NEW YORK (AP) — Adley Rutschman of the Baltimore Orioles said Monday he will participate in the Home Run Derby on July 10 in Seattle as he attempts to become the first catcher to win the event.
The Orioles posted a Twitter video with highlights of Rutschman's home runs that read: “Get Your Popcorn Ready”.
Rutschman joins a field that includes New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, Dodgers’ star Mookie Betts, Tampa Bay’s Randy Arozarena, Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Seattle’s Julio Rodríguez.
In his second season with Baltimore, the Oregon native will try to win the title in his native Pacific Northwest and join Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. (1991) and Miguel Tejada (2004) as the third Oriole to win the event.
The most recent catcher to participate was Kansas City's Salvador Pérez, who hit 28 homers in 2021 and lost in the first round to Alonso.
One of four Baltimore representatives in the All-Star Game, Rutschman will be the second Oriole in the past three seasons to participate. In 2021, Trey Mancini lost by one home run in the finals to Alonso, who announced Sunday night he was participating.
Drafted first overall in 2019 out of Oregon State by Baltimore, Rutschman is hitting .268 with 11 homers and 35 RBIs in 79 games heading into a four-game series against the Yankees. He made his major league debut May 21, 2022, and hit .254 with 13 homers and 42 RBIs to help the Orioles win 83 wins for their first winning season since 2016.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
