Red Sox's Overlooked Advantage Thanks to Adley Rutschman

The Boston Red Sox certainly made the right call by going out and acquiring Adley Rutschman from the Baltimore Orioles.

Now, of course, the All-Star backstop has taken some heat for offensive struggles since joining the organization. But there is more to the game than just batting average and Rutschman has been a clear positive for the organization. Offensively, he'll get right. He has been too good throughout his big league career so far to not get back on track.

Even though he hasn't been as explosive as expected offensively, it has been overlooked just how good he has been behind the plate. His defense has been good enough to the point that it's an advantage for Boston when he is catching. He's in the 98th percentile in framing and the 96th percentile in caught stealing above average. Plus, Boston hurlers have done well, for the most part, with him behind the plate.

Runs allowed in Adleys last 14 starts

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4 runs or fewer in 12 of 14 games. 2 runs or fewer in 9 of 14
— Daniel Fox (@DanBFox1287) September 13, 2026

Even that's not all, though. An underrated area in which Rutschman has improved the Red Sox is with his ABS challenges. Rutschman is 18-for-26 (69.2 percent) on ABS challenges since joining the Red Sox, as pointed out on X by MassLive.com's Chris Cotillo.

Adley Rutschman is 18-for-26 on ABS challenges since joining the Red Sox.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) September 17, 2026

Boston has been in the middle of the pack throughout the 2026 season when it comes to challenges. Right now, the Red Sox are 15th in the league with a 50 percent success rate (80-for-161). That's a number that has been positively impacted by the addition of Rutschman, to say the least.

Think back to earlier in the season. Boston actually really struggled with ABS challenges to the point that it was a talking point around the club. Now, Boston doesn't look like one of the worst clubs at challenging any longer. The addition of Rutschman is the biggest reason why. He's one of the best players in baseball at it. In fact, the All-Star catcher is eighth in the league in net overturns vs. expected at 14.2. Rutschman is 41-20 on the season in total across 61 challenges (67 percent).

Rutschman clearly has an elite understanding of the strike zone. This is important in itself. In comparison, former Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez has a 53 percent success rate on challenges (42-for-79) and is -5.5 on net overturns vs. expected.

Rutschman hasn't gotten hot offensively yet, but he has done well with the Red Sox's starting rotation and has added an element behind the plate Boston hasn't had. Imagine the impact he'll have when his bat does get going?

This is why the Red Sox gave up an arm and a leg for him. He is among the elite of the elite behind the plate and fortunately, he's in Boston.

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