Baltimore Orioles Would Fail Without This One Superstar
The Baltimore Orioles have more young talent than any team in baseball. If there was a way to trade organizations, 90% of teams in the league would do whatever they can be in the situation the Orioles are in.
Having young talent is one thing, but having young talent that showed the ability to win much earlier than anticipated is a whole different story.
While there's more than one player to thank for the recent success of Baltimore, winning truly started happening when Adley Rutschman was called up.
Without him, the team would take a hit.
According to Will Leitch of MLB.com, Rutschman is the one player on the Orioles who can lead the team to a better future.
Leitch mentions the star catcher's age and how he is already 26 years old, but that's still relatively young. He adds that Rutschman plays way beyond his years, looking like someone who has been in the big leagues for two decades.
As fans look at the future of the organization, it should be a good feeling knowing that they have arguably the best catcher in baseball leading them.
In the second season of his MLB career, the Oregon State product slashed .277/.374/.435 with 20 home runs in 154 games. He ranked in the 81st percentile or higher in blocks above average, framing, and pop time, according to Baseball Savant.
With Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, and a ton of other young talents in the minors, the expectation is for this to be a dynasty-type of core for years to come.
That can only become true if Rutschman continues to be one of the best players in baseball.