Patrick Bailey Has Quietly Improved Since Joining Cleveland Guardians

Bailey's offense has been much better since being traded to Cleveland earlier this season.

Jul 23, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Patrick Bailey (16) hits a home run during the fifth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Cleveland Guardians have seen an eerily similar amount of offensive production this season as compared to last season but have doubled their win total from this time last year.

It’s difficult to assess the Guardians halfway through the season, aside from the All-Star worthy performances out of some of their young stars. The team also features a good mix of new and tenured players who have contributed over the season, including catcher Patrick Bailey.

Bailey, who was traded to Cleveland back in early May, started off the season poorly, but has slowly worked his way into being a viable option in their lineup, especially after the Guardians sent fellow catcher Bo Naylor down to the minor leagues.

Now that Bailey is starting to find a rhythm with the Guardians, his stats comparing his time in San Francisco to his time in Cleveland show how much better he has been playing.

Bailey has been playing significantly better in his offensive categories

Jul 23, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Patrick Bailey (16) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the fifth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

So far in his time with the Guardians, Bailey started off about the same as he was with the Giants. Occasional hits, runs every so often, and a disappointing .150 batting average through the month of May. Everything turned around for Bailey once June came around.

During the month of June, Bailey improved his batting average from .150 to .224, recording 11 hits, three runs batted in, and seven runs in total. The home runs wouldn’t come until July, in which he’s blasted three so far, and two in the last week.

That takes us to the month of July, in which Bailey now has been hitting .325 through 24 days, with 13 hits, seven runs batted in, and seven runs in total. Through Bailey’s 114 at-bats during his time with the Guardians, he’s been significantly better than his time with the Giants.

Patrick Bailey has been a completely different hitter since getting to CLE:

SF in 82ABs: .146/.213/.183, 1HR, 5RBIs

CLE in 114ABs: .245/.287/.412, 4HRs, 14RBIs

He just launched a ball 420ft for that 4th homer

— Jake Vulinec (@VulinecJake) July 23, 2026

His fourth home run of the season came in their loss on Wednesday to the Twins, which was overshadowed by Gavin Williams’ immaculate inning. His home run was their lone score in their 3-1 loss, but noteworthy either way.

Bailey’s .245 batting average during his time with the Guardians is certainly worthy of being one of their two options at catcher. He would be their unanimous starting catcher, but fellow catcher Austin Hedges has been having a career year in Cleveland as well.

Either way, it’s safe to say Bailey has found his footing with the Guardians and hopefully can continue to contribute to help them get back into the MLB playoffs come October. Not to mention, hopefully he can stay consistent and not come back down to earth.