free agent reliever Noah Murdoch He announced his signing with the Buccaneers on social media. The minor league deal was reached last week, according to the MLB.com trade log.
Murdock, a 6-foot-8 right-hander, made his major league debut this year as a Rule 5 draft pick for the Athletics. He struggled in five weeks in Mark Kotsay’s bullpen, allowing 25 runs in 17 innings. Murdock drove in 20 runs, hit two more and had too many free passes. A assigned him a mission in mid-May. This brought him back to his old team, the Royals, and he was assigned to Triple-A Omaha. Murdock allowed six points per nine in 21 games before suffering a season-ending injury.
Season 25 clearly didn’t go as planned. Still, it was only a year until Murdock showed promise against senior minor hitters. In 2024, he totaled 62 2/3 innings of 3.16 ERA ball between Double-A and Triple-A. He posted positive strikeout (27%) and ground ball (59.7%) rates behind a 95 mph sinker and a pair of breaking balls (a high-80s cutter and a low-80s slider). Murdoch has so far been hampered by his inability to consistently strike out. He’s walked more than 10 percent of the batters he’s faced in every stop since rookie ball. Even in his otherwise strong 24-year season, his walk rate was as high as 15.4%.
Pittsburgh will presumably let Murdock take a look at major league training camp. He has plenty of options, and he could bounce back and forth between PNC Park and Triple-A Indianapolis if he makes the 40-man roster.
