ORLANDO—One of the biggest challenges for Orioles manager Craig Albernaz will be to help Adley Rutschman recapture the skills that made him one of the best catchers in baseball.
From the time he debuted as an Oriole in May 2022 to July 2024, Rutschman looked as if he’d be a star catcher. He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting as the Orioles engineered a 31-game improvement in 2022. In 2023, Rutschman was an All-Star and Silver Slugger.
By the All-Star break in 2024, he appeared to be on the way to another strong season with a .275 average and a .780 OPS, 16 home runs and 59 RBIs. But after starting in the All-Star Game, Rutschman’s season went south. He hit just .207 with a .585 OPS, three homers and 20 RBIs.
Instead of bouncing back in 2025, Rutschman suffered two strained obliques — one on the left side, the other on the right — and played just 90 games, hitting .220 with a .673 OPS, nine home runs and 29 RBIs.
Rutschman, shortstop Gunnar Henderson, third baseman Jordan Westburg, second baseman Jackson Holliday and outfielder Colton Cowser are considered the Orioles’ core players, and each had his struggles in the 87-loss 2025 season. No one has struggled more, or for longer, than Rutschman, though, putting his future in doubt. He’ll have a fresh start with Albernaz.
“For a young player to come up and make the impact like he did and now he has these expectations, that’s a credit to Adley of how good of a player he is,” Albernaz said. “Development is messy, especially for a young catcher. To me, obviously I’m biased because I was a former catcher, but catcher is the hardest position in baseball. They make every decision on defense. Then they get their butts kicked and then they have to go hit.
“So for Adley, and any young catcher, you have to learn how to navigate the grind of the season. And Adley has that baseline now, so now it’s us as a coaching staff with him to figure out what’s the areas that he needs to really focus in on, whether that be in the weight room prep or if it’s like how he even structures his day. A lot of it is not actually like the skills. A lot of it has to do behind the scenes, like the leadup to the game and where he’s putting his energy and direction.”
Besides Albernaz, the Orioles have former major league catcher Hank Conger on the coaching staff as bullpen coach and 28-year-old Joe Singley as catching coach.
“The manager-catcher relationship is different than any other player because they’re in every decision they make on the field or on defense,” Albernaz said. “Our staff will be very supportive. As a catching staff we have to be cognizant of not overwhelming them. Now you have three catching minds on staff. You don’t want to overwhelm them.”
Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias admires the work of catchers.
“I think it’s natural for catchers to turn into great coaches and managers just because you have to know both sides of the ball,” he said. “You have to know pitching and also life as a position player. They’re also thinking and strategizing. You’re kind of managing the game all along.”
Albernaz’s communication skills have made an impression on Elias.
“His core philosophy of individualism with players and the types of information he and his coaches want to use,” he said. “The way they’re going to try to create a player-centric environment, I think is going to be a big positive. The players, themselves, they’ve got chips on their shoulders, too. I think a lot of the improvement is going to come within them.”
Call for questions: Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. Please send yours to: Rich,@BaltimoreBaseball.com