Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman will be sidelined through the All-Star break due to the left oblique strain that sent him to the injured list for the first time in his career.
Interim manager Tony Mansolino made the announcement Sunday morning, telling reporters that the team doesn’t wish to put Rutschman in jeopardy of aggravating the issue.
“He’s dealt with it fine,” Mansolino said. “He wants to play. He’s kind of going stir crazy. I think the fact that it is mild in nature probably makes it a little harder for him.
“We all know abdominal and oblique injuries, if you push those things they can get really ugly, and instead of being three or four weeks, it could be three months. So for Adley, he feels something small, feels something mild. They went and got an MRI, checked it out, which validated that. In his mind he probably thinks he can possibly go out there, but obviously, we know medically that’s not the smart thing to do for him right now.
“He’s handling it fine. Just wants to play.”
Rutschman would be in line to miss at least the next three weeks. The All-Star break is July 14-17 before the Orioles return to play at the Tampa Bay Rays on July 18.
Rutschman, 27, sustained the injury when he tweaked his left side in batting practice and had been nursing what was described as left abdominal tightness.
Rutschman is hitting .227 with eight homers and 20 RBIs in 68 games this season.
A two-time All-Star, Rutschman is batting .257 with 60 homers and 221 RBIs in 483 career games since Baltimore selected him with the top overall pick of the 2019 MLB Draft.
–Field Level Media
