“I won’t cheat”

Dale Murphy

In 1976 Murphy began his major league career with a nineteen-game stint catching with the Atlanta Braves. He appeared in only eighteen games the following season. In 1978 Murphy played first base mostly; at the plate he slumped to a .226 batting average, though he also showed hints of his future power by hitting 23 home runs. Playing in the decade before the Braves began their dominance of the National League East, Murphy also made his only postseason appearance in 1982. He succeeded although the eventual World Series-champion St. Louis Cardinals eliminated the Braves in the 1982 National League Championship Series. The league's most valuable player failed to translate his regular season preeminence into October success, hitting safely but three times and scoring only one run. Murphy rebounded from the postseason sweep with another MVP award in 1983. The period ultimately proved the high-water era of Murphy's career. Each year during the four season span from 1982 to 1986 he won a Gold Glove, appeared in the All-Star Game, and placed in the top ten in MVP voting