Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Reassigned to minor-league camp
Rotowire
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
Rotowire
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: Getting some work at first base
Rotowire
Kjerstad has been getting some reps at first base this spring, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.
He's not expected to see any action there during Grapefruit League play because of how many other first basemen the Orioles have in camp, but perhaps Kjerstad will get some reps at the position this year in the minors. The 24-year-old has only played the outfield so far in his pro career but did handle first base for a few games in college at Arkansas.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Poor results in High-A
Rotowire
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
Rotowire
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: Activated from IL
Rotowire
Kjerstad (hamstring) was activated from the 60-day injured list Friday, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.
After missing the first couples months of the season with a left hamstring injury, Kjerstad will join Low-A Delmarva now and play both the corner outfield positions moving forward. The 2020 first-round pick is set to finally make his professional debut after missing the entirety of the 2021 campaign with a chest issue.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Resuming game action Friday
Rotowire
Kjerstad (hamstring) will appear in his first extended spring training game Friday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjerstad sustained a high-grade hamstring injury this spring and has been on the injured list since the start of the regular season. However, he's been getting live at-bats for approximately three weeks and has now been cleared to return to game action. The 23-year-old is expected to report to Single-A Delmarva once he's ultimately cleared to join a minor-league affiliate.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Nearing game action
Rotowire
Kjersted (hamstring) is expected to play in extended spring training games next week, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
Kjersted suffered the hamstring injury during spring training. Once he's ready to join an affiliate, he's expected to link up with Single-A Delmarva to make his professional debut, which isn't expected to be for at least another couple of weeks.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Transferred to 60-day IL
Rotowire
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
Rotowire
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: Facing extended absence
Rotowire
Kjerstad was diagnosed with a high-grade strain of his left hamstring Wednesday and will be sidelined for 8-to-12 weeks, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.
It's another tough break for Kjerstad, who entered spring training healthy after sitting out 2021 due to renewed heart inflammation but suffered the hamstring injury early in camp. The 23-year-old has yet to make his professional debut since being selected No. 2 overall in the 2020 First-Year Player Draft, and the hamstring strain will delay his debut further into 2022.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Pulls hamstring in intrasquad game
Rotowire
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
Rotowire
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
Rotowire
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.
GM Mike Elias said Kjerstad (illness) had his rehab program slowed due to "recurring inflammation with his heart," Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun reports.
The 22-year-old has yet to see game action since being drafted No. 2 overall during the 2020 draft due to myocarditis, and the inflammation has recently resurfaced while he was getting back into playing shape. Kjerstad is still expected to return at some point, but he won't be making his professional debut in the minors anytime soon.
Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: No timeline for pro debut
Rotowire
Orioles general manager Mike Elias said Kjerstad (illness) is gradually getting back into playing shape and remains without a clear timeline to make his professional debut, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 first-year player draft was sidelined for all of spring training after he was diagnosed with a heart condition last fall. He was cleared to resume workouts in early April, but the Orioles continue to take a long-term view with the 22-year-old and won't look to rush him into game action. Kjerstad currently resides on the 60-day injured list for the Orioles' affiliate in Delmarva, so he'll likely open his professional career at Low-A whenever he's deemed ready to play.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Moves rehab to Florida
Rotowire
Kjerstad (myocarditis) will transfer his rehab program from the Orioles' alternate site in Bowie to the organization's spring training facility in Sarasota as he continues his "build-up process," Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.
After being diagnosed with the heart condition last fall, Kjerstad was held out of spring training, but he was cleared to resume workouts in Bowie about two weeks ago. The 22-year-old hasn't experienced any setbacks since then, but he'll still need additional time to pick up at-bats and regain conditioning before the Orioles deem him ready for game action. The No. 2 overall pick from the 2020 draft will likely begin his career with one of the Orioles' lower-level affiliates.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Set to join camp at alternate site
Rotowire
Kjerstad (myocarditis) will report to the Orioles' alternate training site Wednesday, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.
Callis notes that it will take Kjerstad over a month to build up to the point that he can return to game action, as he has missed over six months with myocarditis, a condition that involves inflammation of the heart. Once fully built up, he should be assigned to a lower-level minor-league affiliate, perhaps Low-A.
