Every day, Anthony Santander does something that forces the rest of the American League to take notice. Is there anything Tony Taters can't do?
After spending the past few weeks breaking out as one of the AL's most productive hitters, the Orioles' right fielder is showing he can go get it on defense, too.
The latest proof came in the first inning of Thursday's 7-1 series-opening defeat to the Red Sox, when the Orioles were held in check by Nathan Eovaldi on their way to their fifth straight loss. It came in spite of the effort of Santander, who scaled the right-field wall to rob Mitch Moreland of extra bases and keep two runs off the board for Baltimore starter Asher Wojciechowski.
"It was a great play," said Wojciechowski, who slogged through 3 2/3 innings, allowing three runs. "I didn't think the ball was going that far off the bat. I thought it was a routine fly out, then I saw him creeping back, jump up and make a great play. I was really excited. Outstanding play."
It was the second highlight-reel worthy play Santander has made against the Red Sox this season, in addition to the home run-robbing catch he made around the Pesky Pole on the first weekend of the season. It also stood out on a night Santander made several challenging plays both to his left and right, while the O's fell behind early in part because of two playable balls not turned into outs.
And it was indicative of the defensive improvement the Orioles see as a whole out of Santander, who ranks in the 94th percentile in outs above average and 93rd percentile in outfielder jump this season, per Statcast. Santander rated as a below-average defender per Statcast and other advanced metrics in 2019, splitting time between left and right field but also playing some center.
"I'm really impressed with Tony's defense," manager Brandon Hyde said. "Tony makes the catch going into the corner look easy and it's not. You are dealing with some elements out there. He has really improved defensively from last year."
Meanwhile, Santander continues to hit. By singling off Eovaldi in the first, Santander also extended his MLB-high 15-game hitting streak, though the O's were limited to a Pat Valaika homer off Eovaldi and Co. after that. Santander is now hitting .297 with nine homers, 25 RBIs and a 1.026 OPS, leading the Majors in extra-base hits and AL hitters in RBIs and total bases. The result? Santander has already accumulated more wins above replacement, per Baseball Reference, through 25 games than he did across 93 contests a year ago.
Now less than a week from the official midway point of the season, it's not difficult envisioning Santander receiving All-Star votes if the O's were almost halfway through a normal year. The way things are going, he could be in line for down-ballot AL MVP Award votes, should the Orioles rediscover some of their early-season magic. Thursday's loss dropped Baltimore back to a game below .500.
"He's really getting comfortable and he's playing outstanding," Hyde said.