2019 1st round pick (1): Adley Rutschman - Catcher - Oregon State University

[Catch 8]

2 minutes ago, Il BuonO said:

Agreed. My dad had me calling the game as a ten year old playing with older kids. A lot of my understanding about pitching came from the knowledge I developed as a catcher.

Especially at the age-group you mentioned, the biggest guys with the biggest arms are going to be catching.

What your dad says is very true, IF you take the potential learning opportunity to heart.

I'm not sure if your dad was profiling 10-year-olds for positions they would ultimately wind at--he was probably more concerned that they continued to like baseball.

Either way, calling pitches should be listed on every catcher's job requirement.  Even the guys who don't care enough or are too dumb should know responsibilities the position entails.

And let's be honest, how many little league coaches actually know how to call a game?  If someone is going to learn through trial and error, let it be the young new backstop!

Group conversations about pitch calling is where everyone learns.  Any you don't have to be the catcher to have a discussion on pitch calling or even question a pitch (obviously, respectfully).  A good bench coach asks his team why "did he throw a 2-2 curveball?"  The next-level baseball thinker stands up and says "he better have the nuts to throw it again, right here, right now."

[TheOtherRipken]

22 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

As I've said before the comp I remember was to Varitek.

If his pre-draft grade was that high he would have gone #1 over Price.

I remember “Mauer with power but better defense” and that he was thought to go higher than we took him, but Boras demands scared teams off.

[TonySoprano]

15 minutes ago, weams said:

justd said she heard  - he says, "thank you," "i appreciate it," "thank you very much" on the call

There was a similar look-in before 7 that showed him on the phone smiling.  Maybe that was his agent or the Orioles. Either way, my assumption is the O's were locked in on the pick for a while.

Rumblings?  hah

[Catch 8]

27 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

As I've said before the comp I remember was to Varitek.

If his pre-draft grade was that high he would have gone #1 over Price.

I've watched a lot of Wieters, obviously.

I have only read about Adley.

The difference pointed out to me about Adley from scouting report is good athleticism for a catcher.  

Wieters had terrific SKILLS, but hardly any athleticism (relative to MLB catchers or position players).

One scout describes Adley's swing as rotational.  I just hope it isn't as long as Wieters'. 

I brought up athleticism b/c better athletics can get away with longer, rotational swings.  And many players are more rotational than directional these days.

[ChuckS]

Adley looks much shorter to the ball to me than MW. 

[Catch 8]

1 minute ago, ChuckS said:

Adley looks much shorter to the ball to me than MW. 

Bad comparison by me in my previous post.

Wieters' swing was longer than the B & O Warehouse.

[Ohfan67]

He’s got a very baby face. Guy looks 16. 

[Tony-OH]

18 minutes ago, Il BuonO said:

Agreed. My dad had me calling the game as a ten year old playing with older kids. A lot of my understanding about pitching came from the knowledge I developed as a catcher.

I called all of my games in Little League, highscool, and adult baseball. In fact, the only time a manager called a pitch for me was in my 15-year old All-Star game. We were playing the other area that made up our high school so the best kids on their team were on our high school team so I knew them well.

With two outs in the bottom of the 6th, up 2-1 with two ours and runners on 2nd and 3rd, for some reason my idiot coach wanted to suddenly call pitches. He calls my name and discreetly gives me one finger to throw a fastball. I was like, "No way." The kid at the plate couldn't hit a curveball to save his life but could murder fastballs. 

He calls time out comes over and tells me to have the pitcher throw a fastball. I was pissed but did what he asked. The batters screamed a liner to the fence and we lost 3-2 knocking us out of the tournament. 

I literally took my glove off and threw it at the fence near my coach and walked away. No one ever called another pitch for me ever again.

When I coached at Archbishop Spalding I tried to teach my catchers how to call games but unfortunately the head coach still wanted to call pitches. I really wanted them to learn to do it but that's just not how it's done anymore and it's ashamed.

[Aristotelian]

The comment on position change might be the biggest surprise of the day. I am dying to know what they have in mind. Could he play 2B like Biggio? He looks pretty athletic.

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

6 minutes ago, Catch 8 said:

I've watched a lot of Wieters, obviously.

I have only read about Adley.

The difference pointed out to me about Adley from scouting report is good athleticism for a catcher.  

Wieters had terrific SKILLS, but hardly any athleticism (relative to MLB catchers or position players).

One scout describes Adley's swing as rotational.  I just hope it isn't as long as Wieters'. 

I brought up athleticism b/c better athletics can get away with longer, rotational swings.  And many players are more rotational than directional these days.

Adley is 6’2” and Wieters is 6’5”. Adley being 3 inches shorter and more athletic should help. 

Wieters being slow and tall with that long, looping swing limited him at the plate. 

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

2 minutes ago, Ohfan67 said:

He’s got a very baby face. Guy looks 16. 

Looks like a high school underclassmen. 

[TonySoprano]

 

[Catch 8]

4 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

I called all of my games in Little League, highscool, and adult baseball. In fact, the only time a manager called a pitch for me was in my 15-year old All-Star game. We were playing the other area that made up our high school so the best kids on their team were on our high school team so I knew them well.

With two outs in the bottom of the 6th, up 2-1 with two ours and runners on 2nd and 3rd, for some reason my idiot coach wanted to suddenly call pitches. He calls my name and discreetly gives me one finger to throw a fastball. I was like, "No way." The kid at the plate couldn't hit a curveball to save his life but could murder fastballs. 

He calls time out comes over and tells me to have the pitcher throw a fastball. I was pissed but did what he asked. The batters screamed a liner to the fence and we lost 3-2 knocking us out of the tournament. 

I literally took my glove off and threw it at the fence near my coach and walked away. No one ever called another pitch for me ever again.

When I coached at Archbishop Spalding I tried to teach my catchers how to call games but unfortunately the head coach still wanted to call pitches. I really wanted them to learn to do it but that's just not how it's done anymore and it's ashamed.

Tony, I feel you.

I didn't catch until college, so I never had one of those moments.  The one thing I would have differently done is try to at least extract the coach's thought process out of that pitch-call.

It is an all-star game so the kid is there to hit, you have a base open and he is expecting FB.  In that count and situation--and age--you only throw the fb if he didn't catch up to the previous one.

But you cannot have a discussion with many coaches today, which is unfortunate, because that is how you learn.  If he was so hellbent on a fb, he should have approached you at some point--since he IS the coach--and explained his perspective.  Maybe you would have learned something.  Stubborn for the sake of being stubborn.

Glad you called games after that!

Respect goes both ways.  Sure the Coach is boss, but what good is he if you can't approach him or he doesn't explain his madness?

And by the same token, instead of yelling, a good coach probably finds an opportunity to ask why the catcher wanted to call something.  And if the catcher had no answer, then let him have it.

So this is what I missed not catching as a teenager.

[Tony-OH]

1 minute ago, Catch 8 said:

Tony, I feel you.

I didn't catch until college, so I never had one of those moments.  The one thing I would have differently done is try to at least extract the coach's thought process out of that pitch-call.

It is an all-star game so the kid is there to hit, you have a base open and he is expecting FB.  In that count and situation--and age--you only throw the fb if he didn't catch up to the previous one.

But you cannot have a discussion with many coaches today, which is unfortunate, because that is how you learn.  If he was so hellbent on a fb, he should have approached you at some point--since he IS the coach--and explained his perspective.  Maybe you would have learned something.  Stubborn for the sake of being stubborn.

Glad you called games after that!

Respect goes both ways.  Sure the Coach is boss, but what good is he if you can't approach him or he doesn't explain his madness?

And by the same token, instead of yelling, a good coach probably finds an opportunity to ask why the catcher wanted to call something.  And if the catcher had no answer, then let him have it.

So this is what I missed not catching as a teenager.

There was a lot more to that story. He was the coach of our rivals in our Little League and was not a fan of me. I was already playing Varsity baseball so I dominated Pony League to the point that I used to single, steal 2nd, steal, 3rd, and scare the pitcher so much that I would steal home I caused multiple balks and walks.

I think I hit something like .700 that year and my coach and all of us didn't like him or his team. Obviously I had to play for him since he was the All-Star coach but we did not really get along so when I tried to convince him to go with a curveball he basically was like, "Shut up and call a fastball".

Either way, I always prided myself on calling pitches and it was one of the reasons I love to catch.

[Frobby]

2 hours ago, weams said:

 

Elias did a great job of hiding that fact.    Great to hear this.