Dale Murphy Is the Last Word in Atlanta

Dale Murphy.

That’s all you have to say and Atlanta Braves Manager Chuck Tanner, affable and never at a loss for words, gushes.

“I’ve seen him do things nobody in baseball has ever done,” Tanner said, “and I don’t mean on the field, I mean as a person -- a human being. There’s just no one like him. He’s one of a kind. And, he’s not a bad baseball player, either.”

Murphy’s feats as a baseball player are well documented.

The 32-year-old Murphy, who always has a ready smile and a pleasant word, is a two-time National League Most Valuable Player and is coming off what Tanner considers his best season after hitting .295 with 44 home runs and 105 runs batted in. In his 10 seasons, the 6-foot-4, 215-pounder has been an All-Star seven times.

Off the field, however, and before and after games, Murphy also excels.

“He comes out of the dugout to warm up and every night it’s the same,” Tanner said. “The fans want him to take pictures. They mob him for autographs and he signs them for 10-15 minutes. This goes on all the time and it never seems to bother him. I’ve never seen anybody like him in my 43 years in baseball.

“I try to help him out sometimes. I mean, he has to take batting practice and other things, but he doesn’t mind. I’ll yell to him ‘Hey, Dale. We’ve got a meeting in two minutes,’ just to get him away from the crowds. But he knows by now that I’m only doing it to try to ease him out of situations, and just waves me away, saying ‘it’s OK. No problem”’

To Murphy, who recently signed a three-year, $6-million contract, of which he donates 10 percent of his salary to his Mormon church, it’s part of his job, no big deal.

“I just try to maintain the same attitude day in and day out,” he said. “I try to recognize the fact that that’s part of being a baseball player. I try to accommodate the fans within the framework of my job. It’s just my personality.”

He said he doesn’t always sign every autograph, which is impossible, but will apologize if he can’t.

“I do have a schedule to keep and sometimes I just can’t. But I still try to have respect for people. I have found that I get that respect back from them if I show them that respect,” the Braves’ right-fielder said.