Klein High School graduate Murphy leads Rangers over Detroit

Former Klein High School standout David Murphy ripped a pair of singles in three at-bats in the Rangers' 2-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers Aug. 11 in Arlington.

Murphy lined an opposite-field single to left in the second inning, and pulled another single over second base in the fourth, both off 2011 American League Most Valuable Player and Cy Young award winner Justin Verlander. In his third at-bat, Verlander got Murphy to pop out to center field.

Murphy, an outfielder and designated hitter, is batting .299 with nine home runs, 41 runs batted in and 38 runs scored this season. The Houston native has also smacked 19 doubles and a triple to go along with 38 walks and eight stolen bases.

For his career, Murphy, a smart and underrated hitter with some pop, is batting .283 over parts of eight seasons with the Boston Red Sox and Rangers.

He was traded from Boston to Texas July 31, 2007, as part of a package that sent relief pitcher and former National League Cy Young award winner Eric Gagne to the Red Sox.

Murphy made his major league debut Sept. 2, 2006, hitting a single off Toronto pitcher A.J. Burnett in his first at-bat at Fenway Park. On Sept. 20, 2010, Murphy had the first five-hit game of his career, including four singles and a double, in Texas' 7-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Murphy played three years of college baseball at Baylor University in Waco, where he hit .346 with 22 home runs, 142 RBIs and 147 runs scored for the Bears. In 2003, Murphy's junior year, he was named as a First Team College All-American outfielder, and a Big 12 Conference All-Star outfielder. He was also the Most Valuable Player of the Hattiesburg Regional in the College World Series.

Murphy, born Oct. 18, 1981, in Houston, was originally drafted by Boston in the first round (17th overall) of the 2003 amateur draft.