ORGANIZATION REPORTS

The Orioles hold the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 draft and would like to do as well with it as they did in 2019, when they took Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman.

The 23-year-old began the season at Double-A Bowie and reached Triple-A Norfolk on Aug. 10. The canceled 2020 minor league season did not deter him from looking like baseball’s top prospect.

Rutschman led all minor league catchers with 543 plate appearances and hit .285/.397/.502 with 23 home runs in 123 games. He drew 79 walks against 90 strikeouts. He appeared in the Futures Game.

“I found that every level has been a jump, for sure,” Rutschman said. “It’s one of those things that you wouldn’t notice right off the bat, I think, but as you play in more games you start to kind of reflect on your time at the previous levels and you compare it.

“And I think that’s where you start to think the differences just in the little things and the day-to-day reflecting back.”

Rutschman’s .899 OPS led Orioles minor leaguers, but he seems just as proud that he ranked first in plate appearances.

“It was a goal of mine coming into the season to stay healthy,” he said. “I’d like to think that is a result of offseason work and staying in shape. Also just doing little things day in and day out to make sure I could be 100% ready to play every single day.”

Whether on Opening Day or not, Rutschman will make his major league debut in 2022.

Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias noted Rutschman’s limited Triple-A experience but added, “Once you’re in major league spring training, you’ve got a chance to show your stuff and make the team.”

—ROCH KUBATKO

When the Red Sox drafted high school second baseman Nick Yorke 17th overall in 2020, many in the industry expressed shock.

One year into Yorke’s professional development, the shock has been replaced by a consensus that the 19-year-old may be one of the best pure hitters in the minors.

“Obviously, there’s a reason why we drafted him where we did,” Red Sox farm director Brian Abraham said. “I think he’s shown everyone why that’s been the case. So we’re really excited about this past year, and moving forward as well.”

Yorke responded well last winter when asked by the Red Sox to shed weight, dropping from 225 to 205 pounds. He spent time with the Red Sox in big league camp—where he showed competitive, professional at-bats in Grapefruit League games—before opening the year in Low-A Salem.

His debut went over with a thud. Yorke hit .195 in May with a 23.1% strikeout rate.

Any concerns quickly abated as Yorke settled and displayed the elite strike-zone