Baltimore Orioles Top Prospect Returning to MLB With New Confidence

After the Baltimore Orioles are giving one of their top prospects another shot at the MLB, and he's coming in with a newfound confidence level.

Sep 15, 2023; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles right fielder Heston Kjerstad (13) / Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports

The Baltimore Orioles have the best farm system in baseball.

They are loaded from top to bottom with their Triple-A team so stacked that former MLB executive Jim Bowden thinks they'd be able to compete against certain Major League teams.

But because of all the established talent on their MLB roster, many of those elite prospects are blocked from getting called up.

When they do get their opportunities, they have to immediately produce or else there's a good chance they'll get sent back down to the farm.

That's what happened with the Orioles' No. 4 overall prospect, Heston Kjerstad, last season after he got called up to close out the year.

He slashed .233/.281/.467 with two home runs and three RBI across his 30 at-bats in 13 games. Not bad numbers, but not good enough to get playing time in the playoffs after making their ALDS roster. And once Baltimore broke camp heading into this season, they decided to start him out in Triple-A.

Now, the 25-year-old is getting another shot in the bigs after being called up to replace Austin Hays who was placed on the injured list.

Kjerstad is also coming into this chapter of his MLB journey after tearing it up in Triple-A. He set a single-game franchise record with 10 RBI and was named International League Player of the Week as just a couple impressive things he's done so far.

This has given him newfound confidence.

"You got to wait your turn and also it's part of your journey. You want everything ASAP but that's not life. You got to sit back, be patient and when your time comes, be ready for it," he told Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun.

There's no doubt that the organization and manager are rooting for him.

The left-handed slugger has major power, and if he can do what he did in the minors at this level, the Orioles have added another potent weapon to their already dangerous lineup.

"I just want him to come up here and try to contribute. We have a good lineup but Heston has got big time power so hopefully he can impact us offensively," manager Brandon Hyde said.

It will be interesting to see what Baltimore will do if their star prospect is able to produce, since the veteran Hays hasn't had a good offensive start to his year.

That's down the road, though.

Kjerstad is just hoping right now he can play at a level that makes it a difficult decision.