The Orioles on Monday placed catcher Adley Rutschman on the 10-day injured list due to inflammation in his left wrist. In a corresponding move, Baltimore selected the contract of backstop Chadwick Tromp from Triple-A Norfolk. Recently acquired outfielder Rudy Martin Jr. was designated for assignment in order to open a 40-man roster spot.
It’s the third IL trip of the season for Rutschman, who’s also missed time due to a concussion and inflammation in his left ankle. This trio of injuries has limited him to 67 games on the season, but the switch-hitting All-Star has been productive when healthy. Rutschman is batting .251/.331/.433 with eight homers, 19 doubles and a triple in 284 turns at the plate. He hasn’t bounced all the way back to the form he showed in his first two major league seasons (.268/.369/.439) but has been a far sight better than he was in 2024-25, when he hit just .240/.314/.382 in 1003 plate appearances.
The O’s haven’t given a definitive timetable on Rutschman’s return. While he’s on the shelf, Samuel Basallo seems likely to get the lion’s share of playing time behind the dish. Either Tromp or Sam Huff, also on Baltimore’s active roster, can also mix in. They’ll proceed with three catchers for the time being.
Tromp, 31, has ping-ponged between the Orioles and Braves on several occasions over the past two seasons. He’s slashed .250/.241/.286 in 30 MLB plate appearances this season and carries a career .225/.232/.375 slash in 208 trips to the batter’s box at the big league level. Tromp’s aggressive, free-swinging approach has left him with a staggeringly low 1.4% walk rate; he’s drawn a base on balls only three times in 80 major league games. That allergic-to-walks approach is always going to limit his offensive production, but he does have a bit of pop in his right-handed swing.
Martin, 30, exercised an upward mobility clause in his minor league contract with the Royals last week, which prompted Kansas City to trade him to Baltimore. Any player who exercises an upward clause must be made available to all 29 other clubs. If a new team is willing to add him to its 40-man roster, the current team must either select him to its own 40-man roster or send him to the team that’s willing to do so. Kansas City chose to send Martin to Baltimore rather than select his contract.
Martin didn’t appear in a major league game during his short time on the Orioles’ 40-man roster. He’s also yet to appear in a Triple-A game with them. In 255 plate appearances with the Royals’ top affiliate in Omaha, the former 25th-round pick hit .284/.414/.441 with eight homers and a 33-for-40 showing on the basepaths. Baltimore will now have a week to trade Martin (again), place him on outright waivers or release him.
