10 Best Landing Spots for Orioles' Adley Rutschman amid Trade Rumors
In a little over a year, Adley Rutschman has gone from one of MLB's premier superstars to a player the Baltimore Orioles can suddenly live without.
This partly has to do with how the superstar label no longer fits him, while the other has to do with the club's newly inked contract extension with Samuel Basallo. He and Rutschman are both catchers, and there wouldn't seem to be room for both of them.
It was no surprise, then, when Bob Nightengale of USA Today wrote on Sunday that there will be "no bigger position player on the trade block this winter than Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman."
It's fair game to get a head start on pondering the 27-year-old's potential landing spots. But first, the hard part: What even is Rutschman's trade value these days?
What Is Adley Rutschman's Trade Value?
1 of 7
It was six years ago that the Orioles chose Rutschman with the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft, and he started living up to it immediately after he arrived in 2022.
He finished second in the American League Rookie of the Year voting that season, and was then an All-Star for back-to-back playoff teams in 2023 and 2024.
And yet, here's the sad truth of where Rutschman's career is right now:
- First 346 G: 130 wRC+, 13.8 fWAR
- Last 154 G: 79 wRC+, 1.1 fWAR
The demarcation line is July 1, 2024, which was right after Rutschman took a foul tip off his right hand. He's been banged up pretty much ever since, including right now with an oblique strain.
Though Rutschman is under club control through 2027, Baseball Trade Values has his surplus value at a modest $15 million. In theory, that isn't enough for the O's to cash him in for a haul of talent this winter. And given that they won't have much leverage with him, the same may be true in practice.
Baltimore should shop him anyway, of course, as there's bound to be interest from teams that view Rutschman as a change of scenery candidate with a chip on his shoulder. And besides, trading him could be a means for the Orioles to deepen what has become a very thin pitching staff in 2025.
Rutschman's suitors would figure to be win-now teams with major needs at catcher, which is a good chunk of the league. Yet even if all we're doing is speculating, 10 clubs in particular make sense for him on paper.
Note: All prospect rankings are according to MLB Pipeline.
10-6: Pirates, Reds, Cardinals, Diamondbacks, Padres
2 of 7
10. Pittsburgh Pirates
The Bucs have gotten 1.0 rWAR and a .608 OPS from their catchers this year, and the pressure is on to make the playoffs before they have to consider trading Paul Skenes.
Yet even if these things make them a fit for Rutschman on paper, it would be unlike the Pirates to actually take such a big chance.
9. Cincinnati Reds
The Reds can pitch, but their offense is badly in need of some kind of stabilizing force. Rutschman would be an ideal candidate, even if it would mean bumping Tyler Stephenson to full-time DH duty.
Like with the Pirates, however, it's just hard to fathom the Reds actually taking a chance like this.
8. St. Louis Cardinals
When Chaim Bloom takes over the Cardinals this winter, his priority should be winning back a fanbase that has largely checked out. And Cardinals fans are in the right here, as their team hasn't been interesting in years.
But is it too soon for a big swing on Rutschman? As the Cardinals seem to be quite a few pieces short of contending in the near future, it may be.
7. Arizona Diamondbacks
True, Gabriel Moreno is a talented catcher who is still only 25 years old. But he's also had trouble staying healthy, and the D-backs really can't afford to have any weak links if they want to catch back up to the competition in the NL West.
But if the O's do demand pitching for Rutschman, that's where Arizona would have an issue. The Snakes only just replenished their own pitching at the deadline.
6. San Diego Padres
The Padres rank among MLB's worst with minus-0.1 rWAR and a .604 OPS from the catcher's spot. As general manager A.J. Preller loves his blockbuster trades, you can put two and two together and imagine a trade for Rutschman.
The Padres did just trade for Freddy Fermin, however. And since he's under their control through 2029, it's worth their while to give him time to show what he can do.
5. Detroit Tigers
3 of 7
Why It's a Fit
The Tigers have gotten solid production at catcher in 2025, and Dillon Dingler has a lot to do with that. He has a solid .745 OPS and 11 home runs.
Yet whereas his defensive skills are genuinely strong, Dingler's offensive profile is built upon a volatile approach. He basically doesn't take walks (4.5 BB%) and he swings and misses a lot, so Detroit should be skeptical of his future as a regular.
Even in what has otherwise been a lost year, Rutschman still has better-than-average walk (10.6) and strikeout (15.8) percentages. As they have the fifth-lowest walk-to-strikeout ratio in the league, the Tigers should want those qualities.
Otherwise, they could hope that they could energize Rutschman more than most teams. After all, who wouldn't want to go from one of the AL's worst teams to one of its best?
Trade Proposal: Detroit Tigers get C Adley Rutschman; Baltimore Orioles get RHP Troy Melton (Tigers No. 5), RHP Jaden Hamm (Tigers No. 11)
Who Says No?
Probably the Tigers.
Not so much because this would be too rich for Rutschman, but because they don't really need Dingler to be more than what he is. Even if he were to regress offensively, he has enough bats around him to insulate the Tigers from serious damage.
4. Chicago Cubs
4 of 7
Why It's a Fit
Thanks to Carson Kelly, the Cubs haven't had issues getting production out of the catcher's spot in 2025. And in 2026, they'll pay him just a $5 million salary.
Yet even if Kelly still has a .796 OPS and 13 home runs to his name, he only has a .661 OPS since May 27. That's a more accurate reflection of what the 31-year-old is offensively, which complicates any plans for him to keep starting in 2026.
Further, the Cubs are likely to be in need of some star power this winter. Though they could bring back Kyle Tucker on a new contract, this didn't feel likely even before he compromised his value with a prolonged cold stretch—which we now know was related to a boneheaded decision to let him play through a hand injury.
Rutschman doesn't have Tucker's sheer upside, but he would fit nicely into their powerful, speedy offense. And defensively, they wouldn't really lose anything in going from Kelly to Rutschman on an everyday basis.
Trade Proposal: Chicago Cubs get C Adley Rutschman; Baltimore Orioles get RHP Javier Assad, RHP Jaxon Wiggins (Cubs No. 4)
Who Says No?
Probably the Orioles.
Assad would be a good buy-low option following a year that has mostly been lost to injury, but there would be risk in also taking on Wiggins. Though he has terrific stuff, he's only made it as far as Double-A and there are persistent questions about his control.
3. Philadelphia Phillies
5 of 7
Why It's a Fit
J.T. Realmuto has been behind the plate for the Phillies since 2019, but this era is likely to come to an end when his contract expires this winter.
The Phillies could always bring Realmuto back, but signs that it's time to move on are everywhere. He's 34 years old and he hasn't been an impact hitter since 2022, posting just a 105 OPS+ over the last three seasons.
Saying goodbye to Realmuto only to turn around and deal for Rutschman would be right up the alley of Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. It would also be a good fit timing-wise, as the Phillies' core may not be tenable beyond the two years standing between Rutschman and free agency.
Otherwise, he'd surely like hitting at Citizens Bank Park. It's a hitters' park all the way, and could especially do wonders for reviving his power.
Trade Proposal: Philadelphia Phillies get C Adley Rutschman; Baltimore Orioles get RHP Gage Wood (Phillies No. 4), RHP Moisés Chace (Phillies No. 8), RHP Jean Cabrera (Phillies No. 11)
Who Says No?
Probably the Orioles.
Turning Rutschman into three pitchers would sound good on paper, but Chace is recovering from Tommy John surgery and Wood was only just drafted this year. Only Cabrera would offer immediate help, and he only gives off back-end starter vibes.
2. Texas Rangers
6 of 7
Why It's a Fit
Two years ago, Jonah Heim was an All-Star and Gold Glove winner for a Rangers team that won the World Series.
Today, he's a 30-year-old who doesn't add much value on either side of the ball. His OPS has been in the low .600s in each of the last two seasons, and his defense no longer rates well.
Of course, the Rangers need to think about upgrading their entire offense. It is the reason they have failed to launch in 2025, as they have scored three or fewer runs in half of their games.
Though Rutschman has been no sure thing at the plate in his own right, at least he's a better bet at this stage than Heim. He's three years younger, and you only have to go back to the first half of 2024 to find him with a .780 OPS.
Trade Proposal: Texas Rangers get C Adley Rutschman; Baltimore Orioles get RHP Jack Leiter
Who Says No?
Probably the Rangers.
This would be a fun trade, but the Rangers could ill afford to part with Leiter amid a winter in which they'll stand to lose a bunch of hurlers to free agency. And besides, the sky will be his limit if he ever starts throwing strikes more frequently.
1. San Francisco Giants
7 of 7
Why It's a Fit
There isn't a better defensive catcher in MLB than Patrick Bailey. He has above-average ranks across the board, though he is especially adept at framing.
It's too bad that he can't hit a lick, and it's not as if his bat is trending upward. He's indeed gotten even worse since breaking in with a .644 OPS in 2023, going down to .637 last year and .536 this year.
Though not the reason, this is certainly a reason the Giants have struggled to score runs in 2025. Fixing this must be a priority for president of baseball operations Buster Posey, and he should know that it isn't easy to lure free-agent hitters to Oracle Park.
Posey demonstrated with the Rafael Devers trade that he's willing to take big swings on the trade market instead. Another for Rutschman would bring real upside to the Bay Area, and it wouldn't hurt that he's something of a Posey acolyte with the way he plays.
Trade Proposal: San Francisco Giants get C Adley Rutschman; Baltimore Orioles get RHP Landen Roupp
Who Says No?
Probably the Giants, though this is stretching the usefulness of the word "probably."
As Roupp has five additional years of club control to Rutschman's two, this deal would be lopsided in favor of Baltimore in that respect. But it would also be relatively fair, as the O's would get an established hurler to plug right into their rotation and the Giants would get a dose of star power for 2026 and 2027.
Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant.
