![\"Baltimore](\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_443,w_6000,h_3375\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/GettyImages\/mmsport\/229\/01jqcr769ccydq9c0n00.jpg\")
<\/p>\nAdley Rutschman’s Opening Day home run is dollar signs to his ears as his contract extension looms.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If the\u00a0Seattle Mariners\u00a0sent a loud message to\u00a0Mike Elias\u00a0and the\u00a0Baltimore Orioles\u00a0a couple days before Opening Day, then\u00a0Adley Rutschman\u00a0is shouting at the team’s front office.<\/p>\n
Elias can forget all about the\u00a0six-year, $106 million price tag\u00a0that Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh signed earlier this week.<\/p>\n
Rutschman\u2019s solo home run on Opening Day is more proof of just how valuable Rutschman is to Baltimore, and how expensive it’ll eventually be to lock him up long-term.<\/p>\n While Rutschman did regress a bit last season, especially in the second half, his Opening Day statement is clear he\u2019s still worth top dollar.<\/p>\n When healthy and right, he’s the most valuable catcher in the league, elite on both sides of the ball.<\/p>\n He isn’t the only young player that Baltimore has to worry about paying, but Rutschman\u2019s big Opening Day makes it clear his extension is a top priority.<\/p>\n It also means Elias won\u2019t be able to lowball Rutschman in his extension talks either.<\/p>\n This isn’t a contract year for Rutschman, who will remain under team control through 2027.<\/p>\n But it is his final year before arbitration, meaning he has significant money riding on how he performs this year. He made sure to put behind any doubts about his worth after a less-than-satisfactory 2024 season.<\/p>\n Rutschman will probably have a breakout season because he knows what\u2019s at stake. He already knows what his floor could be thanks to the Mariners.<\/p>\n Elias and the Orioles know what they are working with too.<\/p>\n But if his Opening Day is foreshadowing anything, his 2025 season should be promising.<\/p>\n The better he plays, the more he\u2019s worth.<\/p>\n \u00a0If he takes his Opening Day performance and is consistent throughout the rest of the season, the Orioles will have to make Rutschman their top priority or risk losing him to one of the New York teams or the Los Angeles Dodgers, because they seem to poach all the top talent every year with the biggest bank accounts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Adley Rutschman’s Opening Day home run is dollar signs to his ears as his contract extension looms. If the\u00a0Seattle Mariners\u00a0sent a loud message to\u00a0Mike Elias\u00a0and the\u00a0Baltimore Orioles\u00a0a… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":44737,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\nAdley Rutschman\u2019s bat-cracking statement on Thursday is proof the Baltimore Orioles are in expensive territory<\/h2>\n