The Atlanta Braves played their 60th game of the season on Wednesday night. In the bottom of the ninth inning of a 2-0 game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Braves rookie catcher Drake Baldwin came to the plate with the bases loaded. Already 0-1 in the game, Baldwin had an opportunity to add another highlight to an already strong first half of his rookie season.
Baldwin walked to drive in a run and make the score 2-1 in favor of Arizona. However, the Braves would go on to lose by the same score following a Michael Harris strikeout.
National League Rookie of the Month, Drake Baldwin, has now played in 39 games for the Braves, and for the most part, he has been quite effective.Â
When Baldwin, 24, got his shot behind the dish and at the plate, he has been productive. In 112 at-bats, Baldwin has hit six home runs, driven in 17 runs, scored 12 runs, batted .318, and had a .882 OPS. The rookie has shown a veteran’s eye at the plate, only striking out 11 times this season. That at-bat in the bottom of the ninth was indicative of that level of patience.
Over the past seven games, Baldwin’s numbers have been a bit pedestrian. In 21 at-bats, he has only five hits, a home run, and a .238 batting average. Despite that week of play, Baldwin contributes to team success in more ways than one.
On Tuesday, during an 8-3 loss to the Diamondbacks, Baldwin displayed why he should be in the lineup more, throwing out a pair of Diamondbacks runners at second base and first base, respectively.
As the rain fell on Truist Park, Baldwin was out of the starting lineup on Wednesday, and seven-year veteran catcher Sean Murphy was back in. Following an hour-long rain delay and a few innings, Baldwin still found a way to contribute.
Here’s to hoping he gets more at-bats as the season goes on.
