Josh Tolentino: Adley Rutschman isn't difference-maker Red Sox needed

BALTIMORE — The Red Sox paid a pretty penny for Adley Rutschman, hoping he could catapult them to October glory.

Orioles fans, though, surely recognized the version of Rutschman who showed up this week in the postseason. The No. 1 overall pick from the 2019 MLB draft again struggled to deliver when it mattered most.

Boston’s deadline gamble on Baltimore’s former franchise catcher crashed Wednesday in a two-game wild-card sweep by the New York Yankees. Rutschman went 1 for 8, and his sloppy defense helped turn a tight elimination game into a 9-2 rout. New York outscored Boston 18-2 in the series.

Rutschman tormented the Orioles in his Sept. 3 return to Camden Yards, crushing two home runs in a 6-5 victory for the Red Sox midway through Baltimore’s season-long six-game losing streak that sent its fading playoff hopes into a tailspin.

Boston needed that Rutschman to be a difference-maker against the Yankees.

Across 32 regular-season games with the Red Sox, Rutschman hit .222 (26 for 117) with 28 strikeouts, nine walks and a .688 OPS. That’s meager production for an acquisition that cost the Red Sox four prospects and a major league catcher.

Rutschman struggled to stay on the field, though Boston knew it was acquiring an oft-injured player. He missed the Red Sox’s first seven games after the trade while recovering from left wrist inflammation, plus another seven because of a hyperextended right elbow.

The postseason only deepened the frustration.

Rutschman’s career playoff numbers are flat-out brutal. He’s hit just .107 (3 for 28) with a .138 on-base percentage, a .143 slugging percentage, no home runs and no RBIs. His teams have lost all seven postseason games in which he has played.

On Wednesday, even Rutschman’s usually dependable defense betrayed him.

With Boston trailing 2-1 in the sixth inning, Spencer Jones chased a third strike from Garrett Crochet that bounced away from Rutschman. The catcher recovered the ball and threw to first, where Jones was initially ruled out. Replay overturned the call.

Jones then swiped second as Rutschman’s errant throw sailed into center field, sending him to third. George Lombard Jr. singled Jones home. The Yankees piled up six runs in the decisive inning, but Rutschman and his teammates had already helped dig Boston’s grave.

Crochet surrendered four runs on three hits without recording an out. He bears responsibility for that disastrous outing, though Rutschman’s critical mistakes further fueled the collapse. Ultimately, the three-time All-Star catcher Boston acquired to catapult itself into the postseason helped unravel its one and only postseason series.

During NBC’s broadcast, former MLB players Joe Girardi and Lou Merloni discussed Rutschman’s unfamiliarity with Crochet, who was making his first appearance since April after his lengthy absence with a shoulder injury.

“I have always said it’s hard to change catchers in the middle of the season,” said Girardi, a former catcher. “It just really is.

“I hated catching a pitcher for the first time. I didn’t know what he wanted when he was in trouble. I didn’t know what pitches he could make when he was in trouble.”

While Rutschman, who turns 29 in February, and his former Orioles teammates grappled with the trade’s emotional fallout, Boston needed him to quickly build trust with a new pitching staff and learn its quirks while nursing his own injuries.

Should the Orioles regret accepting Boston’s offer for Mike Elias’ first draft pick and the centerpiece of his rebuild?

I don’t see the case for it.

Baltimore received catcher Carlos Narváez and prospects Anthony Eyanson, Kyson Witherspoon, Enddy Azocar and Harold Rivas, sending Rutschman, Jake Rogers and cash to Boston. Many across the industry considered it a massive haul for a player set to become a free agent after the 2027 season. In fact, it’s quite easy to understand why once you look past the sting of trading a player who meant so much to Baltimore.

Eyanson, the prized arm in the deal and Baltimore’s top pitching prospect, backed up the excitement with a 2.03 ERA in six starts for Double-A Chesapeake, striking out 47 and walking just nine in 31 innings. Baltimore’s player development staff, which awaits a new leader, must turn that promise into a bona fide major league starter.

Rivas made the deal even more enticing. When he was revealed as the player to be named later, a current MLB scout told The Baltimore Sun he was “floored” by the addition. The scout, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, graded the 18-year-old outfielder as a future everyday major league center fielder with five-tool potential.

Those prospects still have to prove themselves in the majors, so declaring a trade winner would be premature. But Baltimore has every reason to feel good about the crop of talent it secured.

A report that surfaced this week added salt to Boston’s wounds. According to the New York Post, the Yankees had their own chance to acquire Rutschman but balked at Baltimore’s asking price. They kept the players the Orioles wanted and swept the rival that completed its own blockbuster deal with Baltimore.

Does Rutschman deserve all the blame for Boston’s postseason flop?

Of course not. The Red Sox scraped together just seven hits over 18 innings and batted .117. The Yankees dismantled their AL East foe without Aaron Judge, the three-time American League Most Valuable Player sidelined by a calf injury, and the Bronx Bombers move on to a divisional series date with the AL-best Tampa Bay Rays.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox are headed home, while Rutschman still has another season to reward Boston’s faith. He remains under team control through 2027.

But the bill for this postseason push has come due. The Red Sox surrendered a hefty package to get the muscle they needed in Rutschman. Instead, his turbulent season ended in late September.