Daniel Murphy Breaks MLB Post Season World Record

               In the top of the eighth inning at Wrigley Field last Wednesday night, Daniel Murphy hit home run No. 7 of this post season. As a result, Murphy became the first player to homer in six consecutive playoff games, breaking the record of five set by Carlos Beltran of  the Houston Astros in 2004. Murphy is now in a four way tie for first in baseball history with only 39 appearances to the plate. The other contenders for first have appearances ranging from 42 to 77, which makes Murphy's contributions so remarkable. Even more surprising, Murphy is not even a home run hitter at all, with only a career high of 14 homers the past regular season.        

                   

(The Mets' Daniel Murphy hits a two-run home run in the eighth inning off Cubs relief pitcher Fernando Rodney on Wednesday night to become the first player to homer in six straight playoff games, breaking Carlos Beltran’s record of five set with the Houston Astros in 2004.)

                   

                Sandy Alderson has been pondering what to do with Daniel Murphy next. Murphy, who is 30 years old, is proposed to command a three- or four-year contract worth about $10-$12 million a year. That is not a desirable investment to New York owners. Murphy is not an elite slugger, with a decent batting average of .288, it is tough to say whether he has grown into a consistent home run hitter, or his latest achievements were just pure luck. Frank Messina, the Mets long time friend, further reinstated the possibility of luck when stating, “Murphy’s ‘Ruthian’ accomplishment thus far can only be attributed to one thing: the four leaf clover he found at his Aunt Rosie O’Malley’s front lawn. That, and an incredible eye. He sees everything and has incredible intuition with regard to pitch sequence. In short, he’s on fire!” The Mets also hold younger, and faster players at their fingertips: Wilmer Flores, 24 years old, and has nice power. 21-year-old Dilson Herrera, a top-50 prospect with a nice track record of minor-league hitting, as well as  Ruben Tejada, who is sharp on ground balls, and scrappy at the plate.                           
               Initially, the Mets selected Murphy in the 13th round (394th overall) of the 2006 Major League Baseball Draft. After countless injuries, Murphy faced his first major league baseball game as the backup to starter Chase Utley in 2014.  Overall, he never really stood out, and had faced major cold streaks. Murphy explains his hot streak this season as the result of him stepping closer to the plate, and starting to pull the ball a little more, so he’s striking, grounding and flying out less. Although, we can assume that Murphy has possibly been a darn good hitter all along, and now has suddenly come into his own. In all, the Mets face a very hard decision whether to resign the man who no one knew was capable of hitting home run after home run, Daniel Murphy. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQQvMmiUooY

(All homers of Murphy in post season games)

Sources:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Murphy_(baseball)

http://themoderatevoice.com/209985/david-murphy-is-hotter-than-hades-no-one-knows-why/