Austin Hedges' Impact On Guardians Young Catchers
The roles have been reversed for Austin Hedges. The last time he was a member of the Cleveland Guardians he was the everyday starter. Now, he takes a backseat and will assume more of a mentor role for the team.
Obviously, this means helping Bo Naylor become the best big league backstop he can be. Both Naylor and Hedges have talked about this budding partnership.
However, there's another catcher on Cleveland's roster who could see his fair share of time at the catcher position. This would be utility man David Fry. In fact, Fry came into spring training as primarily a catcher.
Hedges will do his part to help not only Bo but also Fry learn what it takes to be a major league catcher. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt broke down the impact that Hedges is having on Fry.
"He's already helped David a lot," said Vogt. "David has made unbelievable strides. I didn't know him last year, but just watching videos from last year to where he is. He looked unbelievable [against Seattle] catching. That's a testament to his hard work, to the coaching, and Hedgey's support."
Austin Hedges at Cleveland Guardians 2024 spring training.
Hedges' impact will be felt behind the plate, but it doesn't stop there. Vogt made sure to highlight this as well.
"He's gonna play a role for us, and it's going to be really important. We've talked and Austin knows he's equally as important when he's not playing. That's chatting with our starting pitching when they're not pitching, it's helping Bo how to navigate a full season as a catcher for the first time, being a leader in the clubhouse, being that loud and fun guy that keeps the energy up."
