Baltimore is moving on from Brandon Hyde through the 2025 season, but they will replace him with another former catcher this year. New head coach Craig Albernaz spent nine seasons in the minor leagues at linebacker. After his playing career ended, he entered the coaching ranks. Albernaz’s first job in the major leagues was as catching coach and bench coach with the Giants.
Albernaz’s long experience as a player and coach could come in handy in Baltimore. Adley Rutschmann and Samuel Barsalo Two key players for the club in 2026 and beyond.
“I’m very excited“, Albernaz told reporters earlier this month, including MASN Sports’ Roch Kubatko.”Both Adderley and Barcalo have tremendous talent. Obviously, Barsalo comes in relatively without a lot of experience at the major league level, but you see the talent is all around you. And Addley, even before he made it to the major leagues, his pedigree was behind the plate“.
trade Alex Jackson Friday’s game could increase Baltimore’s reliance on Rutschmann and Barsalo. Jackson has been a backup most of his career, but he played the second-most games among Baltimore’s receivers last season. The team has a chance to have all three catchers next year. Barsalo started 20 games behind the plate, but also made two starts at first base and spent some time at DH. Aside from his strong arm, scouting reports didn’t praise his defensive abilities. FanGraphs gives him a current defensive rating of 30 and a future rating of 40. MLB.com is more generous, but a fielding grade of 45 is still not ideal.
Rutschmann made 18 appearances at DH in 2025, but indirect issues limited him to a career-low 90 games. He has at least 45 DH games in both 2023 and 2024. Rutschmann is a solid defender, but injuries have limited his offensive production for two consecutive seasons. Midway through the 2024 season, the backstop took the ball out of his hands. He didn’t play in the IL but hit just .200 over the final three months of the season. Rutschmann tore his left and right obliques last season. He appeared in just 365 games, his fewest since his first pro season in 2019.
Albernaz has worked with some strong players in his coaching career. Buster PoseyAlbernaz’s final year in San Francisco was his first full season as receivers coach. albernaz’s final season with the team Patrick Bailey Become an everyday choice. Bailey didn’t contribute much offensively, but he was elite at pitch composition and controlling the run. He is a two-time Gold Glove Award winner. Rutschmann may not be Posey and Barsalo may not be Pele, but figuring out how to utilize both players will be key for Albernaz.
“I’m biased towards catching, and having a good tandem behind the plate should help us win a lot of games, and with those two guys, I’m going to rely on them a lot,” said Albernaz. “I’m going to give them a lot of information on how to help lead this team, our pitching staff and how to hold coaches accountable. Because this is an efficient team, these catchers are involved in a lot of the process. “
Photos by Daniel Kucin Jr., Imagn Images.
