'Adley is Superman': Rutschman the hero as O's battle back

CHICAGO -- All it took for the Orioles’ offense to end a six-inning dry spell Friday night was Adley Rutschman turning on the sprinkler.

Well, sort of.

But one thing that’s starting to feel as certain as the O’s dance moves celebrating an extra-base hit is their catcher’s ability to come up clutch in key moments.

“Adley is Superman right now,” Orioles starter Tyler Wells said after Friday’s 6-3 win over the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Rutschman, one day after getting his first career walk-off hit (a home run), delivered another big hit when he knocked a three-run double in the seventh inning to give Baltimore a lead it would not relinquish.

“He’s done such a great job behind the plate, at the plate as a hitter,” said Wells of Rutschman, who’s batting .377/.492/.642 with four home runs and 12 RBIs through 14 games.

“I can't say enough good things about him. He's done an incredible job.”

Here’s a look at three keys to Friday’s win, including Rutschman’s heroics.

Keep grinding
The Orioles had two hits on the night when Rutschman stepped up with the bases loaded and two outs in the seventh. But even though things weren’t falling their way, they were still putting traffic on the bases.

Baltimore hitters drew nine walks Friday, including one by Cedric Mullins that forced in the O's first run in the seventh.

“I think we just stuck to our game plan, tried to take good ABs, and when we got pitches to hit, [we] tried to make the most of it,” Rutschman said. “We were able to compete and battle back.”

Rutschman battled back in the seventh after he fell behind 0-2 to Reynaldo López, watching an 86.2 mph slider and 99 mph fastball go by for strikes.

When López left a 100.3 mph fastball down and over the plate on the next pitch, the O’s catcher didn’t miss, driving a bases-clearing double to left-center field.

Not all heroes wear capes.

“He’s just a great guy,” Rutschman said of Wells. “I don't know about Superman, but he’s the biggest hype man that you'll ever meet. Great supporting guy, and you can tell from that comment that he's an awesome teammate.”

Rutschman stood on second base and performed the sprinkler dance move -- and three more Orioles followed suit in the eighth. Austin Hays, Jorge Mateo and Ryan O’Hearn doubled in consecutive plate appearances, scoring two insurance runs for Baltimore.

As for how Rutschman would rate his sprinkler, well, that’s to be determined.

“I don't know,” he said with a laugh. “I'm going to have to see a video of it. I love the celly. It's awesome.”

Wells’ solid outing
Entering Friday, an Orioles starting pitcher had gone longer than five innings just three times this season. One of those was Wells last Sunday.

Wells delivered another solid performance Friday, allowing five hits and three runs in 5 1/3 innings. The damage came on a Jake Burger solo home run in the second inning and a two-run rally in the sixth that ended the right-hander’s night.

“I thought Tyler Wells threw the ball outstanding,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “Only gave up a couple of hard hits -- a bad cutter to Burger for a homer and then the double from [Elvis] Andrus there in the sixth.

“Besides that, he mixed extremely well, kept the ball off the barrel. Even in that sixth, a couple soft hits there ended his night. But I thought he did a good job competing, and [I] thought he had really good stuff today.”

Cano’s season debut
After a taxing series against the A’s for the Orioles bullpen, Yennier Cano and Spenser Watkins were recalled from Triple-A Norfolk to join the team in Chicago on Friday. Cano tossed 1 2/3 perfect innings in the series opener.

Cano entered in the seventh to face Luis Robert with one out and runners on first and second. In a full count, he fired a 97.3 mph sinker, which Robert grounded into an inning-ending 1-4-3 double play.

“That was awesome: the Cano Show today,” Hyde said. “It’s a tough spot, too -- the middle of the order, good right-handed hitters. He’s got such a heavy, really good sinker. Last year, he struggled throwing strikes up here, and he's been throwing strikes since Spring Training and in Norfolk.

“That's huge for us right now. You’ve got a guy who can get right-handers to put the ball on the ground the way he did and then go back out and do a great job next inning, also. Fantastic job by him."