The Adley Rutschman effect

[Tony-OH]

Yes, I know we have a lot of Rutschman talk over the board, but I felt this deserved it's own thread. 

I thought of Frank Robinson when it came to player's who turned a franchise around, but Frank just took a really good Orioles team in 1965 (94-68) and turned it into a World Series Championship team that went 97-63 in 1966. So that's certainly worthy of being revered, and rightfully so, I can't find any player in Orioles history or improved the team by so much over his first 160 games in the big leagues.

I suppose you could go back to the 1989 team and perhaps find someone (maybe) because of the big turn around from 1988 to 1989, but it's pretty clear, Rutschman is the single best thing to happen to this team on the field. 

 

[sevastras]

I find his effect to be very interesting and I have tried to quantify it. It isn’t like he came up and is hitting .400 and 60 home runs but the Orioles basically replaced the worst catcher in baseball with possibly the best catcher in baseball. He is a leader, he seems likeable and the pitchers trust him. So his stats may be pretty good for a catcher, but I think the leadership and trust has lifted those around him. He just makes everyone better and that is a special attribute. Manny made Schoop better through their friendship but Manny wasn’t that natural leader that Adley is. 

[Frobby]

Besides being a great and super-steady player, Adley has this blend of humility and confidence that just rubs off on his teammates.  You can tell the pitchers just love him.  

[RVAOsFan]

I know this is a very data driven board and when you mention the words leadership or intangibles around here you usually get run off but AR brings more to this organization than his bat and glove.  I have heard Hyde mention in interviews that everything is genuine.  When I first saw the hugs and fist bumps after every half inning I was a little skeptical but clearly this team is all in with him.

That being said, what he is doing on the field is incredible.  Clearly the pitching staff has improved from his pitch framing and how he works the game behind the plate. 

Game on the line, what current or former Oriole within the last 20 years would you rather come up to the plate?

[Sports Guy]

Does this mean he has a 43 WAR the last year?  

[Es4M11]

2 hours ago, Frobby said:

Besides being a great and super-steady player, Adley has this blend of humility and confidence that just rubs off on his teammates.  You can tell the pitchers just love him.  

This part for sure. Just one example that sticks out to me, there were times last year after a save Rutschman would go out to give Bautista the now customary hug and it really seemed to me that Felix didn't enjoy it and just wanted to get it over with. Fast forward to this season when Adley goes out for the hug after a save, Felix fully embraces it with a huge smile. The Mountain has fully bought into Adley. These guys really do respect Rutschman, it's apparent.

[Moose Milligan]

2 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

Does this mean he has a 43 WAR the last year?  

I know you’re joking but WAR doesn’t do everything to describe the value he brings. 
 

Intangibles matter for sure and to Tony’s point I believe that’s the case here. 

[Mr-splash]

Surely catcher must be the hardest position to quantify value? They call games. You can't simply take pitch framing, throwing and blocking pitches and say that's catching. I don't think the intangibles that are associated with the catcher position can be quantified.

Edited May 22, 2023 by Mr-splash
typo

[Sports Guy]

8 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

I know you’re joking but WAR doesn’t do everything to describe the value he brings. 
 

Intangibles matter for sure and to Tony’s point I believe that’s the case here. 

That was my actual point. wAR doesn’t measure his worth properly.

[Tony-OH]

2 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

That was my actual point. wAR doesn’t measure his worth properly.

It's hard to define his value in just WAR because it's clear this team's turn around directly corresponds with his promotion to the Orioles. 

Frobby pointed towards it early when he stated "Adley has this blend of humility and confidence that just rubs off on his teammates.  You can tell the pitchers just love him."

It's like the moment he walked onto the field, shook the umpire's hand, had a few words, got behind the plater and that just kind of looked around the whole stadium and took it all in. He may not ever knew it then, but it feels like he was more saying, "Don't worry folks, I'm here now. It's all going to better now!"

[sportsfan8703]

5 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

Does this mean he has a 43 WAR the last year?  

This means that once Ohtani is on the Mets... that it will be Adley's MVP to lose from here on out.  

[AnythingO's]

16 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

It's hard to define his value in just WAR because it's clear this team's turn around directly corresponds with his promotion to the Orioles. 

Frobby pointed towards it early when he stated "Adley has this blend of humility and confidence that just rubs off on his teammates.  You can tell the pitchers just love him."

It's like the moment he walked onto the field, shook the umpire's hand, had a few words, got behind the plater and that just kind of looked around the whole stadium and took it all in. He may not ever knew it then, but it feels like he was more saying, "Don't worry folks, I'm here now. It's all going to better now!"

I remember that clip, and then he got down in his crouch and looked at the ground for a few seconds. I don't know if he was just focusing or taking it all in, but I like to think he was telling himself, "yeah, I got this". 

[Frobby]

https://www.mlb.com/news/adley-rutschman-exceeding-hype-for-orioles-2023

[foxfield]

It reads like a fairy tale 

[maybenxtyr]

Psh...8.2 WAR according to Baseball Reference. He's still leaving some on the table.

 

I joke, but the reality is I do believe he'll be even better than the amazing start before his career is over. Glad we get to see him play!