The Guardians are in agreement with Austin Hedges on a one-year, $4MM deal, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. The Boras Corporation client receives a $4MM guarantee and the deal includes another $500K in incentives.
Hedges returns to Cleveland on the same contract he has signed in each of the last two offseasons. It’s his third straight one-year, $4MM guarantee to serve as the Guardians’ backup catcher. Cleveland continues to place enough emphasis on his receiving and game-calling ability to live with a complete dearth of offense out of that position.
Over parts of 11 seasons, Hedges is a lifetime .185/.244/.313 hitter. That includes a .157/.229/.251 mark in 326 plate appearances over the last two years. The 33-year-old isn’t going to provide anything offensively, yet he remains an elite defensive catcher. Statcast routinely grades him as one of the sport’s best pitch framers. He typically rates as high-end blocker, though this past season’s metrics were average in that regard. Hedges also cut down a third of the 45 runners who attempted to steal against him, well north of the 22.3% league mark.
More to come.