Heston

Kjerstad

Taveras has already elected free agency and the rest figure to follow suit. The biggest name here by a country mile is Kjerstad, but it was actually Taveras that wound up having the biggest impact for the Orioles last year, racking up 482 plate appearances, hitting .219/.288/.345 with eight homers and 11 steals.

Not what either the Orioles or Kjerstad envisioned when the team drafted him with the 2nd overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft. The 27-year-old was once a top 100 prospect, but his career has not been a steady progression. He missed the 2021 season with myocarditis and didn’t make his major league debut until 2023. He’s never had more than 167 MLB plate appearances in any season, but did hit .289/.337/.462 with 11 home runs and a 106 wRC+ in 333 plate appearances for Triple-A Norfolk this season. He will likely have a few suitors in free agency to see if they can reclaim some of his former prospect sheen.

Kjerstad was brought up from Triple-A Norfolk on September 23 but hadn’t drawn a start until now. The 27-year-old outfielder will bat eighth for the O’s against Yankees’ right-hander Elmer Rodriguez on Sunday afternoon in New York.

With Samuel Basallo (concussion) landing on the injured list, Kjerstad, who had been optioned to the minors four days ago, will come back up. The former top prospect is just 4-for-19 (.211) in 11 games with the Orioles this season and was hitting .287/.334/.456 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI in 79 games at Triple-A.

Basallo got hit in the catcher’s mark with a foul tip on Monday and left the game to be evaluated for a concussion. He’s not in the first game today, and Heston Kjerstad is with the team on the taxi squad. The Orioles are carrying three catchers, so Kjerstad could be the corresponding move if Basallo winds up having to go on the injured list.

Kjerstad went 4-for-19 with nine strikeouts during a nearly three-week stint with Baltimore. He winds up back in the minors with rookie Christian Franklin back from the injured list. The 27-year-old former top prospect doesn’t seem like an essential part of the club’s core moving forward and seems like a logical offseason trade candidate.

Kjerstad joins Baltimore’s crowded outfield mix and is likely to be relegated to a bench role for the final couple weeks with Luis Robert Jr. coming over as a waiver claim. The 27-year-old was the second-overall pick in the 2020 draft and hasn’t been able to establish himself as an everyday option at the highest level after missing time for health reasons earlier in his career.

Just what the Orioles needed after claiming Luis Robert off waivers, another outfielder. Kjerstad deserves the chance. He has hit .289/.337/.462 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI in 79 games at Triple-A this season and has hit .301 since the start of July. That being said, it’s hard to see him getting anything more than the rare spot start and pinch-hit at-bats against righties. The Orioles outfield is a mess to predict right now.

This is a bit of a surprise. The 26-year-old Franklin is hitting .249/.375/.360 in Triple-A with six home runs and 17 steals. Meanwhile, Heston Kjerstad is hitting .276/.309/.431 with eight home runs in 59 games in Triple-A for the Orioles. If he wasn’t going to get an opportunity, you wonder if the Orioles could have found any takers for him at the deadline.

Kjerstad had already been at Triple-A Norfolk on a minor league rehab assignment while recovering from his right hamstring strain. He’ll remain there in an everyday role until the O’s have a need for him at the big league level.