Baltimore Orioles: Adley Rutschman checks two big boxes off his list
Adley Rutschman, the overall number one pick of the 2019 MLB Draft, finally reached the big leagues on May 21 and has only missed three games in the 24 games the Baltimore Orioles have played since he’s been called up. The Orioles have an 11-13 mark since Rutschman made his long-awaited Major League debut, and so far, his offense has left something to be desired.
Rutschman, who was known to have a catching ability that was MLB-ready when he was drafted out of Oregon State, only had to work on his bat to have it pro-ready, and losing a full season in 2020 due to the pandemic really halted his work trying to improve his hitting.
Coming into the June 15 game against the Toronto Blue Jays, Rutschman had done a lot things offensively, hitting a triple, a few doubles here and here, etc., but hadn’t been able to procure his first Major League home run or his first RBI in the majors, the first being much more important.
That would all change in the top of the fourth inning against Jose Berrios of the Blue Jays.
Adley Rutschman of the Baltimore Orioles made personal history against the Toronto Blue Jays
Berrios, who was in the middle of having a no-hitter through the first four frames, had just walked Austin Hays a batter before, then threw a 94 MPH fastball right down the middle to Rutschman, and the Orioles catcher was able to crush it 411 feet to right-center field, finally able to cross off one of the biggest milestones that he hasn’t procured early into his (hopefully) incredible MLB career, hitting his first MLB home run, and getting his first and second MLB RBI.
Rutschman is now hitting .192 on the season after his 2-for-4 performance against the Blue Jays last night, where the Orioles would ultimately fall 7-6 in 10 innings following an incredible comeback from being down 5-0 after three innings. Ryan Mountcastle would attempt to steal the show from Rutschman, hitting a pair of home runs on the night himself with three RBI.
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Will the Baltimore Orioles win their afternoon game on Thursday against the Blue Jays in order to stay .500 on this eight-game road trip through Kansas City and Toronto? Rutschman is in the starting lineup as the DH, with Robinson Chirinos taking his place behind the dish.