PHOENIX -- Drake Baldwin won the 2025 Jackie Robinson National League Rookie of the Year Award and he now finds himself in very exclusive company with Hank Aaron.
When Baldwin crossed the plate on an Austin Riley double during the eight-run fifth inning the Braves constructed in their 17-2 win over the D-backs on Thursday, he joined Aaron (1957) and Jimmy Collins (1900) as the only players in franchise history to score in each of a season’s first seven games since at least 1900.
“That’s wild,” Baldwin said. “I’m not even able to wrap my head around it.”
Baldwin actually has a long way to go to match the franchise record for any point of the season. Bob Horner (April 23-May 13, 1985) and Roy Hartsfield (July 15-July 29, 1950) both scored in 15 straight games.
But it’s always nice to be mentioned with Hank Aaron on a night when your manager compares you to Usain Bolt. OK, maybe that was just something playfully added when media members talked to Baldwin about how his hustle positioned him to match this franchise mark.
“You never know what those things will lead to,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said.
The Braves’ fifth-inning eruption was fueled by a leadoff walk that Ozzie Albies drew when he successfully challenged a Ryne Nelson curveball in a full count that missed the zone by 1.1 inches. Baldwin was on the right end of another challenge the Braves issued in the inning, when first-base umpire Mike Estabrook initially ruled the Braves catcher out on a bang-bang call at first.
But Braves replay coordinator Jimmy Leo told Weiss to challenge, and replay showed Baldwin beat the throw to first base. So, instead of turning an inning-ending double play that would have limited Atlanta to one run in the fifth, the D-backs had to keep fighting to record the third out. They did so only after doubles from Matt Olson, Riley and Michael Harris II and an Albies RBI single during.
“You never realize how much it might lead to until that inning is done,” Baldwin said. “Looking back on it, it was a big point of the game. The game kind of flipped right there.”
Even after going 1-for-6 in this season opener, Baldwin has hit .286 with three homers and a 1.018 OPS through seven games. There are no current signs of a sophomore slump.