Joey Murray

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #28 prospect in 2021
  TRACK RECORD: Murray racked up strikeouts despite modest velocity at Kent State and was drafted in the eighth round by Toronto in 2018. He soared up to Double-A in his first full season in 2019 and led all Blue Jays minor leaguers in strikeouts. The Blue Jays brought him to their alternate training site in 2020.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Murray piles up whiffs with a fastball that gets on hitters faster than they anticipate. It parks at 88-92 mph, with a slight uptick at the alternate site to 94 mph, and plays up with aboveaverage spin and late riding life. On top of its movement, Murray has exceptional deception that makes it difficult for hitters to track the ball of his hand, leading to an abundance of empty swings when he elevates his fastball. Murray's slow curveball gets mixed reviews. Some scouts consider it a fringe-average pitch that better hitters might lay off. Others see good rotation and bite to keep hitters off-balance. He throws a fringy slider and hasn't used much of his below-average changeup, with his changeup a developmental focus. Murray is a solid strike-thrower and a student of the game who prepares for the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineups.
  
  THE FUTURE: Some scouts think Murray's act may be more smoke-and-mirrors that won't translate against major league hitters, but he could develop into a back-end starter similar to Josh Collmenter, with a chance to get starts with Toronto at some point in 2021.
• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #27 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: Murray has cruised through the Blue Jays farm system quickly, with performances that jump out more than his raw stuff. In his first full season, Murray led Toronto's farm system with 169 strikeouts, 50 more than the No. 2 player in the organization.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: He does it without overpowering anyone—his fastball mostly ranges from 87-92 mph—but with a tremendous amount of deception. It's a high-spin fastball relative to his velocity, and because of how difficult it is for hitters to track the ball out of his hand, Murray is able to generate surprising swing-and-miss when he throws his fastball. He throws a slow curveball that gets mixed reviews from scouts, with the ability to miss bats and keep hitters off-balance at times, but it's often a fringe-average pitch and still inconsistent. Developing a better changeup would be big for Murray to play off his fastball, but it's still a below-average pitch for him. Murray is a solid-strike thrower who is smart and well prepared, studying the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineups. It's an unconventional profile, and while a lot of pitchers who rely on deception get filtered out once they reach the upper levels, Murray has already had some success at Double-A.
  
  THE FUTURE: He could end up breaking through along the lines of Josh Collmenter to develop into a back-end starter.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #273 prospect in 2018 draft
  Murray is a favorite of scouts and coaches because of his ability to generate swings and misses with very modest velocity. He's had one of the best seasons in college baseball, posting a 8-1, 1.63 line during the regular season with only 44 hits allowed and 132 strikeouts in 88.1 innings. Murray's fastball sits 87-90 mph, but he blows away hitters like he's throwing 97 mph. Murray draws comparisons to former MAC pitcher of the year Josh Collmenter, who has had a nine-year big league career after sliding to the 15th round because of his modest fastball. Murray has exceptional deception, but it's hard to give the 6-foot-2 righthander anything more than an average grade on his fastball because of its lack of velocity. His curveball and slider are both fringe-average pitches, but his swings and misses mainly come from the fastball. He doesn't really mix in much of a changeup yet. Murray's lack of velocity limits how highly he will be picked, but unlike Collmenter, he could jump into day two.

• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Murray racked up strikeouts despite modest velocity at Kent State and was drafted in the eighth round by Toronto in 2018. He soared up to Double-A in his first full season in 2019 and led all Blue Jays minor leaguers in strikeouts. The Blue Jays brought him to their alternate training site in 2020.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Murray piles up whiffs with a fastball that gets on hitters faster than they anticipate. It parks at 88-92 mph, with a slight uptick at the alternate site to 94 mph, and plays up with aboveaverage spin and late riding life. On top of its movement, Murray has exceptional deception that makes it difficult for hitters to track the ball of his hand, leading to an abundance of empty swings when he elevates his fastball. Murray's slow curveball gets mixed reviews. Some scouts consider it a fringe-average pitch that better hitters might lay off. Others see good rotation and bite to keep hitters off-balance. He throws a fringy slider and hasn't used much of his below-average changeup, with his changeup a developmental focus. Murray is a solid strike-thrower and a student of the game who prepares for the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineups.
  
  THE FUTURE: Some scouts think Murray's act may be more smoke-and-mirrors that won't translate against major league hitters, but he could develop into a back-end starter similar to Josh Collmenter, with a chance to get starts with Toronto at some point in 2021.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Murray racked up strikeouts despite modest velocity at Kent State and was drafted in the eighth round by Toronto in 2018. He soared up to Double-A in his first full season in 2019 and led all Blue Jays minor leaguers in strikeouts. The Blue Jays brought him to their alternate training site in 2020.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Murray piles up whiffs with a fastball that gets on hitters faster than they anticipate. It parks at 88-92 mph, with a slight uptick at the alternate site to 94 mph, and plays up with aboveaverage spin and late riding life. On top of its movement, Murray has exceptional deception that makes it difficult for hitters to track the ball of his hand, leading to an abundance of empty swings when he elevates his fastball. Murray's slow curveball gets mixed reviews. Some scouts consider it a fringe-average pitch that better hitters might lay off. Others see good rotation and bite to keep hitters off-balance. He throws a fringy slider and hasn't used much of his below-average changeup, with his changeup a developmental focus. Murray is a solid strike-thrower and a student of the game who prepares for the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineups.
  
  THE FUTURE: Some scouts think Murray's act may be more smoke-and-mirrors that won't translate against major league hitters, but he could develop into a back-end starter similar to Josh Collmenter, with a chance to get starts with Toronto at some point in 2021.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Murray has cruised through the Blue Jays farm system quickly, with performances that jump out more than his raw stuff. In his first full season, Murray led Toronto’s farm system with 169 strikeouts, 50 more than the No. 2 player in the organization.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: He does it without overpowering anyone—his fastball mostly ranges from 87-92 mph—but with a tremendous amount of deception. It’s a high-spin fastball relative to his velocity, and because of how difficult it is for hitters to track the ball out of his hand, Murray is able to generate surprising swing-and-miss when he throws his fastball. He throws a slow curveball that gets mixed reviews from scouts, with the ability to miss bats and keep hitters off-balance at times, but it’s often a fringe-average pitch and still inconsistent. Developing a better changeup would be big for Murray to play off his fastball, but it’s still a below-average pitch for him. Murray is a solid-strike thrower who is smart and well prepared, studying the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineups. It’s an unconventional profile, and while a lot of pitchers who rely on deception get filtered out once they reach the upper levels, Murray has already had some success at Double-A.
  
  THE FUTURE: He could end up breaking through along the lines of Josh Collmenter to develop into a back-end starter.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Murray has cruised through the Blue Jays farm system quickly, with performances that jump out more than his raw stuff. In his first full season, Murray led Toronto's farm system with 169 strikeouts, 50 more than the No. 2 player in the organization.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: He does it without overpowering anyone—his fastball mostly ranges from 87-92 mph—but with a tremendous amount of deception. It's a high-spin fastball relative to his velocity, and because of how difficult it is for hitters to track the ball out of his hand, Murray is able to generate surprising swing-and-miss when he throws his fastball. He throws a slow curveball that gets mixed reviews from scouts, with the ability to miss bats and keep hitters off-balance at times, but it's often a fringe-average pitch and still inconsistent. Developing a better changeup would be big for Murray to play off his fastball, but it's still a below-average pitch for him. Murray is a solid-strike thrower who is smart and well prepared, studying the strengths and weaknesses of opposing lineups. It's an unconventional profile, and while a lot of pitchers who rely on deception get filtered out once they reach the upper levels, Murray has already had some success at Double-A.
  
  THE FUTURE: He could end up breaking through along the lines of Josh Collmenter to develop into a back-end starter.