James McCann (BAL): 2-3, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB, SB.
The Hunger James
It’s not often we get to talk about backup catchers here in Batter’s Box articles, but James McCann’s big night made today’s featured player an easy choice. McCann led the way as the Orioles secured a 5-2 win in Tampa Bay, finishing the day 2-3, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB, SB.
With the O’s trailing 2-1 in the third inning, McCann got a slider from Ryan Pepiot that caught far too much of the plate and he didn’t miss it, giving the ball a 401-foot ride to left-center for his second home run of the season. He added a 99.1 mph single to right field in his next at-bat before capping off his night with a walk and stolen base in the ninth.
McCann’s season line of .211/.224/.326 comes out to just a 55 wRC+, and that’s the worst output we’ve seen from the veteran backstop. I have to imagine it’s pretty difficult to get in much of a groove at the plate when you’re playing the backup catcher role to Adley Rutschman and only starting a couple of times a week, but McMann does deserve at least a little bit of credit for his career-best 18.1% strikeout rate. While the on-field results don’t point to McCann providing much value, I’m sure his veteran presence on a team rife with young players goes a long way in the clubhouse.
Let’s see how the other hitters did Monday:
Gunnar Henderson (BAL): 3-5, 2B, HR, 3 R, RBI.
Now we go from an Oriole you rarely see mentioned here to one who’s become a regular to Batter’s Box. Henderson’s leadoff home run cracked things open in Tampa Bay last night, but he didn’t stop there, adding a single and double as the game went on. His 174 wRC+ is the 5th best mark in the majors and his 4.4 fWAR is second. He’s firmly in the conversation for both AL MVP and the best fantasy pick of the season.
Willy Adames (MIL): 2-3, HR, R, 2 RBI, SB.
The Adames comeback season is in full swing. After struggling last year with just a 93 wRC+, Adames is hitting .248 with 10 home runs, 34 runs, 45 RBI, and 9 steals. His two-run bomb in the fourth inning was the deciding blow in the Brew Crew’s 3-1 win over the visiting Blue Jays. All of Adames’ xwOBA, xSLG, barrel rate, and walk rate are 70th+ percentile, and the cherry on top is his excellent fielding. Statcast gives him five Fielding Runs, placing him in the 95th percentile of big leaguers.
Royce Lewis (MIN): 1-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI.
Locating a 79 mph curveball middle-middle is never a good idea, but especially so when the batter is as talented as Lewis is. Unfortunately for Nick Mears and the Rockies, that’s exactly what happened in the eighth inning of the Twins’ 5-0 win, and Lewis capitalized on the mistake. His 435-foot blast to left-center was the furthest hit ball of the day and his fourth big fly of the season. If you drafted Lewis, I’m glad you’re finally getting to reap the rewards. He’s slashing .333/.375/.952 through 24 plate appearances. And yes, that SLG is not a typo.
Jake Cronenworth (SDP): 2-3, 2B, HR, R, RBI.
I feel like I owe Cronenworth an apology. After he posted a declining wRC+ in four straight seasons, I was fully out on the Padres’ infielder in 2024 drafts. Well, wouldn’t you know it, he’s now playing the best baseball of his career. Cronenworth owns a .267/.329/.463 slash line with 10 homers and 45 RBI. His career highs in those stats are 21 and 88, so he’s well on his way to besting them. He was recently promoted to the cleanup spot in San Diego’s lineup and he’s absolutely earned it.
Luis Robert Jr. (CHW): 1-4, HR, R, 2 RBI.
With the miserable state of the White Sox organization, trade rumors are finally swirling around Robert. It may have been smarter for the team to move him during his 38 homer, 20 stolen base season last year, but if they do move the 26-year-old All-Star, they’ll still get quite the prospect haul back. Once again, injuries have taken a toll on Robert’s season, but after last night’s homer off Logan Gilbert, he has five tanks in just 13 games. His batting average is below the Mendoza Line, but he’ll be just fine once he gets settled in.
Alex Jackson (TBR): 1-3, HR, R, 2 RBI.
I had to do a double-take at Jackson’s season stats to make sure they were right. He hit his first homer of 2024 yesterday, but that still only moved his slash line to .061/.096/.143 through 53 plate appearances. I’d like to say Jackson’s -33 wRC+ is just a small sample size oddity, but the former first-round pick entered the year with a career 29 wRC+, so I don’t have a lot of hope here. Oddly enough, despite the putrid production, Jackson has started five of the last seven games behind the plate for the Rays, so they must believe he’ll turn things around soon.
Cal Raleigh (SEA): 1-5, HR, R, 4 RBI, BB
Raleigh certainly seems to have a flare for the dramatic. With things knotted up at 4-4 in the ninth, Raliegh came to the plate with the bases juiced and with one swing he unloaded them. He turned a 2-0 fastball from Jordan Leasure into a 383-foot walk-off grand slam, and an unforgettable souvenir for a lucky Mariners’ fan in the right-field bleachers. Seattle trailed this one 4-0 entering the bottom of the eighth and somehow walked away with an 8-4 win. If that doesn’t sum up this White Sox season, I’m not sure what does.
Jose Trevino (NYY): 2-3, 2 RBI.
Trevino isn’t the name you expect to pop off in the Yankees’ lineup, but he led the way for the team’s 4-2 win in Kansas City. Both of Trevino’s hits came against Seth Lugo, and three of his four batted ball events resulted in hard contact. Trevino’s almost in an exact 50/50 playing time split with Austin Wells. He’s slashing .264/.316/.388 with five home runs, making him a low-tier option in two-catcher or AL-Only leagues.
Austin Slater (SFG): 1-2, RBI.
Last night’s small slate of games made me think I’d be scraping the bottom of the barrel for players to mention, but the walk-offs out west added some late-night heroics we can’t skip over. In the Giants/Astros contest, it was Slater who provided the extra-inning dramatics. After Houston put up two runs in the top of the 10th, San Francisco answered right back with three runs and a walk-off single by Slater. He actually just missed the night’s second walk-off grand slam by only a couple of feet. Slater’s “single” was a 365-foot liner off the left-field wall.
Photo courtesy of Reggie Hildred/USA Today Sports | Created by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter/X) | Adapted on Mondays by Aaron Polcare (@bearydoesgfx on X)