Austin Hedges

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Contributes to win

  Rotowire Mar 31, 2026

  Hedges went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored in Monday's 4-2 win over the Dodgers. Hedges doubled to lead off the third inning and scored the Guardians' first run, and then singled to open the seventh and score the team's second run. This was Hedges' season debut after dealing with a hand injury that cropped up toward the end of spring training. He'll operate as the primary backup at catcher to Bo Naylor.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Back in lineup Monday

  Rotowire Mar 30, 2026

  Hedges (hand) will start at catcher and bat eighth against the Dodgers on Monday. Hedges sustained a hand injury toward the tail end of spring training, though X-rays came back negative. He's been cleared to make his 2026 regular-season debut Monday, allowing Bo Naylor to take a breather after the former started in three of four games in the Guardians' opening series against the Mariners. Hedges appeared in 70 regular-season games for Cleveland in 2025 and slashed .161/.250/.277 with one steal, five home runs and 10 RBI in 180 plate appearances.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Day-to-day after clean X-ray

  Rotowire Mar 24, 2026

  Hedges is considered day-to-day after an X-ray on his right hand came back negative, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports. Hedges had to leave Monday's exhibition against the Diamondbacks after being hit by a pitch. He has a bone bruise but managed to avoid any fractures. Hedges should be healthy enough to open the season as the Guardians' No. 2 catcher behind starter Bo Naylor.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Exits after HBP

  Rotowire Mar 24, 2026

  Hedges left Monday's exhibition against the Diamondbacks after being hit by a pitch on his right hand, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports. Hedges was hit by a pitch during his lone at-bat of the evening in the ninth inning, and he was unable to continue. He'll presumably be sent for further evaluation and can be considered day-to-day until the team has another update to share.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Re-signs with Guardians

  Rotowire Oct 14, 2025

  Hedges signed a one-year, $4 million contract with the Guardians on Tuesday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports. Hedges slashed just .161/.250/.277 with 10 RBI and 13 runs scored across 180 plate appearances in the regular season. However, the 33-year-old is great defensively behind the plate, so Cleveland will keep him around for another year to serve as a backup behind Bo Naylor.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Homers Tuesday

  Rotowire Sep 3, 2025

  Hedges went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's loss to the Red Sox. Hedges kicked off a six-run sixth inning with a leadoff solo home run. It's his first time leaving the yard since May 6 and just his second multi-hit game of the year, both of which have come in his last 10 games. Hedges is up to four homers and eight RBI on the year, while hitting a lowly .147 at the plate.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Filling in for resting Naylor

  Rotowire Aug 27, 2025

  Hedges will start at catcher and bat ninth in Wednesday's game against the Rays. Hedges will pick up his 43rd start of the season while top backstop Bo Naylor rests for the day game after a night game. Though Hedges continues to bring value through his game-calling abilities, he's remained an easy out at the plate in his age-32 season, slashing .140/.232/.240 across 141 plate appearances.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Returning to bench Sunday

  Rotowire Jul 13, 2025

  Hedges is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox. Bo Naylor will return to the lineup after Hedges had started behind the plate in three of the Guardians' last four games. Though the Guardians have turned the catcher position into more of a timeshare lately, Hedges' playing time should fall by the wayside as soon as Naylor begins to heat back up. Naylor is batting just .174 on the season, but he's gone 5-for-20 with three doubles and a 2:3 BB:K over his last seven games.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Activated from IL

  Rotowire Jun 13, 2025

  The Guardians reinstated Hedges (concussion) from the 7-day injured list Friday. Hedges landed on the injured list last Friday after getting hit by the backswing of Jazz Chisholm, but he will now rejoin the active roster following a minimum-length stay on the IL. The 32-year-old backstop is slashing just .113/.217/.283 through 61 plate appearances this season and will continue to serve as Bo Naylor's backup.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Resumes baseball activities

  Rotowire Jun 11, 2025

  Hedges (concussion) resumed baseball activities Tuesday, MLB.com reports. Hedges is progressing after being struck by the backswing of Jazz Chisholm during a game one week ago. He's eligible to come off the 7-day concussion IL on Friday.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Placed on concussion IL

  Rotowire Jun 6, 2025

  The Guardians placed Hedges on the 7-day concussion IL on Friday. Hedges will be eligible to return from the injured list next Friday, though his activation will depend on how quickly he's able to progress through MLB's concussion protocol. While Hedges is out, Dom Nunez will come up from Triple-A Columbus to give Cleveland extra depth at catcher.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Belts solo homer

  Rotowire Apr 17, 2025

  Hedges went 1-for-3 with a solo homer in Thursday's 6-2 loss to Cleveland. Hedges battled Tomoyuki Sugano in a nine-pitch at-bat in the third inning, with the former coming out on top with a solo homer to left field to give the Guardians a temporary 2-1 lead. Across his six starts this season, Hedges has gone 3-for-15 with five walks, two runs scored and two solo homers. He should continue to see semi-regular starts as Cleveland's No. 2 backstop.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Homers against former team

  Rotowire Apr 1, 2025

  Hedges went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk Monday in a loss to the Padres. Hedges made the most of his first game action of the regular season, swatting a solo homer to left field in the third inning. The veteran catcher has shown the ability to hit for power in the past -- he had 18 long balls in 2017 while with the Padres -- but he's been mostly a backup in recent campaigns due to a lack of on-base skills (his OBP hasn't exceeded .241 since 2019). Hedges is working as Cleveland's No. 2 catcher this season behind Bo Naylor.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Hits second spring homer

  Rotowire Mar 18, 2025

  Hedges started at designated hitter and went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Monday's Cactus League game against Cincinnati. The Guardians put out what looked like a normal regular-season lineup, except for Hedges. His main role is as a backup catcher, and he doesn't hit well enough to be a viable DH. At any rate, it was the second Cactus League home run for Hedges, who is batting .133 (11-for-30) with three extra-base hits and three RBI this spring.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Re-signing with Cleveland

  Rotowire Nov 6, 2024

  The Guardians agreed to a one-year, $4 million contract with Hedges on Wednesday, Buster Olney of ESPN reports. Hedges will return to Cleveland as Bo Naylor's backup. The 32-year-old slashed only .152/.203/.220 with two homers in 66 contests for the Guardians this season but is lauded for his defense and handling of a pitching staff.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Knocks second homer

  Rotowire Sep 12, 2024

  Hedges went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Wednesday's 6-4 win over the White Sox. Hedges' playing time remains sparse, and he hasn't done enough with the bat to challenge Bo Naylor for the starting catcher job. Since the start of August, Hedges has gone 7-for-40 (.175) with four RBI over 21 contests. He's now slashing .160/.213/.232 with two homers, 14 RBI, 12 runs scored and two stolen bases over 138 plate appearances this season.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Filling in for resting Naylor

  Rotowire Aug 25, 2024

  Hedges will start at catcher and bat ninth in Sunday's game against the Rangers. With top backstop Bo Naylor getting the afternoon off with a lefty (Cody Bradford) on the mound for the Rangers, Hedges will get the nod behind the dish. Hedges, who is hitting .152 over 105 at-bats this season, will likely continue to see limited usage down the stretch while Naylor is healthy.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Getting start for day game

  Rotowire Jul 30, 2024

  Hedges will start at catcher and bat ninth in Tuesday's game against the Tigers. Hedges is part of the lineup for just the second time in eight games, with his inclusion being the result of top backstop Bo Naylor getting rest in a day game after a night game. The Guardians value Hedges' pitch-framing skills and ability to control the run game, but he's a well-below-average performer at the plate, even by the standards of backup catchers. He enters Tuesday's contest with a .157 average and four extra-base hits over 90 plate appearances on the season.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Registers second steal

  Rotowire Jun 29, 2024

  Hedges went 1-for-3 with a stolen base and a run scored in Friday's 10-3 loss to the Royals. Hedges has hit safely in his last three games, going 3-for-8 in that span. The backup catcher has had a tough time seeing steady action with Bo Naylor and David Fry both ahead of him on the depth chart. Hedges is at a .154/.188/.246 slash line with one home run, two steals, nine RBI and six runs scored over 69 plate appearances. He should not be expected to produce much offense even on the rare occasions he's in the lineup.

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• Guardians' Austin Hedges: Draws start Wednesday

  Rotowire Jun 12, 2024

  Hedges will start at catcher and bat ninth in Wednesday's game against the Reds. With the lefty-hitting Bo Naylor hitting the bench with southpaw Nick Lodolo taking the hill for the Reds, Hedges will get a turn behind the plate. Hedges will be making his 19th start of the season and has provided most of his value on the defensive end, as he enters Wednesday's contest with an ugly .130/.158/.204 slash line.

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