The Cleveland Guardians lost to the Baltimore Orioles, but without catcher Austin Hedges, things would have been much worse.
Hedges is having an amazing season to this point, certainly better than starting catcher Bo Naylor.
In the loss to the Orioles, he had an impact on the game offensively and defensively.
In the third inning, he gave the Guardians the lead with a solo home run, a back-to-back shot immediately after Daniel Schneemann tied the game with one of his own.
But that wasn’t all.
He showed off one of his most underrated tools behind the plate, his arm.
He caught Ramon Urias napping in the third inning, picking him off third base.
Later, in the seventh inning, Hedges threw out Jackson Holliday trying to steal second.
“He can change the game with his defense,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt told MLB.com. “We’ve seen that, people in Cleveland have seen that for years, and he’s the best defensive catcher on the planet for a reason. That back pick was huge. Could have helped us get out of the inning a little quicker, but — and then throwing the baserunner out, getting the basestealer.”
It might seem hard to believe because he is not much of a hitter, but Hedges is sporting a 1.000 OPS.
He is slashing .200/.400/.600 and has two homers.
Combine that with his defense, and you have a legitimate contributor.
Nights like this are a reminder why Hedges is on the roster.
He is widely respected for his defense and work behind the plate, and he can occasionally add to the offense as well.
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