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NEW YORK – Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman underwent an MRI this morning to determine the source of his left abdominal tightness. Maverick Handley is on the medical taxi squad and would be recalled if Rutschman goes on the injured list for the first time in his career.
Rutschman missed two games this season after taking a hard foul ball off his mask, but he’s managed to avoid the IL. He was scratched from last night’s lineup.
“He just walked in the building,” said interim manager Tony Mansolino. “Got an MRI this morning, we’ll sort through. … If it’s not something that he’s gonna be day-to-day on and something that he’s got to go on the IL on, then we’ll make that move before the game.”
Mansolino isn’t able to specify whether the injury’s related to the oblique.
Rutschman’s ability to play a physically demanding position, take a beating doing it and stay away from the IL at this point in his career impresses everyone in the organization. But that streak might be nearing an end.
“He’s been super durable, especially for a catcher,” Mansolino said. “Unfortunately, if he does, if this is a thing, he’s gonna go, but hopefully it’s not too long. It kind of goes back to understanding where we’re at yesterday with the lineup and why we had to do some of the things that we did is, when you play in that type of a heat down in Tampa and you’re playing in this long stretch and you’re in the middle of the season, it probably possibly puts you at more risk for things like that. I have no idea why what happened happened to Adley, but it’s something that in my seat right now you’re constantly trying to figure out and trying to mitigate a little bit.”
Mansolino said the club hasn’t discussed top prospect Samuel Basallo, who’s batting .266/.374/.589 with six doubles, 15 home runs and 31 RBIs in 46 games with Triple-A Norfolk at age 20. His home run total is second in the International League and tied for sixth in Triple-A.
“From my point of view, just as a development guy, what I would love to see is him absolutely knock the door down,” Mansolino said. “I don’t think you take a guy like Sammy Basallo and you bring him to the big leagues just because there’s a need. I think you bring a Sammy Basallo to the big leagues when he’s destroyed Triple-A in all facets of the game – his at-bats, his defense, everything.
“So when he destroys Triple-A and he knocks the door down, to me, then he becomes part of the conversation. I don’t personally think you bring a guy to the big leagues with that type of profile until that happens.”
Gary Sánchez is catching again this afternoon. Jordan Westburg is the designated hitter.
Ryan O’Hearn returns to the lineup at first base and Coby Mayo, who had two hits and an RBI last night, goes back to the bench.
Ramón Urías went from cleanup hitter last night to batting ninth after his tie-breaking home run in the eighth inning.
Zach Eflin needs a bounce-back after allowing seven runs and a career-high 12 hits in five innings against the Rays in Tampa. He had surrendered four runs combined in his previous three starts over 19 2/3.
Eflin has a 2.44 ERA in nine career starts against the Yankees and a 3.58 ERA in five starts in the Bronx.
Cody Bellinger is 5-for-16 with two home runs against Eflin, and Anthony Volpe is 6-for-18 with a double. Jazz Chisholm Jr. is 2-for-21 with a triple and seven strikeouts, Paul Goldschmidt is 2-for-16, and Aaron Judge is 4-for-19 with 10 strikeouts.
The Yankees have lost seven of their last eight games, and their lead over the second-place Rays is down to 1 ½.
The Orioles are six behind for the last Wild Card and 10 out of first place.
Right-hander Clarke Schmidt has posted a 3.16 ERA in 11 starts this season. He has back-to-back scoreless appearances of six and 7 2/3 innings.
Schmidt has 11 career appearances against the Orioles, including six starts, and owns a 4.03 ERA in 38 innings. O’Hearn is 5-for-12 with three doubles. Rutschman is 1-for-14 with six strikeouts, and Cedric Mullins is 0-for-11.
Goldschmidt is slugging .594 and has a 90.3 percent contact rate when ahead in the count this season, per STATS.
The Orioles lead the majors in average while ahead in the count at .385. The Yankees rank 26th at .302.
Former Orioles farmhand J.C. Escarra, a 30-year-old rookie, is catching today for New York. He began playing independent ball in 2022 and also made stops in Puerto Rico and Mexico.
For the Orioles
Jackson Holliday 2B
Jordan Westburg DH
Gunnar Henderson SS
Ryan O’Hearn 1B
Ramón Laureano RF
Colton Cowser LF
Gary Sánchez C
Cedric Mullins CF
Ramón Urías 3B
Zach Eflin RHP
For the Yankees
Ben Rice 1B
Trent Grisham CF
Aaron Judge DH
Cody Bellinger RF
Jazz Chisholm Jr. 3B
Jasson Domínguez LF
Anthony Volpe SS
J.C. Escarra C
Oswald Peraza 2B
Clarke Schmidt RHP
* The Orioles announced that Rutschman went on the 10-day IL, retroactive to yesterday, with a left oblique strain. Handley was recalled.
Rutschman is batting .227/.319/.372 with nine doubles, a triple, eight home runs and 20 RBIs in 68 games.
Sánchez becomes the starter after leaving the injured list a week ago today. He's 6-for-14 with two home runs, including a grand slam, and seven RBIs since his return.
Handley is 3-for-40.
