Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser already texted Rutschman before his friend and former teammate arrived at Camden Yards with the Red Sox. They met up in the morning.

They had to get used to being on opposite sides. It’s an ongoing process.

“I’m sure it’s gonna be weird,” Cowser said before Rutschman homered twice in the Red Sox’s 6-5 win over the Orioles. “Personal note, excited to see him. Baseball level, yeah, it’ll be a little weird. Wish him all the best but hopefully not the best this week.”

Cowser and Rutschman were walking into a movie theatre when the call came about the trade. Cowser hugged Rutschman, who was shaken by the news.

Teammates also took it hard.

“Just as a human being, he’s one of those people that once you get to know him, he’s always going to be in your corner,” Cowser said. “Building that relationship with him just outside of the field, he’s just one of the best human beings I’ve been around. Really cares for you. He’s close with his friends and family and he truly puts that first. He’s one of those guys that, he’ll do anything for you.”

Rutschman’s return provided a nice distraction from the grind of playing 16 games in a row without a break. The off-days will come on three successive Thursdays.

“Honestly, I was actually talking about it last night. It’s probably one of the more weirder stretches I’ve had in my career thus far,” Cowser said.

“We went three-series road trip with an off-day, came back home for a quick homestand, back out, another three-series road trip. I don’t think anything really changes. Just changing time zones and stuff, but at this point we’re all going to have to do it. Getting in at 2 in the morning, sleeping, showing up the next day at the field. That’s all just part of it.”

Returning to the East Coast and a third time zone also dumped the Orioles into division competition against the Red Sox and a showdown with the Guardians.

“When you break it down like that, yeah, it is a lot. For sure. Absolutely,” said manager Craig Albernaz.

“You know, our players have earned that. You’ve earned the grind piece. It’s better to be in this position than on the opposite end of the spectrum. And for our guys, they embrace the grind. Every team does it, but to do a three-team road trip, three different time zones ending in Colorado, coming back home for a tough seven-game stretch, that’s what we want and that’s what everyone in that room that competes wants is to play meaningful game down the stretch in September. And that’s where we’re at right now, and our guys have done a great job of answering the bell at every turn.

“Just like every team, everyone is banged up in that room and guys are playing through things, just like anyone across the league, and that’s what it’s all about. It’s a great competitive environment, but also, our guys have shown they answer the bell and they’ve done it all year. We’ve had our ups and downs, but they keep on being resilient and coming out. So that’s why these stretch of games are going to be fun.”

*Heston Kjerstad also made his return to Camden Yards yesterday, but he didn’t attract nearly the same attention as Rutschman.

Kjerstad didn’t change organizations, but the Orioles optioned him on June 10, 2025 and shut him down at Triple-A Norfolk due to fatigue. They didn’t recall him until Tuesday when rosters expanded.

The team was in Colorado, which delayed Kjerstad’s arrival at Camden Yards.

“It’s always good to be back in the big leagues, but especially with this group, this great team,” he said. “September’s here, competing for a Wild Card spot, so a lot of fun to be a part of that.”

The roster turnover is substantial since Kjerstad walked out the door last June. He missed the 2025 and 2026 trade deadlines. He saw Rutschman in a Red Sox road uniform. Tyler Wells is in Tampa Bay’s bullpen. Dean Kremer is in the Twins’ rotation. He was Taylor Ward’s teammate only in spring training.

“Definitely a little different,” Kjerstad said. “There’s always guys coming in and out of the clubhouse, changing teams here and there. It’s different when a guy who’s been here a while isn’t here. Still, most of the team’s pretty familiar from what’s been here, and it’s still a really great group of guys. It’s a fun team.”

*Luis Robert Jr. was assigned the locker that belonged to Ryan Mountcastle, who’s on the 60-day injured list after fracturing his left foot on April 11 and straining his oblique on the day that his rehab assignment was supposed to start.

Robert had a two-run double yesterday at Coors Field, batted third and played center field last night and hit a home run.

The confidence in plugging Robert into the heart of the lineup is born from the quality of his at-bats.

“He has such a simple swing, short swing, and he’s such a physical specimen that he creates a lot of power and he can impact the ball to all fields, and he has the ability to run,” Albernaz said.

“He’s a smart player. There’s a lot there to like, and he’s done a great job. It’s only been two games, but he’s fitting in right away and that’s a credit to our guys in the clubhouse making him feel welcome, making him feel at home. For him, it’s the first time that he’s changed teams at any point in the year, never mind being at the end of the year, which has been another wrench in it. But even his first day, he was on the bench just getting acclimated, but he was actually moving around, like getting ready to get into the game, because he understands that we like to use everyone and he wants to be a part of it. So he’s been fitting in perfectly.”