Orioles injury update: Adley Rutschman to the IL, Samuel Basallo day-to-day, and Chris Bassitt's desire to return

After a series of roster moves and substitutions that elevated third-string catcher Sam Huff from the taxi squad into Sunday's game in the second inning, it was clear that both of the Baltimore Orioles catchers were dealing with injuries. Post-game, manager Craig Albernaz gave updates on both Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo, sharing that Rutschman is dealing with left wrist discomfort and Basallo is dealing with right shoulder discomfort. As usual, Craig Albernaz was cagey about the severity of these injuries, so it was unclear what to expect as far as their availability going forward.

Evidently, of the two catchers, Rutschman's injury is more severe, as he was added to the 10-day IL ahead of the Orioles' first game against the Red Sox. The update on Basallo that Albernaz gave pre-game was that he is day-to-day. Basallo was missing from the starting lineup, and in a game where the Orioles emptied their bench, it appeared he was not available to even pinch-hit.

The corresponding move for Rutschman going on the IL was the Orioles selecting the contract of Chadwick Tromp, who has already played a handful of games for the Orioles this season.

Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo's injuries is putting the Orioles in a tough spot

That means that over the last two days, the Orioles have subtracted Rutschman along with relief pitcher Cam Sanders and added Huff and Tromp. That means that they currently have 14 position players and just 12 pitchers on the roster. That's an interesting decision considering how important this series against the Red Sox is and how much the bullpen pitched in Houston.

If Basallo is back in the lineup today and one of either Tromp or Huff is DFA'd to get another into the pen, then this will have been a well-timed shuffle. If that's not the case and in today's game the Orioles get stuck in a bullpen game where they don't have enough arms to compete with the Sox, then this roster dance will have cost them.

Bigger picture than just the health of the bullpen in one game is the fact that with Rutschman set to miss the next eight games, the Orioles' offense is going to miss one of their most consistent bats at the top of the lineup, and the defense behind the plate is going to suffer immensely. Additionally, if Basallo is not effective while playing through injury, his spot in the lineup that was once an area of concern for opposing pitchers could easily turn into a black hole. It's possible these two injuries could undo all of the progress the Orioles have made over the last couple of weeks.

Chris Bassitt is excited to return but the Orioles don't have a spot in their rotation for him

Chris Bassitt was recently moved to the 60-day IL, which sounds bad, but he has already been out since June 3rd, so all this means is that the soonest he can be back is early August, in a little over a week. Bassitt spoke to reporters and was optimistic about his return, saying that he's felt good throwing.

The thing about a Bassitt return is that since he went down, the Orioles' rotation has been a lot better without him. From the start of the season until Bassitt's last start, the Orioles rotation had an ERA of 4.60, which was the 22nd best in the league during that span. Since Bassitt's last start, the Orioles rotation has an ERA of 3.82, which is the eighth-best in that span. You look at Bassitt's numbers on the year, and it's not hard to see how removing him from the rotation has been a positive.

With how everyone in the Orioles rotation is pitching, there's not really a candidate to be removed and replaced by Bassitt. That leaves the Orioles with two options: they can bring him back in the bullpen role, or they can move him at the deadline to a team that needs an innings eater.

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