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PITTSBURGH — There was some Atlanta Braves organizational debate last month about whether rookie Drake Baldwin would be better served staying in the majors in a backup role or returning to Triple A to continue his development by catching every day.
But there wasn’t too much debate.
And we’ve seen regularly, including Baldwin’s 11th-inning walk-off single Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds, why the “keep him here” opinions carried the day. Baldwin has shown consistently that he belongs in the majors and helped the Braves stay afloat during their six-week roller-coaster ride to begin the season.
“He’s helping us win games,” said Brian Snitker, who will start Baldwin at catcher Sunday in a series finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Braves manager continues to live up to his promise to the president of baseball operations, Alex Anthopoulos, after veteran catcher Sean Murphy returned from the injured list 10 games into the season.
“I told Alex, ‘We can break (Baldwin) in here,’” Snitker said. “He’ll catch Sunday, and I think we can get him enough (playing time) that he can help us, and it’ll be good for him. Just being up here with (coach Eddie Perez) is good — they’re working on different things — and I think there’s probably plenty enough (at-bats) for him and Murphy.”
Drake Baldwin has impressed coaches and veterans with his ability to stay sharp as a pinch hitter. (Brett Davis / Imagn Images)
Baldwin has been limited to pinch hitting in the first two games of the Pirates series. He had a ninth-inning RBI single Friday when the Braves didn’t score until the final inning of a 3-2 loss, and grounded out in the ninth inning Saturday, when the Braves won 3-2 in 11 innings with Matt Olson scoring the final run on a wild pitch.
Atlanta is 5-0 in extra-inning games, including three such wins in just the past five days. In the last two of those, Thursday against the Reds and Saturday at Pittsburgh, well-traveled reliever Scott Blewett pitched the 10th and 11th innings without giving up a run, despite each inning beginning with a “ghost runner” at second base.
The Braves, who started 0-7 and 5-13, will have a chance to reach .500 for the first time Sunday, when Baldwin will make his 16th start at catcher in the team’s 40th game. He also made one start at designated hitter.
Baldwin caught seven of the first nine games while Murphy was recovering from a fractured rib, and this will be his ninth start at catcher in 31 games since Murphy returned.
Among qualified MLB rookies, Baldwin ranked fourth in OPS (.821) and fifth in slugging percentage (.468) before Saturday, and among rookies with at least as many plate appearances as his 68 before Saturday, Baldwin trailed only the Athletics’ Jacob Wilson in both categories and was tied for third in OBP (.353).
“He continues to impress,” Olson said. “Just a solid at-bat, it feels like, every time he goes up there, regardless of the result. You kind of saw it early in the season. He wasn’t necessarily getting the (hits), but he was putting in good ABs, hitting the ball hard, just finding some guys’ gloves. And he’s continued that, hasn’t changed anything. And yeah, he’s very composed for a rookie, somebody we love having in the (batter’s) box.”
Murphy, who had seven homers and a 1.010 in his first 15 games off the IL, initially caught three of every four games with Baldwin as backup. But Baldwin’s performance — .286 with three homers, nine RBIs, a .348 OBP and .808 OPS — has earned the 24-year-old rookie a little more playing time.
Baldwin caught once every three games since April 20, before going three games since his last start Wednesday. (He came off the bench to pinch hit in the ninth inning Thursday and stayed in the game.)
“I’m so happy for him, for the whole organization, because nobody was expecting that,” Perez said of Baldwin’s overall performance. “Even me, I wasn’t expecting it. I knew he was gonna hit. Because the first time I saw him, he was a good hitter. But the stuff he’s doing catching, that’s what surprised me.”
Perez said most credit for Baldwin’s defensive strides goes to Braves minor-league catching coordinator JD Closser and Triple-A Gwinnett coach Wigberto Nevarez, the two coaches who worked closely with Baldwin for more than two years and helped him make major strides with his footwork and throwing, going from subpar to solid defensively.
“They’ve done a great job,” Perez said. “Because the first time I saw him, I said, ‘This kid needs to work as a catcher, receiving and throwing.’ And then I saw him at spring training (this year), and wow. And I keep seeing him and see the way he receives. He’s top of the list in the big leagues now, receiving. His throwing — we’re still working on it, but it’s much better.”
The Braves were confident Baldwin would hit, but most didn’t expect him to be quite so proficient, especially in big situations. He’s 2-for-6 with three RBIs as a pinch hitter, has a .290 average (9-for-31) with runners on base, and is 4-for-11 (.364) with a homer, five RBIs and a 1.053 OPS with runners in scoring position and two outs.
“I don’t know if you ever get necessarily comfortable in those situations,” Baldwin said of pinch hitting. “Just because normally it’s in a big moment, late in the game, and you haven’t been in the game. So, just try to stick to your plan as much as you can. Stick to just treating it like any other at-bat rather than making the moment too big.”
Even when he was hitting into some hard luck at the start of the season — his hard-hit rates have been among NL leaders all season — Baldwin didn’t change his approach.
“It’s pretty impressive for a young guy,” Braves hitting coach Tim Hyers said. “You have to give him credit because he didn’t go off the deep end and change a bunch of stuff (after the first week). He stuck to the process. You know he doubted himself a little bit, because he wasn’t getting the results. But his swing decisions, his eye at the plate? Phenomenal.”
Scott Blewett has done it again — 2 scoreless extra innings without allowing run to score, #Braves win 3-2 in 11 innings to even the series and improve to 5-0 in extra-inning games this season. Matt Olson scored the winning run on a wild pitch.
— David O’Brien (@DOBrienATL) May 10, 2025
Baldwin said it’s been “tons of fun” being with the Braves and that he’s not had any problem staying sharp. If he’s not starting a game, he knows to be prepared to enter as a pinch hitter or a late-innings sub if the Braves pinch run for Murphy.
“It’s a little different in the big leagues, because you have that opportunity to go and pinch hit late in games,” Baldwin said. “You have to be ready. You prepare each day like you’re playing, honestly. It’s not like in the minor leagues where you have a day off and you can kind of just lay back and chill.”
Snitker said it’s unusual to have a rookie who can thrive in a backup and pinch-hitting role, but Baldwin has shown since spring training that he was far more advanced than most prospects without any previous big-league experience.
“That’s a tough role to do,” Snitker said. “His at-bats all year have been really good. There’s just no panic in it, which is an unbelievable trait for a young guy.”
Even if he’s not playing, Baldwin said he’s able to continue developing areas such as blocking and throwing to bases in bullpen sessions and drills with Perez, and to grow mentally by learning more about the game daily from Murphy, Perez, and from Braves pitchers and veteran hitters.
“Just being on the bench talking with the pitchers and stuff, you still feel pretty locked into the game,” he said. “I know I haven’t started every game, but a lot of times there’s situations where Murph gets on and they pinch-run (for him). So you have to be ready to catch.”
Is Baldwin making a case to possibly get even more playing time?
“Kind of, probably,” Snitker said before Saturday’s game. “You know, when guys do good, that’s kind of what you look for. So, I don’t know. I mean, I just like what he’s doing right now. It’s really good.”
Perez said, “I’m so happy for him, for the whole organization, for everybody, because he’s doing really good. He’s getting better and better, and I’d love to see him play more games. But, you know …”
Perez didn’t finish that thought, but recalled a conversation he had late in spring training.
“Somebody told me, well, ‘He doesn’t need to be in the big leagues, because he’s not going to play,’” Perez said. “And I told him — I don’t remember who said it — but I said, ‘If I’m the head guy here, I want my two best catchers,’ and the two best catchers in the organization right now are Murph and him.
“He might not be happy not playing — I don’t think that’s the case because he’s happy to be here — but I like his role. I wish we could have three catchers so we can use him more (as DH), but that’s the way it is.”
(Top photo: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
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