Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Receives spot on ALDS roster
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Kjerstad is on the Orioles' roster for their ALDS matchup against the Rangers, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.
Kjerstad slashed .233/.281/.467 with two homers and three RBI after being promoted from Triple-A Norfolk in mid-September -- enough to secure himself a spot on the initial playoff roster. The 24-year-old rookie will likely serve as bench depth as Baltimore may choose to send out their experienced veterans more often for the postseason.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Takes seat Saturday
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Kjerstad isn't in the Orioles' lineup Saturday versus the Guardians, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjerstad will get a breather Saturday after starting his major-league career 5-for-21 with two homers across his first eight games. Adley Rutschman will operate as Baltimore's designated hitter instead while James McCann starts behind the plate.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Taking seat Thursday
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Kjerstad is not in the lineup for Thursday's contest in Cleveland.
Kjerstad had started each of the previous three games at designated hitter, but he will begin this one on the bench. Anthony Santander will be at DH on Thursday while Aaron Hicks gets a start in right field.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Clubs second homer
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Kjerstad went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 9-5 win over the Astros.
Kjerstad padded the Orioles' lead in the seventh inning with his second homer in five games since he was called up. He's gone 4-for-13 with five strikeouts. The 24-year-old has made all three of his starts at designated hitter, though he can also be an option at first base and in the corner outfield in a pinch. For now, it appears the Orioles are focused on letting him hit in a part-time role versus right-handed pitchers.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Tallies first big-league homer
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Kjerstad went 1-for-2 with a solo home run Friday against the Rays.
Kjerstad drew his first big-league start Friday. He struck out in his first plate appearance before leading off the sixth frame with his first career home run. Kjerstad was lifted for a pinch hitter with a lefty on the mound in his next plate appearance, an indication his playing time may be limited after he was also out of the lineup Thursday upon being called up to the majors.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Gets first MLB start
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Kjerstad will serve as the designated hitter and bat seventh Friday against the Rays.
Kjerstad made his major-league debut off the bench in Thursday's series opener versus Tampa Bay and will now get his first big-league start. Prior to being promoted to Baltimore, the 24-year-old had slashed .303/.376/.528 with 21 home runs in 122 games this summer between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Possible waiver wire pickups
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Kjerstad was pulled from the Triple-A lineup and put on a plane after Ryan Mountcastle suffered a shoulder injury Wednesday, so I think we all know what's coming next. And though the No. 2 pick in the 2020 draft is primarily an outfielder, he has gotten plenty of work at first base this year. It's not clear he'd be the favorite to start over Ryan O'Hearn, who also bats left-handed and has put up good numbers, but Kjerstad is the more exciting choice as a natural slugger who has taken a big step forward with his contact skills this year. Of particular note is his 89.7 percent zone-contact rate, which means when he swings at a strike, he rarely misses. It's hard to put much trust in him at this late stage of the season, but he could make the sort of splash Jasson Dominguez did.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Reassigned to minor-league camp
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Kjerstad was reassigned Wednesday to the minor-league side of Orioles camp, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjerstad was never really in the running for an Opening Day roster spot in Baltimore after finishing out the 2022 campaign with High-A Aberdeen. However, he certainly made an impression during his time in major-league camp, slashing .390/.419/.829 with four home runs, four doubles and a triple across 43 plate appearances in Grapefruit League play. The 24-year-old outfielder is again drawing top-prospect attention after missing all of 2021 due to a heart condition.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Making impression in spring
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Kjerstad is hitting .389 (14-for-36) in Grapefruit League play.
Kjerstad has produced seven extra-base hits, including four home runs. The first-round pick from 2020 needed a strong spring after struggling at High-A Aberdeen this season, and the fact that he's still in major-league camp makes his performance all the more impressive. The outfield prospect will likely need to show more at High-A to begin the year, but it's reasonable to think the 24-year-old could be in Triple-A by the end of the season.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Poor results in High-A
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Kjerstad has hit just .214/.306/.317 with two home runs and one steal in 33 games since being promoted to High-A Aberdeen.
Orioles fans and fantastically patient dynasty managers may have gotten their hopes up after Kjerstad rocked Single-A pitching while finally making his professional debut earlier this season, but the 23-year-old has found the going much tougher since being promoted. Though he gets something of a pass for all the time he's missed to illness and injury, it's not good to see someone his age struggling so mightily in High-A.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Advances to High-A
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The Orioles promoted Kjerstad from Single-A Delmarva to High-A Aberdeen on Monday.
After losing out of the first two seasons of his professional career due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a heart condition along with a subsequent flareup and a hamstring injury, Kjerstad was finally cleared to debut for Delmarva on June 10. Despite the missed time, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 first-year player draft appeared unfazed by Single-A competition, as he slashed .463/.551/.650 across 98 plate appearances. He'll most likely spend the remainder of the campaign at Aberdeen, and a strong finish could set him up to open the 2023 season at Double-A Bowie.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Transferred to 60-day IL
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Kjerstad (hamstring) was transferred to the 60-day injured list at Low-A Delmarva.
Kjerstad was already expected to miss 8-to-12 weeks after suffering a left hamstring strain in March, so this move doesn't alter his timeline much. He's not expected to be in action until early-to-mid-June at the earliest.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Moves to injured list
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Kjerstad (hamstring) was placed on the injured list at Low-A Delmarva on Friday, Zachary Silver of MLB.com reports.
Kjerstad was ruled out for 8-to-12 weeks due to a high-grade hamstring strain in late March, so it's no surprise he'll open the minor-league campaign on the shelf. The 23-year-old has yet to make his professional debut since being selected second overall in 2020.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Pulls hamstring in intrasquad game
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Kjerstad pulled his hamstring in an intrasquad game Friday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjerstad indicated Thursday that he felt healthy heading into spring training, and he had been participating in some simulated games across the last several days. The severity of his hamstring issue isn't yet clear, but the Orioles will likely monitor his status in the coming days. The 23-year-old missed the entire 2021 campaign due to renewed heart inflammation that he experienced last spring, but he participated in the Orioles' fall instructional league camp during the offseason. Kjerstad said that he doesn't have any expectations related to his performance heading into the 2022 campaign, as he's instead hoping that he'll be able to remain healthy throughout the year while working on his swing.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Feels healthy heading into 2022
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Kjerstad said Thursday that he's played in two simulated games during minor-league spring training and has been feeling good since reporting to camp in late February, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
After being selected by the Orioles with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 first-year player draft, Kjerstad is still awaiting his professional debut. His inaugural pro season was wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, and he ended up sitting out the entire 2021 campaign after experiencing renewed heart inflammation last spring linked to a prior diagnosis of myocarditis. Kjerstad was cleared to rejoin the Orioles for fall instructionals, and he seems to have fortunately avoided any setbacks while continuing to train over the winter. The 23-year-old acknowledged Thursday that he's not setting any expectations for himself this season in terms of performance, as he simply wants to get through the year healthy while regaining a feel for his swing and playing the outfield following a prolonged layoff from game action. To that end, the Orioles may keep him around at extended spring training to pick up additional at-bats in simulated games even after the minor-league season opens in early April, though Kjerstad shouldn't have to wait long before he gets assigned to an affiliate.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Taking part in instructional ball
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Kjerstad (chest) reported to Sarasota, Fla. on Monday to begin taking part in the Orioles' fall instructional league camp, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 First-Year Player Draft, Kjerstad has yet to make his professional debut after he was diagnosed with myocarditis shortly after being selected by Baltimore. The organization had been hopeful that Kjerstad would be ready to play at late in 2021, but those plans were thwarted after he experienced recurring inflammation of his heart over the summer. The 22-year-old outfielder has since resumed taking batting practice, and now he'll add more baseball activities to his ledger while taking part in instructional ball. Barring any setbacks in his recovery from the heart condition over the offseason, Kjerstad should head into spring training without any restrictions.
Kjerstad (illness) is close to resuming baseball activities, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjerstad has yet to make his professional debut due a prolonged battle with inflammation in his heart. The 22-year-old outfielder recently resumed working out, and he's expected to begin baseball-related activities in the near future. Given the nature of the issue and the many hurdles Kjerstad still needs to get through, it seems possible that he doesn't play in his first pro game until 2022.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Not yet at alternate site
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Kjerstad (chest) has yet to report to the Orioles' alternate training site for workouts as of Tuesday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjerstad remains away from the team while he continues to recover from myocarditis, a condition that involves inflammation of the heart. The Orioles' brass indicated earlier this spring that Kjerstad is making good progress, but his professional debut will be delayed until he receives full medical clearance to resume baseball activities. Kjerstad was the No. 2 overall pick in last summer's first-year player draft.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Won't report to spring training
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Kjerstad (heart) won't report to major-league camp in 2021, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.
General manager Mike Elias said Wednesday that Kjerstad continues to do well in his recovery process, but he won't be ready to join the team as a non-roster invitee in Sarasota. As a result, he'll report to the team's alternate training site after spring training, which will have a similar format to the team's 2020 version of the alternate camp. Assuming Kjerstad continues to progress well, Elias hopes that he'll be able to participate in minor-league games once the season begins.
