3-2. That is the kind of loss that turns a mid-August benching into a full clubhouse conversation.
Murphy is a two time National League Manager of the Year. He does not do things for optics. When he pulls a rookie mid inning, he is sending a message that will land in every corner of that dugout.
“It’s for the player and the team,” Murphy told Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. “I love him and I believe in the kid immensely. But he’s got to be a player who does those things. He’s not going to hit 30 homers at this point in his career. He’s a great defender and a really capable offensive player, and he can’t have that. It’s just not tolerated by anybody, and it sends a message to everybody else, too. You’ve got to run.”
That is a masterclass in in-season leadership. Public support for the player. Direct honesty about the mistake. No wiggle room on the standard.
The Brewers are 81-51. Best record in baseball. They lead their division, they are on cruise control toward the playoffs, and this is exactly when a talented team can start to coast. Murphy is refusing to let that happen.
Cooper Pratt is going to be fine. He is a real prospect with a chance to be an above average shortstop in this league for a long time. The bigger story is that the Brewers manager just reminded 25 other guys that October is not going to hand itself to Milwaukee just because they have the best record.
Every contender needs a moment like this one before September. Milwaukee just got theirs.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
