Rutschman resoundingly erasing his struggles vs. southpaws

CHICAGO -- Adley Rutschman’s 2022 rookie season was special. He burst onto the scene and lived up to all the hype that came with being MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 overall prospect and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 Draft.

If there was one area of Rutschman’s game to nitpick, though, it was his less-than-stellar offensive production against left-handed pitching. In 115 plate appearances against southpaws, his slash line was .174/.287/.265. And only one of his 13 home runs came off a lefty.

It’s been a different story so far in 2023.

On Saturday afternoon, Rutschman belted his third home run off a left-hander this season (and his 10th overall), a two-run shot off Cubs starter Justin Steele. The game-tying blast in the fifth inning wasn’t enough to power the Orioles to victory, though, as they fell, 3-2, dropping their second straight game at Wrigley Field.

In 100 plate appearances against lefties this year, Rutschman is slashing .301/.410/.446. That’s actually better than the 25-year-old’s slash line as a lefty hitter against right-handed pitchers (.272/.380/.434 in 205 plate appearances).

Per usual, Rutschman gave credit to those around him for his personal success.

“I’m fortunate to have good coaches around me to help me make some adjustments,” Rutschman said.

This was the second time in three days that Rutschman homered from the right side of the plate. He also hit a game-tying solo shot off Yusei Kikuchi in the fifth inning of Baltimore’s 4-2 win over Toronto on Thursday.

Rutschman’s homer on Saturday came on an 83.3 mph slider from Steele located in the lower third of the strike zone. Rutschman made good contact, sending the ball a Statcast-projected 406 feet to left-center field at an exit velocity of 101.1 mph.

“Just trying to get a pitch over the middle of the plate, see something up,” Rutschman said of his approach to the at-bat.

With two outs in the ninth, Rutschman came to the plate as the potential go-ahead run, with Austin Hays on first representing the potential tying run after drawing a walk against Cubs right-hander Adbert Alzolay. However, Rutschman grounded out to second base to end the game.

The Orioles left nine runners on base and went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position.

“Just a frustrating game offensively,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “We had some opportunities to score.”

Baltimore has lost three of its past four games, scoring only 10 total runs over that span. The bats have mostly been cold since arriving in Chicago, as the O’s were outscored 13-5 while dropping the first two games of the series.

It secured the Orioles’ fourth series loss over their past seven, an abnormal stretch for the team with the third-best record in MLB (43-27).

“I didn’t even realize that, honestly,” said right-hander Kyle Gibson, who allowed three runs and struck out seven over six innings. “I think we’re still playing really well. We haven’t gotten a couple hits here and there, haven’t put up a zero here and there. But except for the game [Friday], shoot, it feels like they’ve mostly been pretty close. Kind of the story of our year.”

On Sunday afternoon, Baltimore will try to avoid being swept for the first time this season. Because of its strong lineup -- with Rutschman’s potent switch-hitting bat in the No. 2 hole -- the team is confident it can halt its small skid before leaving Chicago and heading to St. Petersburg, where it will play a two-game set vs. the MLB-best Rays starting Tuesday.

“I think, on any given day, we always feel like we’re in it, no matter what,” Rutschman said. “This team continues to fight. Didn’t get it today, but come back tomorrow ready to go.”