The Atlanta Braves strong start to the 2026 season has been the best, and arguably the most surprising, in all of baseball. After missing the 2025 playoffs, they now own the best record in the MLB thanks to high-level play on the mound and at the plate, overcoming offseason injuries and a key suspension that downgraded expectations for the season.
READ: Drake Baldwin Cementing Himself as One of the Best Catchers in Baseball | mlbbro.com
And although multiple players have shined for the Braves through nearly the first quarter of the campaign, a headliner has been catcher Drake Baldwin, who’s making an early season case for National League MVP.
It’s been the opposite of a sophomore slump for the 2025 NL Rookie of the Year.
Drake Baldwin Is Doing MVP Things In Atlanta
He’s batting .305 with nine home runs, 46 hits and 30 RBIs across 37 games. His hits total is the most amongst MLB catchers — third-most in the league — his home runs and RBIs are the second-most and he ranks third in batting average.
He’s on pace to finish the regular season with 201 hits and 131 RBIs.
Of course, this feat is no slouch. The last player to record 200-plus hits and 130-plus RBIs in one season was Miguel Cabrera in 2012, where he won the American League Triple Crown.
Still, it puts into context how much of a tear Baldwin has been on, and it doesn’t matter where he’s placed in the lineup either.
The 25-year-old was moved into the leadoff spot on Tuesday after Ronald Acuña Jr. suffered a left hamstring strain on Saturday that sent him to the 10-day IL. And on the third pitch of his first plate appearance in the new role, he homered to right center.
The solo blast proved to be critical by the contest’s end, as Braves beat the Seattle Mariners, 3-2. That sums up the type of season he’s having.
Historic contract extension on the way?
Baldwin has quickly cemented himself as a cornerstone for the Braves franchise after 2025, an all-star appearance and his hot start to 2026. There’s no question that he’s one of the best catchers in the MLB currently. And at just 25 still sitting on his rookie deal, it begs the question of when contract extension conversations will commence.
Better yet, what will be the price tag the Braves and its young star will land on.
‘Those Are The Special Hitters’: Is Drake Baldwin The Black Buster Posey?
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that the Braves, however, haven’t ‘seriously’ engaged in extension discussions with Baldwin. He tied the club’s hesitancy to the wear and tear on the catcher position, the biggest proponent to their shortened careers and why many move to a different position as their career continues.
Can Drake Baldwin’s New Deal Exceed Joe Mauers 8-Year/$184M Deal In 2013
Joe Mauer still holds the title for largest MLB contract for a catcher, who signed an eight-year, $184 million extension in 2013. Other notable contracts among current catchers is Los Angeles Dodgers’ Will Smith, signing a 10-year, $140 million extension in March 2024 and Mariners’ Cal Raleigh’s six-year/$105 million extension in March 2025.
The last Braves catcher to be extended was Sean Murphy for $73 million across six years. It’s hard to compare Baldwin, who has one year of service time under his belt, to a Hall of Famer like Joe Mauer and a trio of players that had three or more years in the majors before their extensions.
But Baldwin’s short yet stocky resume muddies up this conversation. He’s already proven to be one of the best at his position, and with a 2026 NL MVP trophy added to the collection, it could propel him to a historic extension.
