Drake Baldwin Fantasy Stats

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin will serve as the team's designated hitter and bat out of the two-hole on Opening Day on Friday against the visiting Kansas City Royals and left-hander Cole Ragans at Truist Park, per MLB.com. At least until catcher Sean Murphy (hip) returns, the Braves plan to use Baldwin at DH and Jonah Heim behind the plate against left-handed pitchers. The 24-year-old Baldwin was named National League Rookie of the Year in 2025 after slashing .274/.341/.469 with an .810 OPS, 19 home runs, 80 RBI, and 56 runs scored in 446 plate appearances and 124 games. Baldwin had an impressive .299/.358/.460 slash line with an .818 OPS against left-handed pitchers last year, although only four of his 19 home runs came against them. There is plenty of counting-stat upside with Baldwin, who should be in the lineup regularly, even when Murphy returns. After what he showed last year, Baldwin should be considered a top-10 fantasy backstop.

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin looked quite comfortable in his debut campaign in the major leagues as he took home NL Rookie of the Year honors. In his first season in Atlanta, Baldwin would hold a strong .274/.341/.469 line with an .810 OPS. Baldwin would tally 18 doubles and 19 home runs, while scoring 56 runs with 80 RBI. He would not steal any bases but showed a solid eye at the plate, carrying a 68:38 K:BB. Under the hood, the young backstop generated a .353 xwOBA, .272 xBA, and .480 xSLG, which placed him in the 81st percentile or higher among qualified batters. He was also an elite defender, sitting in the 91st percentile in Blocks Above Average. With Sean Murphy (hip) still facing an unknown timeline, Baldwin is penciled in as the team's primary coach heading into 2026. Baldwin holds top-12 upside at the position, entering spring training.

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin was named the 2025 National League Rookie of the Year on Monday night. Baldwin, a third-rounder in the 2022 draft out of Missouri State, was thrust into action early in the 2025 campaign when Sean Murphy started the season on the injured list with a broken rib. Baldwin, who was the club's top prospect, took advantage to earn NL ROY hardware. He got off to a slow start at the plate but eventually figured it out and finished with a .274/.341/.469 slash line with 19 home runs to lead all NL rookies with a 3.1 fWAR. Baldwin becomes the 10th player in franchise history to win the award. His 75.3 mph average bat speed ranked him among the top 9% of qualified hitters this year, and he also finished in the 80th percentile or better in whiff rate (19.5%), expected slugging percentage (.474), expected weighted on-base average (.354), strikeout rate (15.2%), hard-hit rate (49.6%), expected batting average (.276), and average exit velocity (91.7 mph).

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin went 3-for-5 with two home runs and five RBI in Thursday's 8-6 win over the Marlins. These were his first two home runs since July 9th, but he has still been effective over the past month overall. He is slashing .287/.356/.484 with 13 home runs, 46 RBI, and 29 runs in 281 plate appearances on the season. He does sit against lefties oftentimes, but Atlanta has shown they are willing to start both Baldwin and fellow backstop Sean Murphy against righties, with Marcell Ozuna becoming a part-time player as a side effect. The 24-year-old is the future at catcher for the Braves and is hitting well enough to be considered a top-12 fantasy catcher, despite the platoon.

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin is headed to the bench ahead of Saturday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Baldwin is absent after starting in three of the last four games. During that span, Baldwin has gone 1-for-10 at the plate, so he could use a day off to reset. In his absence, Sean Murphy will do the catching and bat sixth versus left-hander Jesus Luzardo on Saturday. Baldwin doesn't see enough playing time to warrant rostering in anything more than deep leagues.

Atlanta Braves catching prospect Drake Baldwin went 3-for-4 with an RBI during their victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday. Baldwin knocked an RBI single in the fifth inning, which scored Nick Allen. The young backstop has begun to earn more playing time over Sean Murphy, given his recent surge at the plate. Over his last eight contests, Baldwin has posted an incredible .684/.684/1.105 slash line with two doubles and two round-trippers. During this stretch, he has only struck out twice. However, prior to this stretch, Baldwin was operating as the clear No. 2 option behind Murphy and posted a modest .250/.323/.393 line. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status as he appears to be earning the 1A role on the depth chart. If he continues to see stable playing time, he would be a viable No. 1 catcher in standard formats.

Atlanta Braves rookie catcher Drake Baldwin hit his fourth home run and recorded three hits in Monday's victory over the division-rival Washington Nationals. It was Baldwin's second start in a three-day span, something he had not done since Sean Murphy returned from the injured list in the 10th game of the season. Manager Brian Snitker said the hot-hitting Baldwin will start to play more, and he'll start again in Thursday's series finale against the Nats. The 24-year-old left-handed-hitting backstop should see fairly regular playing time against right-handed pitchers after starting his first MLB season hitting .329/.382/.557 with 11 RBI and eight runs scored in 70 at-bats. The former third-round pick in 2022 from Missouri State has 10 hits in 18 at-bats in eight games in May with two homers, two doubles and five RBI.

Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Washington Nationals. He also singled, doubled, and scored thrice in his first-ever three-hit outing. It's not a very big sample, but the 24-year-old is crushing major-league pitchers in his first taste of the bigs. He's batting a cool .329 over his first 70 at-bats, but has been even better across the last week. In six games over that stretch (two starts), Baldwin is a white-hot 9-for-14 (.642) with two doubles, two long balls, five RBI, and four runs scored. If he qualified, the Braves' No. 1 prospect would be among the top 1% of batters in hard-hit rate (66%). He's likely to keep getting at-bats if he continues taking advantage of them.

Atlanta Braves catching prospect Drake Baldwin went 1-for-4 with a home run during Wednesday's loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. This was Baldwin's first career MLB home run. He would hit the home run off Toronto closer Jeff Hoffman in the ninth inning. Baldwin opened the season as the team's primary backstop with Sean Murphy (rib) on the injured list. However, with Murphy back in action, Baldwin has fallen back to the No. 2 spot. Despite his limited playing time as of late, the 24-year-old has been heating up at the plate. Entering Wednesday's game, Baldwin held a strong .400/.471/.533 slash line over his last four contests. Fantasy managers in two-catcher formats should continue to hold the Missouri State product as he will still hold value given his emerging bat.

Atlanta Braves catching prospect Drake Baldwin has officially made the team's Opening Day roster, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Justin Toscano. This was the full expectation once it was announced that primary backstop Sean Murphy (rib) was expected to miss at least the first couple weeks of the regular season due to injury. The 23-year-old Baldwin has the tools to be a starting fantasy catcher and he could end up sticking around at the major-league level all year, even when Murphy is ready to make his 2025 debut. He has held his own in spring training as well, hitting .303 (10-for-33) with two doubles, three RBI and four runs scored in 15 Grapefruit League games. The Braves' top prospect, per MLB Pipeline, also hit 18 homers in the minors in 2024. In two-catcher leagues, take a chance on Baldwin.