Braves rookie RHP Owen Murphy to face Rangers in first MLB start

The Atlanta Braves will give prized rookie right-hander Owen Murphy his first major league start on Saturday afternoon when they host the Texas Rangers in the second contest of a three-game series.

Murphy (0-1, 2.25 ERA) will oppose Texas left-hander MacKenzie Gore (5-8, 4.63)

Murphy, ranked as the organization's No. 5 overall prospect, has made two relief appearances since being called up from Triple-A Gwinnett. In his most recent outing, last Saturday, the 22-year-old fired three scoreless, hitless innings with three strikeouts as the Braves lost 4-1 to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Murphy was the losing pitcher in his MLB debut after giving up two runs (one earned) in one inning of a 7-6, 10-inning loss to the New York Mets on July 6.

Murphy was Atlanta's first-round draft pick in 2022. He was 4-6 with a 3.88 ERA in 60 1/3 innings at Gwinnett, holding the opposition to two or fewer runs in six of his eight starts, after going 1-1 with a 6.10 ERA in five starts for Double-A Columbus.

"I've been working with my pitching coaches down in Triple-A (Lance Carter and Tyler Dalton)," Murphy said. "They've helped me a ton and got me on the right track after a rocky start to the year. It's been great the past two months."

Gore, who will make his 21st start of the season, last pitched on July 12 against the Houston Astros. He threw four innings and allowed one run on two hits and one walk, striking out four, and did not receive a decision in a 6-5 win. With the Rangers facing a starting pitcher shortage after Jacob deGrom had to be scratched with a mild hip strain, Gore volunteered to start on three days of rest.

"He's been great," deGrom said. "He wants the ball. Mac wants to step in any way he can. It says a lot about the competitor he is. He wants the ball. He's going to take it. It's cool to see."

Gore, 27, has made nine career starts against the Braves, going 3-3 with a 3.56 ERA. He faced Atlanta twice last year and was 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA.

"He's an unbelievable teammate, competitor," Texas manager Skip Schumaker said. "He always wants the ball. He's a 10-of-10 competitor."

The Braves, who lead the National League East, won the series opener 15-1 on Friday night, recording 19 hits, including three home runs. Every position player in the starting lineup had a hit, and catcher Drake Baldwin had three hits and five RBIs.

"After a little break, you want to have something like this to get you going and get the confidence up," the All-Star catcher said. "It's definitely a different part of the season with the playoffs coming up in a couple months, so it's super nice to start with that and kind of remind us of how good we really are."

Texas left fielder Wyatt Langford went 0-for-3 and saw his hitting streak end at eight games and his on-base streak stop at 14.

Rookie Cam Cauley had a double on Friday, one of the team's five hits, and scored the only run for Texas. He is hitting .333 (4-for-12) in his last seven games and .250 since making his MLB debut on June 29.

"He plays one style, and that's all-out baseball," Schumaker said. "I'll take a hustle double anytime. I want him to play as hard as he can every time he plays. You obviously want to see more of that from him when he continues his career."

--Field Level Media