The Baltimore Orioles have one of the best young catchers in MLB with Adley Rutschman. The former No. 1 overall pick isn’t going anywhere. Meaning any other player who primarily plays catcher in the Orioles organization might want to start exploring other avenues, such as learning how to play first base, or something outside the box.
Teams know what the Orioles have in Rutschman. He’s one of the franchise cornerstones for a rising Baltimore ballclub. But other scouts and members of front offices across baseball also have their eye on another Orioles catcher.
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Baltimore Orioles catcher Samuel Basallo drawing tons of trade interest
As mentioned, Rutschman is not available, at all. But MLB teams around the league are growing enamored with young Baltimore Orioles catching prospect Samuel Basallo, who recently landed at No. 10 in Baseball America’s top 100 prospect rankings.
The 19-year-old left-handed hitter signed with the Orioles as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2021, but his recent ascension has MLB teams interested in adding Basallo via trade.
According to Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports, multiple MLB teams have reached out to gauge the availablity of the Orioles’ top catching prospect, yet Baltimore hasn’t shown any interest in trading him.
Besides, even though Basallo may not be ready for the big leagues quite yet, he does also play first base, which should leave plenty of at-bats available for both he and Rutschman in Baltimore.
