Caleb Joseph becomes first Oriole catcher to hit a home run in five straight games
By Mike Marteny
The Orioles’ Caleb Joseph is sure making the loss of Matt Wieters a little easier due to his budding offensive prowess. Today, Joseph became the first catcher in team history to hit a home run in five consecutive games. And to think, he didn’t even play in yesterday’s 12-2 thrashing of the Cardinals!
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The home run was Joseph’s ninth on the season, and fifth in his last five games. He has received three days off in that span though.
Walker Cooper hold the record for consecutive games with a home run by a catcher. He did it in six straight games with the New York Giants in 1947.
Joseph’s two run home run in the bottom of the second came off of former division foe turned St. Louis Cardinal John Lackey. It gave the Orioles a 3-2 lead which they have extended to 5-2 after three innings thanks to a two run bomb by Nelson Cruz.
Nick Hundley, who was acquired in a trade with the San Diego Padres shortly after Wieters went down for reliever Troy Patton, is still cutting into Joseph’s playing time. However, hi struggles at the plate have led to a huge decrease in playing time. Hundley has just nine at bats so far in the month of August. This after he hit just .179 in July.
Joseph is not really known for his power. He only had seven home runs on his career coming into the season. More playing time has resulted in him getting a better feel at the plate though. He could be a factor in helping the Orioles make a push for the postseason.