The Boston Red Sox secured a series victory against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday after they won the third game of the bout, 12-2. The Sox finished their 10-game West Coast road trip with a 7-3 record to earn second place in the AL East.
Even though things weren't all positive for the Red Sox on this road trip, there was certainly plenty of bright spots in the series and one source of said positivity spends most of his time behind the plate.
Reese McGuire, one-half of the Red Sox's catching battery alongside Connor Wong, has received the majority of the reps as the backstop to start the season. Alex Cora said he's been giving McGuire more starts because of his success with the bat at the start of the year.
McGuire has been making good on Cora's trust, and it showed in Boston's series against the Angels. He homered in each of the two games he started and went 2-for-4 with five RBIs, a walk, and a stolen base in Sunday's series finale.
Reese makes it 𝗙𝗢𝗨𝗥 Red Sox homers on the day. pic.twitter.com/YgeOzkumeu
— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 7, 2024
Red Sox catcher Reese McGuire is proving Alex Cora was right to give him more playing time to start the year
While the spotlight rests mostly on other players in the lineup, namely outfielders Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela, McGuire is quietly putting together a hot start to the season. After his impressive showing on Sunday, McGuire boasts a .333/.385/.625 slash line with three extra-base hits. He's been trusted to appear in nine of the Sox's 10 games so far.
McGuire is already three home runs away from matching his career high in a season — he hit five round-trippers in 30 games with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019. While defense is what matters most in a catcher, McGuire's bat has been the reason he's played so much recently. His performance is certainly part of the reason why the Red Sox are off to the start they are.
The Red Sox have made it clear in the last two years that they are comfortable with McGuire and Wong as their catching tandem. With Wong's defensive prowess and McGuire's all-around dominant start to the season, the Red Sox have every right to believe in the duo they have in place.