Patrick Bailey hits three-run shot in blowout win

Bailey exacted revenge against his former club in the opening inning, smacking a two-out RBI single that increased the Guardians’ lead to 3-0 and proved to be the difference in the ballgame. He then singled in the fourth inning and swiped second base before being stranded there. Bailey also walked in the sixth and scored on an RBI knock by Steven Kwan. With his two-hit afternoon, the 27-year-old backstop is now hitting .189/.247/.295 with six homers, 26 RBI and three stolen bases on the year.

It held up early in the game, but the Twins tied it 1-1 in the eighth and Bailey failed to get a bunt down to move the ghost runner over in extra innings in one of an incredible four straight half-innings in which neither team scored. Bailey has now hit three homers and batted .277/.320/.511 in his last 15 games. It’s a fun hot streak, but Bailey is not in the big leagues for his bat.

It’s his first four-hit game in two years and fourth of his career. Bailey had the one of the seven Guardians homers that wasn’t off Joe Ryan, as he took Woo-Suk Go deep in the seventh. That was his fourth homer in 207 plate appearances this season and third in 118 plate appearances since he was traded to Cleveland. He’s batting .239/.276/.385 for his new team, which is a modest improvement over his .224/.282/.329 line in parts of four seasons with the Giants.

Bailey opened the scoring in the ballgame with an RBI single off of Jack Flaherty in the second inning. He then raced around to score on Brayan Rocchio’s RBI triple. With his two-hit attack, the 27-year-old backstop is now hitting a cringe-inducing .165/.222/.248 with just two homers and 10 RBI in 144 plate appearances. For at least one night though, Bailey got to feel like an integral part of the Guardians’ offense on Friday.

Bailey’s 407-foot blast increased the Guardians’ lead from two runs to three in the eighth. He’s 2-for-18 for his new team after hitting .146/.213/.183 in 30 games with the Giants. The 2-for-18 has actually raised his season OPS from .396 to .414.

Bailey was acquired in a stunning deal from the Giants on Sunday. While he isn’t much with the bat, the 26-year-old is widely regarded as one of the top defensive catchers in baseball and he should have an immediate impact on the Guardians’ pitching staff.

The stunning early-season trade is now official. Bailey is universally regarded as one of the top defensive specialists in the entire game and should immediately strengthen Cleveland’s entire pitching staff. The 26-year-old backstop is a non-factor at the plate, but he’s a two-time Gold Glove Award winner and seems to fit the mold of what the Guardians front office is looking for in a defensive-oriented starting catcher. It’ll be Bo Naylor heading to Triple-A while veteran Austin Hedges sticks around as his caddy. Bailey’s departure means the Giants are going to roll with youngsters Daniel Susac and Jesus Rodríguez as their catching tandem moving forward.

It’s the first significant trade to hit the baseball world this season as San Francisco begins pivoting towards a more long-term rebuilding project after an abysmal start to the year. Bailey is widely regarded as one of the top defensive catchers in baseball and seems like the perfect fit for Cleveland’s front office, which has employed light-hitting defensive wizard Austin Hedges for more than a half-decade. The first-round pick will be the 29th overall selection in the 2026 MLB Draft while Wilkinson is one of the more intriguing left-handed prospects in the game. He’s put up astronomical strikeout totals in the lower minors and has looked extremely impressive at the Double-A level this season. There aren’t a lot of fantasy takeaways from this deal, but Bailey should help improve Cleveland’s entire pitching staff.

Bailey has been atrocious with the bat in 2026, and it’s more than fair to be surprised that he’s the one who hits the go-ahead shot off Jack Dreyer with two runners on to give San Francisco a 3-0 lead and ultimately the win. The backstop has his first homer of the season, and he’s still slashing an ugly .155/.222/.207. Something tells us San Francisco fans don’t care too much about that right now.

It’s a tough break for the rookie backstop after hitting the shelf prior to Tuesday’s series opener against the Dodgers. The 24-year-old was off to a hot start, hitting .478 (11-for-23) with three extra-base hits and five RBI in 11 games. It’ll be Eric Haase coming up to handle the backup catching duties in his absence behind starter Patrick Bailey.