Wright State Professional Athletes

For Wright State fans, the Atlanta Braves' playoff push this week doubles as a hometown showcase. Catcher Sean Murphy and designated hitter Drake Baldwin — both Raiders alumni — were in the starting lineup together as Atlanta positioned itself to clinch a postseason berth as early as Saturday, September 19.

Murphy Grinds Through a Tough Stretch

Murphy has had a difficult offensive September, but he's stayed in the lineup and contributed in key moments. He drove in a run in back-to-back games against the Cubs on September 14 and 16, and scored in both contests during a stretch Atlanta ultimately dropped. On Saturday against Houston, he walked twice and scored a run as the Braves took care of business in a 6-3 win — a result that moved them closer to a playoff spot.

His average sits at .179 through the week's final game, a reflection of a rough individual stretch, but his presence behind the plate in a lineup that also featured a fellow Raider speaks to the depth of Wright State's pro pipeline.

Baldwin Slots In at DH

Drake Baldwin, filling the designated hitter role, joined Murphy in the starting nine for the Braves during what could be a clinch window. The two Raiders in the same lineup, on a team playing for a playoff spot in mid-September, is the kind of moment that tends to get quietly undersold.

The Wright State Pipeline, Quietly Producing

Murphy and Baldwin aren't the only Raiders active in professional baseball. Tyler Black is holding down third base in Milwaukee, Quincy Hamilton and Ryan Weiss are both on Houston's roster, Jesse Scholtens is pitching for Tampa Bay, Justin Riemer is with Oakland, and Jake Shirk is in Pittsburgh. That's seven Wright State alumni across six MLB organizations — a remarkable footprint for a program out of Dayton, Ohio that doesn't always land on national radar.

But it's Atlanta where the story crests this week. The Braves' playoff push, with two Raiders on the active roster, gives Wright State fans something rare: a genuine rooting interest in a pennant race where their school's fingerprints are visible in the lineup card. Whether or not Murphy's bat heats up down the stretch, his durability in a starting role on a contender — alongside Baldwin — makes this a week worth remembering for the Raiders faithful.

When the Atlanta Braves needed someone to step up in the heat of a pennant race, their Wright State alum answered the call.

Catcher Sean Murphy has been one of Atlanta's most important offensive contributors over the final stretch of the regular season, turning a concerning .218 batting average entering the week of August 30 into a respectable .242 by September 2 — a surge powered by clutch home runs and timely hitting at exactly the right moment.

The Numbers Behind the Surge

Murphy's week started quietly enough with a hit, a run, and a walk against Colorado on August 30, but he also added a solo home run that proved pivotal in a tight 3-2 extra-innings win over the Rockies. Matt Olson's RBI single in the extra frame sealed it, but Murphy's shot kept the Braves alive. Two days later against Washington, he turned it up another notch: two hits, a home run, four RBI, and two runs scored in what became a dominant 9-0 shutout. Murphy's three-run home run came in back-to-back innings with Ronald Acuña Jr.'s own three-run blast, a display of lineup depth Atlanta desperately needed. By September 4, facing the Philadelphia Phillies directly in what amounts to a division showdown, Murphy drew two walks — not the flashiest line, but a sign of a hitter commanding the strike zone and making opponents work.

The Stakes Couldn't Be Higher

The Braves entered this stretch just three games ahead of the Phillies in the NL East, a margin thin enough that every game — and every at-bat — carries outsized weight. Atlanta had dropped a game to Washington earlier in the week before rebounding, and with Philadelphia lurking, there's no margin for error. Murphy's resurgence couldn't have been better timed. A catcher who was hitting .218 as recently as August 30 is a liability in a lineup chasing a division title. At .242 and climbing, with multiple home runs and big RBI nights on his ledger, he's becoming an asset.

A Wright State Product Delivering on the Biggest Stage

Murphy's emergence as a reliable MLB backstop has always been a point of pride for Wright State's program. The Raiders aren't a perennial baseball powerhouse, but Murphy's career arc — from Dayton, Ohio to the center of an NL East pennant race — is exactly the kind of story that resonates with alumni. His contributions this week weren't just statistical; they came in wins that directly shape Atlanta's postseason positioning.

The Braves' remaining schedule against Philadelphia will define whether this surge was enough. But for one week in September, the Wright State alum gave his team exactly what it needed.