Trevor Rogers is not the headline here, but Adley Rutschman is. Craig Albernaz said the Orioles catcher would not leave the bench last night after getting hit in the head with a ball, and the club is keeping him out while it evaluates him.
“We’re giving him the off day and still evaluating him,” Albernaz said. “You get hit in the head with a ball, him being a catcher and consistently getting hit in the head with foul tips. I wish we could duck those, but you can’t. We’re just playing it cautious to make sure he’s OK.”
Albernaz keeps Rutschman out
The move leaves the Orioles managing one of their most important players on a night when the game kept turning against them. They fell behind 3-0 after the second inning, then used a three-run sixth to get back level before taking a 5-3 lead in the seventh.
That lead did not hold. Ryan Helsley allowed three runs in the bottom of the ninth in a 6-5 walk-off loss, and Tyler O'Neill's throwing error ended the game.
Orioles waste another rally
The late collapse fit a pattern that has dragged the Orioles through close games. They were 30-0 when leading after the eighth inning, which made the ninth-inning loss a direct break from what had been a clean finish line all season.
Offense has been the other problem. Over their last six games before arriving at Dodger Stadium, the Orioles were 3-for-35 with runners in scoring position, and over their last 13 games since June 6 they were 15-for-85 in those spots.
Rutschman matters now
The.169 average before last night ranked as the third lowest in MLB, and the Orioles were already seven games below.500, 12 1/2 games out of first place, and 3 1/2 out of the Wild Card. That leaves the catcher’s status tied to a larger issue: the Orioles cannot afford another loss of lineup stability while they are chasing a cleaner run of results.
For now, the next step is simple. Rutschman stays out, the Orioles keep evaluating him, and the rest of the roster has to absorb the damage after another lead slipped away in the ninth.
