Austin Hedges: The Perfect Washington Nationals Stopgap Behind the Dish

The Nats are one of the worst defensive teams in baseball, and it all starts with their tandem behind the dish. Here’s how they can fix it

The Nationals shortcomings defensively have been well documented both on here and by the fanbase as a whole. While they aren’t getting much value from multiple key position, such as shortstop and second base, the biggest culprit dragging down the unit as a whole is their catching tandem of Keibert Ruiz and Riley Adams. In terms of FRV (Fielding Run Value), Ruiz is the worst qualified defensive catcher in baseball, with Riley Adams coming in at 10th worst when you shrink the innings limit.

You could potentially live with their defensive woes if their bats made up for it, but they don’t, with Ruiz 72 wRC+ ranking last among all qualified catchers in baseball and Adams -13 wRC+ being, well, self explanatory.

So how do the Nats go about fixing their catching problem? Well for starters, it’s time they got some positive value on at least one side of the ball. Looking ahead to the 2026 catcher free agent class, the options aren’t thrilling, with 35 year old JT Realmuto and 36 year old Salvador Perez, both who are having their worst seasons in a long time, leading the class. Outside of them, it’s a lot of uninspiring options such as Danny Jansen and Christian Vazquez, really good blockers but bad framers and bats.

Assuming an ideal trade candidate doesn’t just pop up out of the blue, what can the Nats do to get some kind of value out of the catcher position? I propose that it’s time they go all in on defense behind the dish and sign one of the best defenders in baseball in Austin Hedges, and I have 2 specific reasons why.

The first reason Austin Hedges would be a big upgrade for the Nats behind the dish is his prowess defensively. Hedges has never been even a league average hitter at the big league level, but it’s never mattered because of how great he is defensively. He consistently grades out as one of the best framers in MLB, coming in at the 87th percentile so far in 2025, 82nd percentile in 2024, and 98th percentile in 2023.

No team steals less pitches from framing than the Nats do, and the difference Hedges would make for the pitching staff in stealing strikes would be night and day. Hedges can also shut down a run game, ranking 97th percentile in caught stealings above average in the league in 2025. While he isn’t grading out as an above average blocker in 2025 currently, this is likely due to a small sample size as he always grades out around the 90th percentile in blocks above average. Hedges is the full package defensively and in turn improves the pitching staff because of his experience and abilities.

The second reason Hedges would be an upgrade at catcher for the Nats is his renown as a clubhouse leader and the ability for him to mentor Keibert Ruiz. Hedges won the World Series with the the Rangers back in 2023, and was considered one of the leaders in the clubhouse despite being the backup catcher. He’s since spent 2 years in Cleveland, where he is a respected vet who has mentored their young catcher Bo Naylor into a much better defender behind the dish.

Hedges has been catching at a high level for many years now and brings a level of expertise that the Nationals catching coaches probably don’t have. The Nats are tied financially to Keibert Ruiz until at least 2030, so unless they plan to eat the costs of the contract, he’ll be around in at minimum a backup role for a long time. Therefore, they may as well do everything in their power to improve the defensive side of his game and, if he turns it around with the bat, allow him to reach his full potential.

Hedges is never gonna be a spark in the lineup as a full time starter, and he’s a guy you’ll want to pinch hit for late in close games almost every chance you get. But the Nats are hardly getting much offensive production out of the catcher position anyway, and are also getting nothing defensively. Hedges will come in and be the best defender behind the dish in Nats history, and be a positive influence in the clubhouse for not only the other catchers, but for all the youngsters. Ideally, sometime in the future either the Nats produce a quality catcher from their farm or are able to acquire one either by free agency or trade, but until then, Hedges will keep them from getting negative value behind the dish year-after-year.