'Ready for it all,' Wong plays 3B for first time since college

SARASOTA, Fla. -- After signing a Minor League deal with Baltimore on Feb. 28, Kolten Wong informed his new club he’d be willing to play just about any position on the diamond -- even the ones he’s never played during his 11-year big league career.

“I didn’t really know what my job was going to entail, so figured I’d be ready for it all,” Wong said.

The Orioles took Wong up on that offer on Friday night, when the 33-year-old made his professional debut at third base in a 4-3 win over the Tigers at Ed Smith Stadium.

Entering the night, Wong had played in 1,189 regular-season MLB games, 38 postseason contests, 320 Minor League games and 183 Spring Training exhibitions -- and he hadn’t appeared at third base in any of them. Wong didn’t think he had played third in a game since his time at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, which he attended from 2009-11.

A two-time Gold Glover at second base -- where he’s made 1,105 of his 1,122 big league fielding appearances -- Wong spent the offseason working at other positions. He’s made MLB appearances at shortstop and all three outfield spots, but he’s trying to add third base to his repertoire.

“It’s really just using your feet more than using your hands,” Wong said. “I feel pretty good. I feel like I’ll manage.”

Wong managed quite well on Friday, when he played six innings at third. In the first, he made a nice play on a slow-rolling grounder off the bat of Riley Greene, scooping it up and throwing home to nab Parker Meadows at the plate.

In the third, Wong made a more routine play, fielding a ball to his left and throwing out Greene at first in plenty of time.

Offensively, Wong hasn’t had a great start to his Orioles tenure. While trying to win a job on the team, he has gone 1-for-9 through his first four Grapefruit League games, although his lone knock was a sixth-inning RBI single in his final at-bat Friday night.

If Baltimore opts to keep Wong, it can count on him to play strong defense -- possibly now even at multiple positions.

“If you can try to get him versatile, it adds to our team,” manager Brandon Hyde said.

Anything Wong can do to increase his chances of extending his big league career, he’ll do it.

“That’s just how the trend is going nowadays, is being versatile. I told them, ‘I can play the outfield, too. I got time in the outfield as well,’” Wong said. “I think that’s one thing everybody overlooks, is the fact that I’ve been second base my whole career, but I’ve also played other positions, and feel I can play other ones, too.”

Kjerstad’s bat beginning to heat up
Heston Kjerstad was one of the best hitters in the Orioles’ farm system last year, posting a .904 OPS in 122 games between Triple-A Norfolk and Double-A Bowie. That earned him his first callup to the big leagues, as he was promoted in September and then played 13 games.

This spring, Kjerstad has gotten off to a slow start offensively, entering Friday night in a 4-for-22 skid. MLB Pipeline’s No. 32 overall prospect broke through vs. the Tigers, though, recording his first multihit game by going 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored.

“It's probably not where I want it to be, but that's part of spring,” Kjerstad said of his swing. “I'm getting it dialed in, making a few adjustments, getting some at-bats under my belt, getting comfortable again. Been feeling good the last week and trending in the direction I want to be going in.”

There’s a heated competition for roster spots among outfielders this spring. Austin Hays, Cedric Mullins and Anthony Santander will be the starters, while only one or two from the following group will make the team: Kjerstad, Colton Cowser (MLB Pipeline’s No. 19 overall prospect), Kyle Stowers and Ryan McKenna.

In order for Kjerstad to break camp with the O’s, the 25-year-old will need to continue to show that he can handle the corner-outfield spots, as he’s done so far in Spring Training.

“They’ve told me, ‘We know you can swing the bat,’ but they want to see me be a really great defender,” said Kjerstad, Baltimore’s No. 5 prospect. “It’s been fun for me to be able to work with [first-base coach Anthony] Sanders out there. He’s been great for me to be able to teach me some things to make me a better defender, and also I’m starting to enjoy the process out there.”