Murphy’s son Kai shares a special bond with his father
PEORIA, Ariz. – Kai Murphy always has been able to lean on his father, Pat, for anything.
It was interesting, then, when the roles were reversed a bit for the 23-yearold early this past November.
Craig Counsell had just bolted for the Chicago Cubs, leaving the managerial job with the Milwaukee Brewers vacant.
The team had interest in Pat, Counsell’s bench coach for eight seasons running. And Pat had interest in sliding into the head seat for the second time at the major-league level, but for the first time on a permanent basis (he was interim manager for 96 games for the San Diego Padres in 2015).
And so, the talks began.
Brewers general manager Matt Arnold told reporters on Nov. 8 that Murphy was “in very real discussion” for the position, and after all was said and done, the only candidate publicly confirmed by the team as being considered for the job.
While the Brewers mulled the possibilities, the Murphys were doing the same. Along with the managerial opening, following Counsell to Chicago and taking over as bench coach there was also a possibility.
“It was a lot of conversation,” Kai recalled one morning during spring camp at the San Diego Padres complex in Peoria. A minor-league outfielder, he twice had the opportunity to play against the Brewers, and in the teams’ first meeting Kai even registered a two-RBI double after exchanging lineup cards with his father.
“I don’t live with my pops (in Mesa) during the offseason – I live in Scottsdale – but I was over there pretty much every night during that week,” he continued. “He was like, ‘Hey, man, talk it out with me.’ And we spent hours and hours on the couch just like, ‘If I do this it means this, it means this, this and this.’ And, ‘What does it mean for our family? What does it mean for you?’
“And man, I credit him. It’s not about him. He’s thinking about what it means for me, what it means for my little brothers. It was a really selfless process for him.”
As it turned out, the Brewers identified Murphy as their man.
So, father and son put their heads together again.
“He was like, ‘ Hey, I got an offer. I really like it.’ And we bounced it off each other for a day or two,” Kai said. “And at the end of the day, I was like, ‘I’m never going to tell you what to do. It’s got to come from you. It’s got to come from your heart, come from your soul.’ And I left.
“I forget what day it was, he picked up the phone probably 8 o’clock, 9 o’clock at night. I picked up the phone. ‘Hey, took the job.’ And I just heard it in his voice. There was this joy and relief – he’d really been grinding the whole week thinking of what to do and if he was going to get the job.
“Man, just that joy and relief in his voice, and it was cool to hear as a son. I almost teared up.”
Murphy signed a three-year contract and was officially named the 20th manager in Brewers history on Nov. 15, 2023 with Rickie Weeks also moving from his previous role in player development to associate manager.
It was interesting to hear that, in Kai’s recollection, it still took time before the decision was made to accept. If the family considerations already had been worked out, were there other concerns?
“It’s kind of the business of it. He wanted to make sure that the Brewers were going to give him a fair shot,” Kai said. “You know, not just a one-year, hold us over until we get (Brandon Woodruff) back and everything. It was important to him that he got a real shot and they believed in him enough to give him that shot with a little bit of a longer deal.
“So, when he confirmed that he was going to get that shot and that they believed in him and they were going to give him some firepower, it was a no-brainer after that. Obviously, he loves Milwaukee. He loves the people, he loves the fans, the clubhouse, the staff.”
The real tale will be told once the games start counting March 28. But to this point, Murphy is thriving in his new role as overseer of the on-field product.
While media and the fans saw only snippets of his sometimes fiery personality during his time as Counsell’s righthand man, Murphy certainly spiced up what can sometimes be drudgery in spring training with plenty of fun nicknames for his players, anecdotes for the reporters and just an overall different take on things.
“Not that there’s pressure, but he loves being in that spot, being ‘ The Man,’” Kai said. “He’s got to take the brunt of the wins and the losses. A lot of people might shy away from that kind of burden, I guess you’d say, but I think he loves that. He loves really being able to impact guys. And it’s great that there’s potentially such a young team coming in with the Brewers.
“I I think it’s a cool opportunity for him to really impact some young guys and, hopefully, just do a great thing over there and get everyone going in the right direction.”
Kai is one of Murphy’s four children; there is also daughter Keli and young sons Austin and Jaxon. Murphy also has two granddaughters, Lucelia and Nayli Rose.
Unsurprisingly, family has been a priority for Murphy despite the fact baseball has, for the most part, ruled his adult life. First came big-time collegiate coaching jobs at Notre Dame and Arizona State. He then managed five seasons in San Diego’s minor-league system before taking over for Bud Black with the Padres.
Asked what kind of father he’s been, Kai left no doubt.
“It’s funny, because you see him as a coach, you see him as a manager, and people maybe have this certain perspective of him, or this certain image,” he said. “And there is some of that – being a baseball player growing up – a little bit of tough love in there. He calls it love and discipline, in that order.
“As a kid, there were days where I was just like, ‘ Man, this guy’s just really grinding on me. Why is he saying that right now? And being a 23-year-old now, and looking back at how my life has gone and everything that’s gone on, I can’t help but say, ‘ How was he so smart? How did he know? That was just the thing I needed to hear in that moment?’
“He let me fail plenty of times. And he’s also been the most protective. It’s hard to put into words how great of a person and a dad he is. And, he’s my best friend. I talk to him every single day of my life. And I couldn’t imagine where I’d be without him.”
Kai went undrafted after playing collegiately at both Oregon State and Arizona State but signed with the Padres in 2022.
Measuring 5-foot-8 and 173 pounds, he’s a left-handed-hitting and throwing outfielder who is seeking to build off a promising 2023 season that saw him hit .264 with seven home runs, 38 runs batted in and 12 stolen bases over 89 games at two levels. He topped out at advanced Class A Fort Wayne in the Midwest League.
He’ll continue the grind this season with an eye on reaching Class AA San Antonio, all the while talking through his experiences with his father.
“It’s usually at night,” Kai said. “We’re on the same schedule, pretty much. So during the day we get pretty busy and we don’t really talk too much. But every night after my game or his game, depending on where we’re at, we just hop on the phone, and he’ll go on about who had a good night and a bad night for the Brewers. He watches our games too, so I’ll tell him what I thought about my atbats.
“Sometimes he’ll just let me talk and sometimes he knows when I need to hear something. He has a really good feel for that. He’s my guy I go to for everything in terms of, maybe a little swing adjustment. Anything, I just call him and I talk it through with him. And he’s always really supportive.
“He’s been a rock for me. He’s incredible.”
The Brewers, meanwhile, are about to embark on what should be an interesting season featuring a number of new faces. Expectations are much higher internally than externally, with many predicting an average season at best for Milwaukee in what should be a competitive National League Central.
Go ahead and doubt. The Murphys eat it up.
“Long story short, it’s been a long road for him,” Kai said. “And to see him finally get his shot and have an organization that believes in him and has given him some firepower, it’s pretty special to see.
“I can’t even put into words how proud I am of him.”