Why Adley Rutschman Should Be Minnesota Twins' Top Trade Target This Offseason

9 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

First of all, Rutschman caught 293 games 2022-2024, his first three years. Maximum was 110 in 2023. Get your data correct. 

Second, the idea that's somehow too much is pure poppycock. Sheesh.

Cal Raleigh caught 378 over the same three years. 

120 games at catcher has traditionally been the average for catcher #1.

 

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.fcgi?id=rutscad01&t=f&year=2022

Sal Perez caught 422 over 3 years at the same age as Rutschman.

13 hours ago, USAFChief said:

the idea that's somehow too much is pure poppycock. Sheesh.

Cal Raleigh caught 378 over the same three years. 

120 games at catcher has traditionally been the average for catcher #1.

Where did you get 120 games catching is the average for a #1 catcher now? Because that's what we are talking about, not 50 years ago. 

Cal Raleigh is a freak, he should get AL MVP hands down. Much like Clemens, nobody can pitch like he did & not have their arms fall off.

Times have changed, Chief, conditions have changed. It's time for you to except it. The idea that a player cannot be pushed too far, is pure poppycock & too idealistic.

I'd like to share an observation with you, Chief. I grew up working hard on a dairy farm starting as a young boy. As a young man I worked for a 65 yrs. old brick-layer & he could out work me & he said that he knew a 70 something stone-cutter that could out work him. When I was 40, I worked in shipping & receiving. Before I left for Brazil, I had to train in 3 young men to do what I did.

My observation is our father's generation was stronger than our generation & our generation is stronger than the following generation, on average. I'd like our generation to be as strong as our father's generation & the following generation be as strong as our generation. But on the average I don't see it. We all have physical limitations & everyone's are different. I'm all for stretching those limits but not to exceed them to maximize the results.

1 hour ago, Doctor Gast said:

"By all means, the Twins should go all in on Rutschman. He's an elite catcher that was overloaded his early years & now is paying for it. This an excellent buy low candidate."

Fabrication? How about delusional on your part that you have no idea how much work it takes to be a MLB catcher (neither do I, but it seems that I have a much better understanding than you). In Rutschman's 1st 3 years in the MLB, he caught 329 games, (not including DHing), you don't see even veterans catch that many games these days. (They don't because too many catchers wear down & land on the IL). For reference, many have said that Jeffers is a primary catcher. In his 6 yrs he has caught 420 games.

How many games has Raleigh caught this year? 110 games per year is NOT overload. Thats just the new accepted perception 

1 hour ago, Doctor Gast said:

"By all means, the Twins should go all in on Rutschman. He's an elite catcher that was overloaded his early years & now is paying for it. This an excellent buy low candidate."

Fabrication? How about delusional on your part that you have no idea how much work it takes to be a MLB catcher (neither do I, but it seems that I have a much better understanding than you). In Rutschman's 1st 3 years in the MLB, he caught 329 games, (not including DHing), you don't see even veterans catch that many games these days. (They don't because too many catchers wear down & land on the IL). For reference, many have said that Jeffers is a primary catcher. In his 6 yrs he has caught 420 games.

The Twins have pretty much done even Steven at the C position for many years. Simply because they haven't had a really good one offensively and defensively.  If Jeffers or Vasquez were head and shoulders over the other they would catch the majority of the games. Delusional. Check that mirror. 😄 

12 hours ago, Schmoeman5 said:

How many games has Raleigh caught this year? 110 games per year is NOT overload. Thats just the new accepted perception 

My text is about his 1st 3 yrs, being overextended. That is my opinion. This affected this year, being injured & production.  

11 hours ago, Schmoeman5 said:

The Twins have pretty much done even Steven at the C position for many years. Simply because they haven't had a really good one offensively and defensively.  If Jeffers or Vasquez were head and shoulders over the other they would catch the majority of the games. Delusional. Check that mirror. 😄 

Why don't we get this right! I stated that many had thought that Jeffers was a primary catcher; I never said that I shared those views. If you actually read my posts, you'd know that I view him as a tandem catcher. My focus was on Rutschman; I only used Jeffers as a reference.

28 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

So please no. Just punt the position. Sleep in the bed you made. The Twins front office will not have the ability to fix everything at once. Something will have to be punted.  

They are betting a big portion of their future on developing young pitching. Punting the catcher position is a really bad idea in that context. Play good defense behind young pitchers.

46 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

When I say punt... I'm saying just grab the defense guy who can't hit without the catcher price tag.

Forget the offense. The catchers who can hit are the ones that cost the resources. Take your resources and spend it on other departments for more bang for the buck.  

Rutschman is a better defender than Vazquez or Jeffers. He's a better defender than pretty much all of the available free agents.

The Twins have players they can trade. Time to check around and find out the cost of a young catcher. I'm in favor of defensive-minded players, so start by asking about Jeferson Quero and Harry Ford. Perhaps there is nothing to be done. I don't include catchers who are primarily suited for DH/1B/C. Last offseason I was pushing Teel and J. Quero. I like the CWS Quero too, but the White Sox worked hard to acquire both of those guys. No way they accept a trade unless it is totally off the wall in their favor.

Joe Ryan should return a position player who plays behind the pitcher. I'm not keen on the Baltimore suggestions because I don't see much in Bradford that is not already in the organization. Mayo is a DH with a strong arm and a big bat. Sound familiar? Rutschman would not come cheap and his contract has passed the will of the Twins accountants. 

It's possible to sign a decent veteran to hold down a backup catching job for $4M. That seems like the most effective way to use resources. Now, just see what Milwaukee, Seattle, and St. Louis think about getting together on a deal.

On 8/27/2025 at 7:33 PM, h2oface said:

You think the Twins actually give a ****? And would actually trade for a player that can help the team NOW? 

No.  I just think they are rebuilding and this kind of trade makes absolutely no sense whatsoever for a rebuilding team.  It's literally the opposite of what rebuilding teams do.

The curves/trajectories for Rutschman are all wrong:  His salary is rapidly increasing in his last 2 Arb years--then FA, and his play is getting worse every year both offensively and defensively.

Why would the Twins want a player who would play in '26, might be locked out in '27, and then is a FA??? That is the exact same problem they have with Ryan.

If the O's wanted something like Wallner and/or Julien and/or Outman and/or Miranda and/or McCusker--sure! If they want to take a flyer on some guys who have shown flashes for their own guy who the League has clearly figured out how to pitch to and is now injured, maybe something could be worked out.

Otherwise, big Pass by me.

11 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

From St Louis, do you have a preference between Pages, Crooks or Bernal as a target? All of them to me seem destined to stay behind the plate. They also have Ivan Herrera who is more a c/dh type (but can really hit) and Rainel Rodriguez who is probably a few years away. I wonder what they would want for any of their young catching?

Rainel is the highest rated. I haven't seen him play. E. Tait is a bat first A+ guy the Twins picked up for Duran and his future behind the plate is still unknown.

I do like both Bernal and Crooks. Crooks is closer and would be a decent backup catcher in MLB next season. Crooks does K quite a bit. Saw him several times (via milb.com) and he looks good.

Bernal might be better but a year away. Pages may not be available for a fair price because he has a year at the highest level. He is a very good catcher but struggles to hit. 

I guess I just want the Twins to find out an asking price, which we may never hear. A reasonable ask would seem like a AAA starting pitcher and maybe a position player the Cardinals feel has helium, one not among our top prospects. Rojas for Crooks? The Twins were very high, obviously, on Tait. How do their evaluators feel about guys closer to playing major league baseball?

I'm most curious about the cost of either Harry Ford or Jeferson Quero. I would consider trading Emmanuel Rodriguez for either one of those two but might want a relief pitcher thrown in because EmRod still has crazy upside. 

17 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

I would very much be open to that type of move too. Harder for a rebuilding team to trade prospects, but a prospect for prospect deal would be fun for sure. 

The Twins have been playing it safe until the recent July trade deadline. They need to make a few gambles. So much is unknown. It was surprising to hear the Twins chose Tait over Aiden Miller. The team needs defensive players and hitters. It's going to be tough, so negotiations must be extensive. The Twins front office made some errors in evaluation and should move forward aggressively. They cannot be concerned with the past.