Adley Rutschman picked the perfect night to remind everyone what he can do.
Back in Baltimore for the first time as a visitor, the Boston Red Sox catcher turned Camden Yards into his own launch pad on Thursday, going deep twice against the Orioles and snapping out of the slump that had followed him into his new uniform.
The first homer came in the opening inning off Orioles right-hander Brandon Young. Rutschman got a hanging curveball and sent it over the right-field fence, a shot Statcast said would have left the yard in 26 out of 30 ballparks. The exit velocity on the drive was 94.9 mph, which was enough to clear the wall but not enough to qualify as a barrel.
Five innings later, he came back with something louder.
Rutschman jumped on a fastball from Young in the top of the sixth and crushed it to right field, a little deeper toward the power alley. That one came off the bat at 103.6 mph and stood as the hardest-hit ball through the first six innings.
For a player who entered the night with a .500 OPS and negative-0.2 bWAR in 15 games with Boston, the performance was a sharp turn. That total only covers the games he actually played, with wrist and elbow injuries taking him out of some others. Still, the early returns had stirred plenty of noise around the Red Sox’s trade with Baltimore, and that conversation only got louder before Thursday’s game.
Rutschman, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 draft for the Orioles, was making his first appearance at Camden Yards as a member of the visiting team. Baltimore fans gave him a standing ovation in his return, and he answered with a home run to open the scoring for Boston.
It was a rough sight for Orioles fans, even if they may not have been second-guessing the five players they received in the deal. Seeing the former face of the franchise do that in another team’s jersey had to sting.
And if the Red Sox are going to get much out of this move, they’ll need more of what Rutschman showed Thursday. Both of his blasts were solo homers, and they accounted for Boston’s only two runs as the Orioles led at the time of publication.
In Other News...
Red Sox Pitching Reinforcements Are Near But One Return Just Got Murkier
September is shaping up to bring some much-needed pitching help to Boston, with Garrett Crochet and Tanner Houck both expected back from injury rehab and headed for relief roles. Crochet is nearing the point where he could begin bullpen sessions soon, while Houck has already taken a step forward by throwing a simulated game. For a Red Sox staff that has had to manage its share of churn, the prospect of adding two arms capable of handling long relief offers a timely boost as the season moves deeper into the calendar.
Justin Slaten, though, is the one whose path has become less straightforward. His rehab has been adjusted because of lingering elbow soreness, which has slowed what had been a cleaner return timeline and added another layer of uncertainty to Bostons bullpen picture. The Red Sox still have reinforcements in sight, but Slatens setback means the club is now waiting on one less predictable piece as it tries to line up its late-season pitching depth. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Deadline Verdict Centers On One Newcomer Delivering Fast
Adley Rutschman arrived in Boston as the kind of deadline addition that can change the feel of a lineup and reshape the conversation around a roster spot, but his early days with the Red Sox have been more about patience than payoff. Boston paid a real price to get the catcher from Baltimore, sending four prospects and Carlos Narvaez the other way, so the pressure on the move is obvious even if the calendar is still short on time.
For the moment, though, the clearest deadline win has come from elsewhere. Left-hander Erik Miller, acquired in a separate deal for Marcelo Mayer, has settled into the bullpen with the kind of impact Boston hoped to get from its bigger swing, pairing a low ERA with a strong strikeout-to-walk ratio. With team control stretching through 2029 and a track record that already includes a key role since his 2024 debut, Miller has become the newcomer giving the Red Sox the fastest return. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Already Have A Painful New Question About Adley Rutschman
Adley Rutschmans arrival in Boston was supposed to give the Red Sox an immediate boost behind the plate and in the middle of the lineup, but the early return has been anything but smooth. He is currently sidelined with a hyperextended elbow, and after only 15 games in a Boston uniform, the production has been limited enough to make the trade look complicated already.
The bigger sting for the Red Sox is what went the other way. Boston sent three top prospects to Baltimore, including pitcher Anthony Eyanson, and those players have gotten off to strong starts in the minor leagues since the deal. With Rutschmans availability still unclear and his fit still not settled, the swap has quickly become the kind of move that forces a front office to live with both the short-term uncertainty and the long-term cost. [Read more 🡒]