making spectacular catches deep in the Valley. Murphy hit second in the lineup throughout most of his career with the A's batting behind Rickey Henderson. Henderson credits Murphy for helping him set the single-season stolen-base record of 130 steals in 1982. After Henderson stole his 119th base that season, he pulled the base up out of the ground and kept it. Afterwards, in an interview, he said, "If I could break this base in half, I'd give the other half to Dwayne Murphy." Murphy also credits Henderson with helping him have a good career. "I took a lot of pitches for him", Murphy said. "He made my career, I believe, because I let him steal and that put me in a position to knock in runs. I loved to watch him play. Let him steal second, let him steal third, knock him in. It gave me a respectable career." During his nine years with the Athletics, he played under managers Billy Martin and Tony La Russa. Detroit Tigers (1988) and Philadelphia Phillies (1989) After ten seasons in Oakland, he spent his final two seasons with the Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies. He played in 49 games with the Tigers in 1988, batting .250 with four home runs and 19 RBI. In his final season with the Phillies, he hit just .218 with nine home runs and 27 RBI. Yakult Swallows (1990) In 1990, he joined the Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League in Japan. Injuries limited his effectiveness, and the Swallows released him in August. Coaching career Following his playing career, Murphy began a coaching career. He coached with the Arizona Diamondbacks from 1998 to 2003, including serving as hitting coach in 2001, when the Diamondbacks won the World Series. In 2005, he was hired by the Toronto Blue Jays as a hitting coach, first for the Blue Jays' triple-A affiliate, the Syracuse SkyChiefs, and then later as a "roving" instructor, visiting all the team's minor league clubs to help players with hitting. Murphy held that position when he was named the team's first base coach on June 20, 2008, in the wake of Cito Gaston's nomination to replace the fired John Gibbons as Blue Jay manager. Blue Jays' outfielder Adam Lind revealed at the time that he had an intimate relationship with Murphy, "He keeps me loose", Lind said. "He can dish it out and take it,