Austin Hedges Opens Up About His Drive to Become More Valuable at the Plate

Just four members of the Cleveland Guardians currently hold a batting average over .270.

And one of those individuals is veteran catcher Austin Hedges, who has taken major leaps in his game at the plate throughout the 2026 campaign.

While he has only played in 44 games, making him unqualified to rank within some of baseball's better batters, owning a slashing line of .270/.331/.383 has pushed his OPS up to .714, showcasing his value at the plate this year. He also has 31 hits, seven doubles and two home runs, tacking on 12 RBI along the way.

On Wednesday, July 1, the Guardians played host to the Texas Rangers for the series finale from Progressive Field. In the second frame, Hedges laid down a sacrifice bunt to score Brayan Rocchio and get the game's opening run on the board. He would grind out the bunt too, getting into first safely. Later, he would send a two-run home run deep into the left field bleachers, giving the team a must-need cushion as they would go on to win, 9-4.

He finished with a 1-for-3 mark from the plate with three RBI and two runs scored, playing a pivotal role in the Guardians' 45th win of the season.

(Via #Guardians Zoom) David Fry had some kind words for Austin Hedges' offensive development this season, too: "Austin stinks" 😂

"The whole world knows he's one of the best, if not the best defensive catcher in the game, but like what he's done, working on a swing, working on… https://t.co/FbdlrGtHXU pic.twitter.com/oSSG3GsEnX
— Mason Horodyski (@MasonHorodyski) July 1, 2026

"It's been really special," teammate David Fry on the growth Hedges has had at the plate. "I mean, the work he puts in, like, obviously, the whole world knows he's one of the best, if not the best defensive catcher in the game, but like what he's done working on his swing, working on approach, he's a problem in the box.

"Guy comes into the game throwing a hundred, and like no problem. He turns around, homer. Bunts in a run, like he does the whole offensive game super well. The at-bat quality throughout the year, even going into kind of last year for us, has been, has been huge for us."

The performance that Hedges put out on the diamond Wednesday isn't just a one-time thing. Many times this season, the 33-year-old, soon to be 34-year-old, has stepped up big at the plate for the Guardians.

Back in early May, he went 3-for-5 from the plate with two doubles and one home run, posting three runs scored and one RBI.

"Everybody in this room helps us win every day, and they're all here for a reason."

One of the #Guardians that took time to talk with Cooper Ingle after tonight was Austin Hedges, who had some insight on learning from mistakes their support of eachother. #GuardsBall @WEWS https://t.co/zLLXYkwuFV pic.twitter.com/23Tfi0JVi3
— Mason Horodyski (@MasonHorodyski) July 1, 2026

Known as "Hog" in the clubhouse, he credits his desire to continue playing the game he loves as the reason for such growth. He doesn't want to hang up the cleats and stuff the bat in his closet anytime soon.

"I've just been working really hard, man," he said following Wednesday's win. "I mean, there's nothing I've worked harder at in my entire life. I've just worked and worked and worked and I've wanted to give up a lot, and it's not been easy and it's not been pretty for about a decade. But the one thing I am proud of that I just haven't stopped working, and it's still a work in progress, I still have tons of room to get better.

"I'd love to play this game until I can't walk anymore, so to me that's a lot more years, and so I am not even close to a finished product. There is still a lot of work to be done."

Due to his limited usage, Hedges' advanced metrics don't display the full story of how he has been playing, but seeing some of his numbers in the great percentile show that he is making strides in the right direction.

He ranks high in squared-up percentage, chase percentage, whiff percentage and walk percentage, all characteristics of his game that he specifically said ties into his approach.

Cleveland Guardians, Austin Hedge — Jun 20, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Austin Hedges (27) during the game against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"The one thing you get in the game when you've been in the game for a long time is you learn what a good approach is," he said. "I tried a lot of approaches, didn't stick to any of them, and I kinda have a little bit of an approach that I just I stick to, and I'm convicted in that.

"That might change on a nightly basis, it might change on a pitch-by-pitch basis, but whatever I'm doing, I am very convicted in that, and that's really all that matters."

With recently acquired Patrick Bailey still trying to settle in behind the dish, getting the emergence of Hedges has been huge for Cleveland's offensive success this season.

Now, the hope is that he can keep this momentum rolling into a tough weekend against the Chicago White Sox at home.

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