Background and career
David Matthew Murphy (born October 18, 1981) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Murphy was drafted in the 2003 MLB draft by the Red Sox. He made his MLB debut with the Red Sox, and was traded to the Rangers in 2007. He signed with the Indians as a free agent before the 2014 season, and was traded to the Angels during the 2015 season. Also drafted 1439th in the 2000 MLB draft but did not sign.
Born in Houston, Texas and raised in Spring, Texas, Murphy played high school baseball with fellow MLB players Chris George and Josh Barfield at Klein High School. At Klein, Murphy led the team to a state title in 1998 as a pitcher and outfielder, earned All-State honors, and was also a USA Today High School All-America Honorable Mention. As a senior, Murphy hit .500 with 12 home runs and 46 RBIs and was also a member of the National Honor Society. Murphy went on to Baylor University, turning down offers from the University of Texas, Rice University, and Texas A&M University. As a freshman, Murphy was the starting right fielder for the Bears, and hit .271 with five home runs. As a sophomore, Murphy hit .318 with six home runs, and hit .413 with 11 home runs in his junior and final season at Baylor. In 2001 and 2002, Murphy played collegiate summer baseball for the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod Baseball League, and was named a league all-star in 2002.
Murphy played for the Single-A Lowell Spinners, Single-A Sarasota Red Sox, rookie-level Gulf Coast Red Sox, Double-A Portland Sea Dogs, AFL Peoria Saguaros, and Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox in the Red Sox organization. In 2006 Murphy played 42 games for the Sea Dogs before being promoted to Pawtucket on May 26. While at Portland, Murphy had 47 hits in 172 at-bats (.273 batting average), with 17 doubles, 1 triple, 3 home runs, 25 RBI, and 11 walks. Murphy appeared in 84 games, going 85-for-318 (.267), with 23 doubles, 5 triples, 8 home runs, 44 RBI, and 45 walks.
Murphy made his MLB debut on September 2, 2006. He hit a 1–2 pitch into center field at Fenway Park in his first major league at-bat for his first major league hit (a single) on September 2, 2006. He hit his first MLB home run against New York Yankees pitcher, Jaret Wright, on September 17, 2006, at Yankee Stadium. In 2006, he appeared in 20 games for the Boston Red Sox batting .227 with a home run and 2 RBI.
Murphy began the 2007 season in the minor leagues. During his time in the major leagues with the Red Sox, he played 3 games with a triple in 2 plate appearances (.500 average).
On July 31, 2007, Murphy was traded to the Texas Rangers in a package that sent relief pitcher Éric Gagné to Boston. For the rest of the 2007 season, Murphy played 43 games with the Rangers batting .340 with 2 home runs and 14 RBI. Overall in 2007 combined with two teams, Murphy played 46 total games batting .343 with 2 home runs and 14 RBI.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
