Back when the Orioles first called up Adley Rutschman in May of 2022, I expected that Baltimore was getting the middle of the order bat that would carry their lineup for the next decade. Sure, he wasn’t going to automatically assume the third or fourth spot in the lineup because no matter how good a rookie is as a prospect, they still need that adjustment period. However, with prospect Adley’s contact and power coming in at 60 and 65 on the 20-80 scale, the Orioles seemed poised to finally have a worthy successor to Manny Machado at the heart of their order.
Is Adley Rutschman going to be the Orioles leadoff man for the long term?
