The Opening Day leftfielder (and my favorite player among all Chicago sports teams) spent time in Triple-A after being demoted June 13. In 39 games with Iowa, Mutron hit .331 with six home runs and 27 RBI.
It’s obvious Murton doesn’t belong in Triple-A, but if Piniella wants Murton to have success in the Majors, he will have to give Murton more consistent playing time. Considering the depth of the Cubs in right field (they now possess Angel Pagan, Cliff Floyd, Mark DeRosa, and Matt Murton for the position) and how many times Piniella has shuffled the line-up, it seems unlikely that this will happen. But if Piniella finds a way to get Murton in the line-up more consistently, I think the team can only benefit.With last year being another disappointment for the Cubs, I’m sure many fans didn’t bother to check individual players’ statistics. But for those who did, they might remember that Murton finished the season as the Cubs batting champ, posting a .297 average. What’s even more important about his average last season is that he did it while playing in 144 games. There’s no doubt that consistent playing time equals success for Murton.
Well, the hard-working red head will certainly not match or pass the number of games he played last season, but he still has the chance to make an impact on the team. The unlikely move remaining is for Piniella to start Murton a majority of the games for the rest of the season. Unfortunately, I don’t see this happening. My guesses only include bad options or a sad ending for Murton with the Cubs. In the worst case scenario (at least in my view), the Cubs trade Murton for a relief pitcher that they think will help down the stretch and possibly in the playoffs (and we all know how those deals work out). In the more favorable, but not best alternative, Murton returns to Triple-A when the Cubs need room for Daryle Ward (but who knows when that will be?). The best case scenario I see for Murton with the Cubs entails spot starts against lefties and a minor pinch-hitting role; neither of which will give him the consistent playing time that led to his great numbers last year. But who knows? Perhaps Murton can adapt to the more foreseeable role of coming off the bench and getting spot starts against lefties. After all, Piniella has made several big calls and changed the line-up many times during the Cubs recent surge. Anything can happen. Anything can happen.
1 comment:
I agree with you that a player hitting mid .300 does not belong in Triple-A nor does he belong sitting on the bench. I think with those minor league number he is def trade bate....unfortunately for the cubs they have a numerous amount of outfielders who can play right.....without trading Jones before the deadline makes it hard for Murton to get time. Pagan has showed that he can hit in the Bigs (as did Murton last year with his team leading avg.- however he has consistent playing time ) Floyd and Ward are bigger hitters who are doing well. De-ROSA is unbelievable and clutch, and i would keep him in the lineup as much as possible. Honestly i think it would be better for Murton if he was traded to a team that would give him consistent time. Honestly i feel he is an all-star type outfielder who needs a team who can play him.......my option for Jim Hendry is to use him as trade bate and pick up a strong reliever who will help us through the post season and or a bigger and better hitter!
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