In an ideal world, this conversation wouldn’t have occurred for another month, after a lengthy postseason run. But it is not that world, so Adley Rutschman slept on Zak Taylor’s couch in Corvallis, Oregon, then hefted his golf bag to the course the next morning and stood in the tee box with one of his best friends.

It was early October. The baseball world was fixated on the first round of the postseason. For the last two seasons, that is where Baltimore’s attention lay — at Camden Yards, full of hope yet left with gut-wrenching exits.

This time, the Orioles’ early winter prompted their franchise catcher to work on a different swing. But baseball is never far from Rutschman’s mind, and as he and Taylor talked that morning on the course, Rutschman’s former Oregon State teammate was impressed by the mindset his friend emphasized after a season of disappointment, both individually and for the team.

“Of course, everyone wants to get paid, right?” Taylor said. “But he’s like, ‘Dude, I’ve made some money. I’ve made good money. But I want to get back to my full potential. I know what I can do on a baseball field. And to be able to go out and do that consistently, that’s the huge driver for me.’ Being his friend, that’s important to hear, because it’s like, ‘Dude, you’re in the right mind space.’”

Taylor, the director of baseball development at Oregon State, and Rutschman talked on the phone weekly this season. What became clear quickly to Taylor was how diligently Rutschman worked to avoid a negative spiral induced by two stints on the injured list for strained oblique muscles.

Even after a down year that concluded with a .673 on-base-plus-slugging percentage — a dive from an .809 OPS in 2023 — Rutschman was clear-headed. He was even eager. This is a massive winter ahead for Rutschman, an offseason that must be devoted to resurrecting a career that has been lined by sky-high expectations since Baltimore drafted Rutschman with the first overall pick in 2019.

“That gets me excited,” Rutschman told Taylor of his mission of “being the player I am meant to be.”

“You can tell he’s visualized it, he’s thought about it, he’s speaking it into existence,” Taylor said. “I think that’s all a part of this process.”

The Orioles, as a whole, are entering a pivotal winter. From the ownership group, through the front office and coaching staff to the players, the 75-87 record that resulted in a last-place American League East finish put everyone on notice.

From a player perspective, few in that clubhouse can look back fondly on their individual performances. Rutschman may be at the center of that.

For better or worse, his selection as the first overall pick in 2019 meant the weight of a franchise rested upon his shoulders. His arrival to the majors in 2022 in many ways proved those expectations correct. From Rutschman’s May 2022 debut onward, the Orioles shed the skin of a rebuild and went on to win the AL East in 2023 and reach the postseason again in 2024.

Rutschman was a centerpiece of those lineups, with an .800-plus OPS in 2022 and 2023. He was an All-Star in 2023 and 2024. And yet a nagging hand and a back injury played a role in a second-half slump last season, and the oblique strains this year prevented him from finding a rhythm.

“I want to be healthy and playing every single game,” Rutschman said during the team’s final series in New York. “Whether it’s good or bad, I want to be out there playing with the guys. So getting injured is not fun and, definitely, you appreciate being out there.”

Those injuries interrupted Rutschman’s strides this season, too. In the 15 games before Rutschman’s first oblique strain in June, he held an .890 OPS. His return in late July coincided with a 10-game hot streak, during which Rutschman hit seven doubles — and then he landed back on the injured list.

“There were some injuries sprinkled in this year that I think were a factor in him kind of getting out of sync again,” president of baseball operations Mike Elias said during an end-of-season press conference. “We saw flashes of him offensively the way that he can and should be.”

Rutschman is entering his second season of arbitration eligibility, and given the long-term contract handed to catcher Samuel Basallo, there were questions regarding his future in Baltimore.

Elias maintained that Rutschman is the team’s “front-line catcher.” A trade, at least publicly, is not under consideration.

Elias and interim manager Tony Mansolino pointed to the work Rutschman does on defense as a vital component of his value to Baltimore, even with offensive woes lately. Pitchers gush over the 27-year-old’s ability to call a game. His framing and blocking metrics stand out.

“I think catchers should be good catchers and I think people have forgotten that about Adley, and it’s frustrating for me,” Mansolino said. “This guy has become one of the better defensive catchers in the game. So while everybody’s kind of pointing at his offense, please, let’s not forget that this is the type of catcher that you need to have behind the plate to win a World Series.”

There’s a reason people point to his offense, though. Rutschman was chosen first overall for a reason. At Oregon State, he showed promise as one of the best hitters in the country. He turned that promise into results during his first two seasons in the majors.

And then in 2025, perhaps in part because of the injuries but not solely down to them, Rutschman struggled. His plate discipline and whiff rates remained excellent, but his hard contact decreased.

With it came frustrating results. But, even as Rutschman searched for answers, the weekly calls with Taylor gave his friend belief that Rutschman wasn’t losing sight of the approach that helped him reach this level.

“His mental state, I thought it was so much better than the year before,” Taylor said. “When it’s one of your best buddies, you can tell kind of where they’re at without them having to directly say it. I could tell, yes, it’s not the season he exactly wanted, especially with the injuries, but also, I thought from a headspace perspective, he was very process oriented and not trying to go down that rabbit hole.”

That doesn’t mean Rutschman isn’t focused on finding an offensive solution.

“Lot of conversations to have with our hitting coaches, people around,” said Rutschman, who still hits with Taylor in the winter at times. “For me, going into the offseason, that’s definitely going to be the No. 1 thing I talk about with them, and just try to make the necessary adjustments to move forward and perform better.”

For the moment, though, Rutschman pulled out a golf club instead of a bat. Out there with Taylor, they talked about everything but baseball for quite some time. Then Rutschman’s “internal drive,” Taylor said, prompted him to enunciate a desire to recapture the success he has experienced almost all his life.

There will be workouts and batting practice drills, making up the Groundhog Day slog of a winter that began earlier than desired. That goes for all Orioles players. But Rutschman, as ever, stands at the top of that list.

As he goes, the team goes. And Rutschman wants to go far.

“I have an understanding of what a high-level athlete needs to do in an offseason, and I’m never worried about him for one minute,” Taylor said. “I think it’s just making small adjustments in the cage, and whatever that may be specifically with his swing, I guarantee you he has a very clear-cut plan in how he’s going to attack the offseason.”