BALTIMORE -- With Adley Rutschman (left wrist inflammation) and Samuel Basallo (right shoulder inflammation) both still on the injured list, the Orioles appear to again be making a change to their fill-in catching duo.
On Thursday, Baltimore acquired veteran catcher Jake Rogers from Detroit in exchange for Minor League right-hander Zane Barnhart. The 31-year-old Rogers was designated for assignment on Tuesday and has not yet reported to the O’s.
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Rogers is likely to replace either Chadwick Tromp or Yohel Pozo on the Orioles’ active roster.
TRADE DETAILS
Orioles get: C Jake Rogers
Tigers get: Minor League RHP Zane Barnhart
Baltimore hasn’t been getting much offensive production from its backstops of late. Since July 19, the trio of Tromp, Pozo and Sam Huff (who was DFA’d on Monday) combined to go 2-for-35 (.057) with 16 strikeouts. Pozo has played only two games, though, going 1-for-4 with an RBI during the series win vs. the Tigers earlier this week.
Although Rogers hasn’t hit well this season -- batting .161 with two doubles, one triple, three home runs, nine RBIs and a .567 OPS over 34 games -- his bat has shown pop in the past. In 2023, he clubbed 21 home runs in 107 games for the Tigers. He then hit 10 more homers over 102 games in ‘24.
A third-round pick of Houston in 2016, Rogers had spent his entire six-year MLB career with Detroit, which acquired the Canyon, Texas, native in the trade that sent Justin Verlander to the Astros on Aug. 31, 2017.
Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias was the Astros’ assistant general manager at the time when Rogers was drafted by Houston.
Rogers owns a .197/.270/.379 slash line with 47 home runs in his 362-game big league career.
If Rutschman and Basallo return down the stretch, it’s possible the O’s could still keep Rogers on the 26-man roster, as they’ve carried three catchers at times this season. However, neither Rutschman nor Basallo is close to coming back, though they’re set to be re-evaluated for potential progression to baseball activities during the upcoming homestand that begins Friday night vs. the Phillies at Camden Yards.
Barnhart, a Towson, Md., native, was Baltimore’s 17th-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft out of Hillsdale College. The 24-year-old righty posted a 4.05 ERA over 31 relief appearances for Double-A Chesapeake this season.
This may not have been a major trade, but it could be the first of many deals executed by the Orioles ahead of Monday’s 6 p.m. ET Trade Deadline. It will be interesting to see whether Baltimore (53-56) buys, sells or does a little of both -- all of which could be possibilities.
The O’s remain in the thick of the American League Wild Card hunt, and they earned a much-needed victory on Wednesday afternoon in Detroit, erasing a seven-run deficit before rallying to win 10-9 in 12 innings. It was the type of performance that could have convinced Elias and his front office to add to the big league roster to try to make a postseason push.