Albernaz’s long experience as a player and coach could prove useful to Baltimore. Adley Rutschman And Samuel Basallo are two of the club’s most important players, both for 2026 and beyond.
“I’m excited,” Albernaz told reporters earlier this month Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports. “Adley and Basallo both have a lot of talent. It’s clear that Basallo comes in with relatively little experience at the big league level, but you can just see the talent coming your way. And Adley, even before he reached the big leagues, and his pedigree behind the plate.”
The trade of Alex Jackson on Friday, Baltimore’s reliance on Rutschman and Basallo could increase. Jackson has primarily been a backup in his career, but he had the second-most at-bats at catcher for Baltimore last season. There was a chance the team would carry all three catchers next year. Basallo started 20 games behind the plate, but also made a few starts at first base and spent time at DH. Scouting reports don’t speak highly of his defensive abilities, aside from a strong arm. FanGraph gave him a scouting grade of 30 for his current fielding skills and a future grade of 40. MLB.com was more generous, although a field grade of 45 is still not ideal.
Rutschman made eighteen appearances at DH in 2025, although oblique issues limited him to a career-low 90 games. He had at least 45 DH appearances in both 2023 and 2024. Rutschman is a solid defender, but injuries have limited his offensive production in consecutive seasons. The backstop took a ball out of hand midway through the 2024 season. He didn’t go on the IL, but hit just .200 over the final three months of the season. Rutschman strained both his left and right obliques this past season. He managed just 365 plate appearances, his fewest since his first professional season in 2019.
Albernaz has worked with some strong options behind the plate in his coaching career. Buster PoseyAlbernaz’s final year in San Francisco was Albernaz’s first full season as a catching instructor. Albernaz’s final season with the team saw Patrick Bailey emerging as an everyday option. Bailey didn’t really contribute offensively, but he was elite at pitching, framing and controlling the running game. He is a two-time Gold Glove winner. Rutschman may not be Posey and Basallo probably isn’t Bailey, but figuring out how to utilize both players will be critical for Albernaz.
“I’m biased against catching, having a great tandem behind the plate should in itself help us win a lot of games, and with those two guys I’m going to lean on them a lot” said Albernaz. “I’m going to give them a lot of information on how to help lead this team and our pitching staff, as well as how to hold the coaches accountable. Because it is a well-functioning team, those catchers are involved in a large part of the process.”
Photo courtesy of Daniel Kucin Jr., Imagn Images.
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