Murphy’s postseason surge continues

Here’s how good Daniel Murphy has been this postseason: With first base open in the bottom of the third and Yoenis Cespedes on deck, NL Cy Young candidate Jake Arrieta walked Murphy intentionally.

“Surprised,” Murphy said of his reaction to the move. “[Cespedes] hit 35 bombs this year. I was surprised.”

And not surprisingly, the move didn’t work, as Cespedes singled in Curtis Granderson from third and the Mets were on their way to a 41 win over the Cubs in Game 2 of the NLCS.

The decision by Chicago manager Joe Maddon wasn’t all that crazy, either, considering the run Murphy has been on this October.

The second baseman got Citi Field shaking early on Sunday, ripping yet another homer, this one a tworun shot off Arrieta in the bottom of the first to put the Mets up, 30 after David Wright’s RBI double made it 10.

“All of a sudden you look up after eight to 10 pitches and two batters, we’ve got a 10 lead and David [Wright’s] in scoring position,” Murphy said. “I’m really looking to hook something to the second baseman or first baseman.”

Instead, he hooked it into the rightfield seats.

It was Murphy’s fifth homer this postseason and they have come against the likes of Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke of the Dodgers and Jon Lester and Jake Arrieta of the Cubs.

All this from a guy that hit just 14 homers in the regular season, a careerhigh.

“As a teammate and as a hitter, very rarely do you see somebody get this hot against average pitching,” Wright said. “Then you throw in that it’s [Clayton] Kershaw, [Zack] Greinke twice each, [Jon] Lester, [Jake] Arrieta. I mean, that’s impressive. I said it after the Dodgers series, he’s about as locked in as I’ve seen a hitter and he’s carried that out now for, what’s it been, seven games? That’s quite a feat, especially in the playoffs against this pitching.” Murphy put it simply. “I definitely am seeing the ball well right now,” Murphy said. “So, that’s nice.”