ATLANTA -- Sean Murphy 's struggles over the past month were likely influenced by the right hip ailment that will be surgically repaired later this week.

Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said Dr. Thomas Byrd will perform season-ending surgery on Murphy on Thursday in Nashville. An MRI performed Monday morning showed the veteran catcher has a labral tear in his right hip.

“It’s been bothering him the last three years,” Anthopoulos said. “He said he would just grind through it and play through it and it would come and go. But in talking to Dr. Burke today, he was stunned he’d been playing the last three years with a significant tear.”

Murphy will need four months to heal, but the Braves are hoping he’ll come to Spring Training without many restrictions. If all go

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