Many Baltimore Orioles fans are asking themselves if they are going to keep catcher Adley Rutschman for the 2026 MLB season or if they are going to trade him beforehand. Rutschman has two years remaining in the organization before he hits free agency after the 2027 MLB season.
With Samuel Basallo having a contract for the long-term, are the Orioles better off without Rutschman in 2026 or do they need to keep him around? That is a question that general manager Mike Elias is going to have to ask himself about the 27-year-old catcher this upcoming offseason.
Baltimore Orioles Insider Believes That the Franchise Should Keep Catcher Adley Rutschman for the 2026 NFL Season
Baltimorebaseball.com writer Rich Dubroff was answering questions from a fan mailbag in his latest column. One fan named Paulius Klimas asked him,
"Shouldn’t the Orioles keep Adley Rutschman for one more season? He could alternate with Samuel Basallo at catcher and also be DH. Plus, could he stop switch-hitting and bat lefty? It seemed to help Cedric Mullins."
Dubroff responded to this question with answering,
"Paulius, I agree with your first assertion, but not your second one. The Orioles should keep Adley Rutschman for 2026 because they need at least two catchers, and perhaps they’ll even find a way to keep three catchers.
Rutschman can catch and serve as designated hitter while Basallo can catch and play first. Basallo is a left-handed hitter, and it would make less sense for the Orioles to have two left-handed hitting catchers. Besides this season, Rutschman is batting .263 as a left-handed hitter and .211 as a right-handed hitter."
Dubroff is not the only analyst who believes that the Orioles need to keep both Basallo and Rutschman on the roster for the 2026 MLB season. Using a platoon system would help both players out and also the team as well. Even though the trade market with Rutschman might be high, there is a chance that the Orioles may not get the return they want for him.
In 85 games played for Baltimore in 2025, he has a .227 batting average with nine home runs and 29 RBIs, along with a .310 on-base percentage. Rutschman has not played since August 17 against the Houston Astros because of an oblique injury. Hopefully, he can return for the Orioles in 2025. If not, there could be a chance there won't be much trade interest from other teams. Rutschman may have to have a good 2026 MLB season in order to regain that trade stock.
MORE MLB NEWS:
- Cardinals not expected to be competitive in 2026, according to insider
- Insider provides exciting update on Padres trade deadline acquisition
- Astros get Yordan Alvarez back in lineup for first time in 100 games
- One Jack Flaherty statistic that should concern Tigers fans
- Guardians jokingly thank Taylor Swift amid 2026 schedule release, engagement announcement
- Guardians' 2021 decision coming back to haunt them amid losing skid
- Cardinals' Willson Contreras apologized to coach he hit with his bat