Blake Rutherford

Blake Anthony Rutherford

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 195 lb.
• High School Chaminade College Preparatory School (West Hills)
• Debut August 4, 2023

• Born May 2, 1997 in Simi Valley, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Outfielder Blake Rutherford was the first-round choice of the New York Yankees in the 2016 amateur draft, with the 18th overall pick, out of Chaminade College Preparatory School in West Hills, CA. He hit .345/.444/.552 with 9 runs and 11 RBI for the USA junior national team at the 2015 U-18 Baseball World Cup, in which the USA won gold.

After signing with the Yankees, he began his pro career with the GCL Yankees West and also played for the Pulaski Yankees of the Appalachian League. In 33 games, he hit .351/.415/.570 with 15 extra-base hits, 16 runs and 12 RBIs. He moved up to the Class A Charleston RiverDogs of the South Atlantic League in 2017, where he hit .281 in 71 games. On July 18th, he was one of three prospects traded by the Yankees along with major leaguer Tyler Clippard - the others were Ian Clarkin and Tito Polo - to the Chicago White Sox in return for Todd Frazier, Tommy Kahnle and David Robertson. He was assigned to the Kannapolis Intimidators, still in the Sally League, where he hit .213 in 30 games to finish at .260/.326/.348 in 101 games, with 2 homers, 52 runs and 35 RBIs.

It took him until 2023 to make his major league debut, by which time he was a member of the Washington Nationals. He went 0 for 4 as the starting leftfielder for the Nats in a 6-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds on August 4th in his first game. He had played in the White Sox system until the end of the 2022 season, then signed as a minor league free agent with Washington in January of 2023. He had played with both the AA Harrisburg Senators and AAA Rochester Red Wings before getting the call to the Nation's Capital, batting .341 and .349 respectively, with 11 homers in a combined 62 games. This was well above any production he had had in the White Sox system.

Related Sites

• Blake Rutherford on mlb.com
• BR Minors page