Calvert Hall grad Murphy excited to join Orioles

The gymnasium was filled beyond comfortable seating capacity by the student body; all boys, separated by class: the freshmen and sophomores on one side, drowning in the fears that come with starting high school; and the upperclassmen on the other, swimming in complete pubescent testosterone.

Calvert Hall College High School in Towson had found ways in recent years to keep their annual magazine drive as one of the most profitable on the east coast. That morning, they introduced a new challenge that combined money and athletics, a magical concoction for high school boys.

It was a regular halftime challenge: if your name was called, you could decide between attempting a lay-up for $100, a foul shot for $250, a three-pointer for $500 or the fan favorite half-court shot for a grand.

When the chosen name was first announced as a freshman, three-fourths of the gym erupted in boos, the meager cheering overpowered, nearly nonexistent.

“Alex Murphy,” read the emcee from the slip of paper, “let’s get him down here.”

Through the first month of high school, Murphy did not know many of his classmates: he lived in Mount Airy, a near-two-hour round-trip from the school, and from most of his fellow Hall men. But, at that moment, the young freshman found himself in front of more than a thousand of his peers, the center of attention.

Murphy heard the pleas from the crowd which replaced the boos. They wanted him to take the half-court shot; they wanted the chance to see something exciting, or for the freshman to fail.

He had already decided what he was going to do if he were picked. With the basketball in his hands, he went to center court and toed the line.

Now, sitting in his new truck — which itself sits on new 37-inch tires — in the Calvert Hall parking lot, Murphy is no longer “a little freshman,” as he called himself in reflection, but instead a professional catcher in a Major League organization, drafted out of Calvert Hall by the Orioles in the sixth-round of last year’s draft.

Last summer, while his classmates were already settled on their college choices and turning their attentions towards graduation and the ensuing celebrations, Murphy was deciding between the MLB and college ball at Wake Forest. With the draft approaching, Murphy drew a line in the sand for MLB teams interested in him: if he was taken before the seventh round, he would sign; any later, he would play at Wake.

“I made the line there just because I didn’t want to sell myself short,” said Murphy. “I knew I had a very good opportunity at Wake, and I know not very many people get that opportunity. Both opportunities were good, so it was a win-win situation.”

The Orioles communicated with Murphy in the days before the draft: they knew where he stood, and they knew he stood firmly. The club told him they would select him in the sixth round. Murphy told them he would sign.

Even though he knew the Orioles had plans to take him in the sixth round, Murphy sat nervously on draft day in a restaurant near his house, watching the draft on the television with a group of family and friends. He knew another team could take him earlier, or even that the Orioles could pass on their commitment.

The Orioles held true, and as did Murphy: the O’s took him in the sixth-round with the 189th overall pick, and he signed the deal as promised.

“As soon as I saw my name go across the screen and heard my name over the speakers, it took the breath right out of my mouth and pretty much stopped my heart for a second,” said Murphy.

Growing up in Mt. Airy, a warm-up toss away from Harry Grove Stadium, the home of the Orioles’ single-A affiliate Fredrick Keys, Murphy had always been a fan of the Orioles despite being born in 1994, a witness to the club’s long stretch of ineptitude. With the team regaining it’s reputation as viable competition in the American League, Murphy looks forward to the opportunity to help his hometown team win.

“To be taken by the Orioles was probably the greatest experience ever,” said Murphy. “You grow up watching the Orioles and you always root for them and now they’re starting to get good, so it’s good to be a part of an organization that knows how to win games and is managed well.”

Murphy hopes to help the Orioles behind the plate as a catcher, the position he was drafted as and one that he has played since the age of six.

“As I grew up I just kind of fell in love with [catching], and now I can’t see myself playing anywhere else,” said Murphy.

He models himself after the Cardinals’ Yadier Molina, a catcher who is considered the best defensive catcher in the league as well as one of the bests with the bat. After drafting him, Dan Duquette had high praise for Murphy, telling the Sun, “He’s a big strong, kid. He has good range behind the plate. He has a quick delivery to second base. He comes from a good program, and we’re happy to have him.”

Garrett Walther, a former high school teammate and current pitcher at Towson University, calls Murphy the best teammate he has ever, and will ever, have.

“He deserves every cent he ever earns and every base he touches,” said Walther. “The amount of hard work I’ve seen with him … whether it’s lifting after school or throwing in freezing temperatures, he deserves it.”

“As a pitcher, I’ve never felt so comfortable pitching to someone,” added Walther. “I knew he always had my back.”

…

Sitting in his new truck, his first purchase after coming home from the Gulf Coast League, Murphy talked with me about his future — he feels the biggest area of his game that he must work on is consistency, and he hopes to be placed in Delmarva after Spring Training. There is also a college plan worked into his Orioles contract in the event that he is unable to play ball, but he prefers to not think about that.

“Hopefully we don’t have to worry about that and I make it to the big leagues and play for the O’s the rest of my life,” said Murphy.

Murphy also talked about his past at Calvert Hall, the institution that gave him opportunities to excel not just on the field, but also in the classroom.

“Calvert Hall was just a great experience and it gave me tremendous opportunities, academic-wise and athletically,” said Murphy. “When the pro stuff started coming in, [assistant head coach, Brooks] Kerr and [head coach/athletic director, Lou] Eckerl, they both really helped me a lot. … Their coaching level is so high and they demand such a — to the tee — perspective of baseball where they don’t accept anything better than success. Coming here was what I wanted to do, and it definitely gave me a good opportunity to further my career in baseball.”

Murphy remains close to Calvert Hall, his former coaches and teammates that are still playing for the school.

“I come back now and it’s like I haven’t even left,” said Murphy. “The relationships you build with just about all the people at Calvert Hall is incredible. I mean, I could call Coach Eckerl any day of whatever season it is and be like, ‘hey, can I come take BP with you guys or come throw or come use the weight room’ and he’s more than willing to unlock it even if school is out that day. This is a friendly place and everybody here, they all care about you, and I definitely recommend it to anybody who is looking into high schools.”

And that half-court shot he attempted his freshman year for $1,000, he never even thought about taking an easier option.

“I went for it because you go in having nothing and you do it for the fun of it,” explained Murphy, “and if you miss then you leave with what you came in with.”

So did he make the shot? Watch for yourself…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbNUPzLCvvk&w=420&h=315[/youtube]