The start to Adley Rutschman's Boston Red Sox tenure wasn't great (1-for-17 with nine strikeouts in his first five games, especially disappointing considering the haul they gave up to get him), but fans are now getting a glimpse at the player the team actually traded for and what he can bring to the table.
In his first two home games as a Red Sox, the 28-year-old went 4-for-9 with one home run, four RBIs, and no strikeouts. He has also been fantastic defensively (most notably making an impressive catch in foul territory against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday), which was one of the biggest appeals of bringing him to Boston in the first place.
Obviously, one great two-game sample size isn't the be-all, end-all, but neither is a bad five-game sample size. Rutschman is a three-time All-Star and should be a game-changer for the Red Sox, and he's finally proving that.
Adley Rutschman gives Boston some much-needed stability at catcher
One of the Red Sox' biggest weaknesses this season (and especially this decade) was their catcher position.
Carlos Narvaez didn't have it the way he did last year (he was only hitting .187 in 171 at-bats before he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles), Connor Wong has never been more than a decent catcher on either side of the plate, and Mickey Gasper mostly struggled after a hot start with the team and was sent back down to the minors in June (though, funny enough, he got called back up just a few days ago and hit a home run in each of his last two games -- he had only hit two home runs in his MLB career before this week).
Acquiring Rutschman, who has been a top catcher in all of baseball over the past few years, gives Boston a huge upgrade on both sides of the plate and some serious stability.
Catcher also isn't a weak spot on the Red Sox' roster anymore, which is huge, given that they have serious World Series aspirations this year. Their lineup and overall defense are going to level up significantly because of this trade, which should only help them in the long run.
Boston may have given up a lot to get Rutschman (or, at least, they took a big risk by sending out some of their top prospects for someone who isn't even under contract after next season), but it wasn't for no reason. The Oregon native gives the team a huge boost where they needed it, and fans are beginning to see firsthand what type of impact he can make in Boston.
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