Kjerstad's first Triple-A homer was anything but normal 

BALTIMORE -- Orioles fans were eagerly awaiting a promotion for Heston Kjerstad. The 24-year-old outfielder/first baseman proved he was ready for a greater challenge after an exceptional first 46 games for Double-A Bowie to open the 2023 season.

The announcement came Monday: Kjerstad was on the rise, as he was moved up to Triple-A Norfolk. A tougher test was on the horizon. Yet, he -- and Baltimore fans -- had to wait just a bit longer. The Tides’ games at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on both Tuesday and Wednesday were postponed due to air quality. Then, Thursday’s contest opened with a rain delay.

But Kjerstad (the Orioles’ No. 4 prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 49 overall prospect) finally got into the action at Norfolk this week, playing his first four Triple-A games across Thursday, Friday and Saturday. He went 4-for-17 (.235) with a walk. And his most notable hit was his first homer at the level, which was an inside-the-parker to open the seventh inning Friday night.

It’s likely only a matter of time before Kjerstad starts putting up huge offensive numbers there. He had terrific slash lines during last year’s Arizona Fall League (.357/.385/.622 in 22 games), in this year’s Spring Training (.381/.409/.810 in 23 Grapefruit League contests) and at Double-A (.310/.384/.576).

Across all levels, Kjerstad has mostly kept the same offensive approach that’s been working.

“For me, it’s just been driving the ball well when I get a pitch that I can do damage with, not fouling it off or taking it, just putting a good swing on it,” Kjerstad said shortly before his promotion to Triple-A. “Day to day, there’s still some tweaks on maybe timing or certain approaches against different pitchers. But for the main part, no major changes or anything crazy so far.”

There’s no reason for any drastic mechanical adjustments, as long as it keeps yielding success. If it does, Kjerstad may even end up in Baltimore before the 2023 season is over.

For now, Kjerstad will be playing with a talented Norfolk squad that has one of the most loaded rosters in Minor League Baseball. He’s one of six players on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list now suiting up for the Tides. Here’s an update on how the other five have been doing of late (all stats entering Sunday):

OF Colton Cowser (Baltimore No. 2, No. 29 overall)
Cowser missed two weeks due to a left quad injury, then came back on June 3. Upon his return, the 23-year-old went 5-for-13 (.385) with one double, one homer, three RBIs, seven walks and two runs scored over his first five games.

INF Jordan Westburg (Baltimore No. 3, No. 48 overall)
Westburg entered Sunday tied for second in the International League in home runs after swatting his 17th of the season on Saturday. Eight of those were first-inning homers. Through 55 games, he was batting .305/.382/.611 with 33 extra-base hits and 52 RBIs (third most in the International League).

LHP DL Hall (Baltimore No. 5, No. 78 overall)
The Orioles have been monitoring Hall’s workload, which is why the 24-year-old southpaw hasn’t gone more than 3 1/3 innings or thrown more than 59 pitches in any of his past four outings. Over that span, he has a 7.36 ERA with 11 strikeouts and nine walks in 11 innings.

INF Joey Ortiz (Baltimore No. 6, No. 79 overall)
Ortiz, who has had two stints in the Majors this season, returned to Norfolk after he was optioned on May 26. He then immediately missed more than a week due to illness. In his first four games after coming back, the 24-year-old went 7-for-19 (.368) with one double, one triple, one homer, two RBIs and three runs scored.

INF/OF Connor Norby (Baltimore No. 7, No. 84 overall)
Norby had a six-game hitting streak snapped Saturday night in the second contest of Norfolk’s doubleheader at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The 23-year-old has been hitting well, going 8-for-27 (.296) with two homers, four RBIs, three walks and five runs scored over that seven-game stretch.