Brady Murrietta has the unique opportunity to catch two of the top pitchers in the 2026 high school class at Orange Lutheran (Calif.) High School. The highly touted backstop catches right-handers Cooper Sides and Gary Morse, gaining firsthand experience in managing elite arms and understanding what it takes to work with high-level pitching.
A defensive-first catcher by description, Murrietta has steadily developed offensively through dedicated work on his craft, emerging as an intriguing, well-rounded prospect. Scouts believe that with a strong spring, he could firmly position himself as an early-round candidate for July’s MLB draft.
“Honestly, starting as a freshman was intimidating,” Murrietta said. “Coming into a school with so many top-ranked guys and scouts at every game, it was a lot. But the development here has been huge. At Lutheran, we get treated like college prospects, not just a high school team. The talent we have this year, especially in my four years, is unreal. We know we’re an elite, competitive team, and we push each other to be better than everyone else.”
Murrietta is a 5-foot-10, 205-pound right-handed-hitting catcher with a polished, well-rounded skill set. He stands out defensively as a smooth, flexible receiver with soft hands who frames pitches effectively and blocks well behind the plate. While his raw arm strength is average, he compensates with a quick exchange, compact arm action and accurate throws, cutting his pop times to under 2.0 seconds at his best.
“I’m always going to pride myself on being a defensive catcher first,” Murrietta said. “Even at a young age, being the catcher and captain on the field, I feel like my leadership is one of my most important tools. That component helps so much with catching.”
Offensively, Murrietta has performed at a high level, featuring a simple, compact swing with quiet hands, good balance and strong bat-to-ball skills. He makes consistent contact, drives the ball with doubles power to both alleys and shows a particular ability to wear out right-center field. He hits from a slightly open stance with a short stride and positive weight shift, using a rotational swing and hard turn to impact the ball when he gets the barrel out front.
“I know what my strengths are. I know if you throw that pitch away, that I’m going to go with it. I’m not going to try to pull that ball and hit it out of the yard. That’s just now who I am as a hitter,” Murrietta said. “I’ve never tried to put one in the right-center field gap. I just go up there trying to do damage, regardless of where the ball is pitched.”
Beyond his draft prospects, Murrietta is also a Texas commit. He committed to Texas in the months leading up to his freshman year of high school due to the program’s strong reputation for winning and developing talent.
His dad, Jason, coached college baseball at Cal State Fullerton from July 2017 to September 2022, and his experience at the college level also played a valuable role in his decision-making process.
“Because my dad coached at Cal State Fullerton, Augie Garrido was always a household name,” Murrietta said. “When he coached at Texas, he was always known by the coaches at Cal State Fullerton. So Texas was always a staple in my mind. We made a list of qualities that we wanted from a school. There was a lot that went into it. There was nothing that could tell me no when it came to going to Texas. It’s Austin, and then they have one of the best coaching staffs in baseball.”
Dan Zielinski III has covered the MLB draft for 11 years. He has interviewed 613 of the top draft prospects in that period, including four No. 1 overall picks. Multiple publications, including Baseball America, USA Today, MLB.com, The Arizona Republic and The Dallas Morning News, have quoted his work, while he has appeared on radio stations as an “MLB draft expert.” Follow him on Twitter @DanZielinski3.
