(Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
The T-Mobile Home Run Derby just gained another participant.
Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman will be joining the fold.
The Derby will take place a week from today at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, which is home to the Seattle Mariners.
Players such as Mookie Betts, Julio Rodriguez, Pete Alonso, Randy Arozarena, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. have already announced that they will participate in this year’s Derby.
But Rutschman has become the newest member of the group.
On Twitter, the Orioles announced that their star catcher would be joining the event and competing in this year’s Home Run Derby on Monday, July 10.
Rutsch Crush.
Adley Rutschman will compete in the Home Run Derby! pic.twitter.com/pX4zJT5i0y
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) July 3, 2023
Rutschman made his Major League debut last season and found himself in the conversation for American League Rookie of the Year honors along with Rodriguez and Steven Kwan.
Rutschman did not win the award, as it ultimately went to Rodriguez.
However, the Rookie of the Year finalist is set to join a strong bracket of MLB sluggers for this year’s Derby.
The young catcher is hitting .268 with 11 home runs, 35 RBI, and an OPS of .789.
He also is reaching base at a .374 clip, slugging .415, has scored 38 runs, has a WAR of 1.8, and an OPS+ of 122.
Rutschman went deep 13 times last season and is already two homers away from tying that mark as we move closer to the All-Star break and the start of the second half.
With the young catcher joining the fold, only two spots remain for this year’s Derby.
And soon, the field will be complete with eight sluggers taking their talents to Seattle.
The post Orioles Make An Exciting Adley Rutschman Announcement appeared first on The Cold Wire.