Perrotto: Austin Hedges Has One Stat Hard To Ignore (+)
I might be an old man – or at least getting close to it – but I would like to think I understand modern baseball thinking.
Mind you, I don’t always agree with it. But I do understand it.
Batting average has been steadily devalued for over a decade. There is some sense to that notion as on-base percentage and other metrics are better indicators of a hitter’s ability.
However, forgive me for getting a little old school here. I’m a child of the 1970s and batting average mattered back then. If someone hit .300, it meant he was an All-Star-caliber player with no questions asked.
Conversely, a player who had a betting average under .200 was either banished to the bench or sent to the minor leagues.
That brings us to Austin Hedges, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ presumptive opening-day catcher next season. The Pirates and Hedges agreed to a one-year, $5-million contract on Saturday in free agency, pending a successful physical examination.
Hedges hit .163 for the Cleveland Guardians last season in 105 games.
Yikes.
That came after he had a .178 batting average in 88 games for the Guardians in 2021. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Hedges batted .145 in 35 games for the San Diego Padres and Guardians. He also had a .176 average in 102 games in 2019 for the Padres.
Yikes, double yikes, and triple yikes.
Hedges has now gone four straight seasons without hitting any higher than .178. That begs the question of why the penurious Pirates would be willing to pay $5 million to a player who redefines the Mendoza Line?
Defense is the primary reason.
Hedges has accumulated 71 defensive runs saved over the last five full seasons. He has also thrown out 30% of runners attempting to steal in his eight-year career, better than the 26% major league average in that span.
Another interesting defensive stat is that Hedges has just 18 passed balls in 573 career appearances behind the plate. He had only one in 839.2 innings last season.
The 30-year-old also has gained the reputation of working well with pitchers and being a strong clubhouse presence. Hedges also figures to be a good mentor when catching prospects Endy Rodriguez and Henry Davis reach the big leagues at some point next season.
Furthermore, the catching options on the free agent market were dwindling by the day. General manager Ben Cherington had to move at some point soon to secure a No. 1 backstop.
Jorge Alfaro, Tucker Barnhart, Roberto Perez, and Gary Sanchez were the only catchers left who might fill the bill.
The Pittsburgh Pirates had the injury-prone Perez last season, and he was a great fit before blowing out his hamstring, which ended his season after 21 games. With Cherington stressing defense first, Alfaro and Sanchez were not viable candidates.
Barnhart, a two-time Gold Glove winner, was a better option than Hedges. However, he wanted more money than Hedges is getting.
Austin Hedges certainly has some plusses. Yet, it’s still hard to get past that .163 batting average, even if it came for a team that won the American League Central title.
One sixty-three. 1-6-3.
Sorry but I’m having a hard time getting that number out of my head.