Patrick Bailey homers twice versus Royals

With the American League Central wrapped up, Guardians’ skipper Stephen Vogt is using Sunday as an opportunity to give several of his regulars a day off including Ramírez, Steven Kwan, Chase DeLauter, Patrick Bailey and Brayan Rocchio.

Bailey was responsible for two of the Guardians’ six hits on the night. The Guardians were stifled by Michael Wacha for eight innings of scoreless ball on the night, but it was a decent night at the plate for Bailey, who has now hit safely in four of his last six games and is slashing .229/.345/.396 on the month.

Bailey connected on a three-run shot off Zack Agnos that turned a comfortable 5-1 lead into an 8-1 blowout. He’s homered seven times in 2026, and six of those have come in 58 games since being traded to the Guardians. Bailey is in the league because of his prowess behind the plate rather than his success at it, but he does occasionally remind why he was a first-round pick six years ago.

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.