Catching up with Heston Kjerstad

Catching up with Heston Kjerstad
Heston Kjerstad has outlasted the two hitters minicamps in Sarasota. The outfielder reports daily to the Ed Smith Stadium complex for workouts, slowly recouping those at-bats lost after a diagnosis of myocarditis in 2020. The facility is a second home to the University of Arkansas product, who first received an invitation to the fall instructional camp that ran from Oct. 18-Nov. 20. He went back to Fayetteville for a while and arranged sessions with his hitting and conditioning coaches - "a...

This, that and the other

This, that and the other
Representatives for Major League Baseball and the players association will meet again on Saturday, at which time we finally should get confirmation whether the start of spring training is going to be delayed. That's the expectation, and has been for a while. But commissioner Rob Manfred wasn't ready to concede it yesterday during his media session at the owners' meetings in Orlando. "We understand where the calendar is," Manfred told reporters. "Until we have that conversation and see...

Rutschman, Kjerstad, Cowser headline next minicamp (plus notes)

Rutschman, Kjerstad, Cowser headline next minicamp (plus notes)
With the pitching minicamp wrapping up over the weekend in Sarasota, the Orioles are ready to conduct two others geared toward hitters in their organization. The breakdown puts more experienced and higher-profile prospects in the first camp, which begins on Friday, followed next Tuesday by a gathering of newer, younger players. The initial wave will consist of first-round selections Adley Rutschman, Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser, along with Kyle Stowers, Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg,...

Notes on Gillaspie, new hire, Severino signing and Rombach

Notes on Gillaspie, new hire, Severino signing and Rombach
Seconds after filing my story on Friday's additions to the 40-man roster that protected players in the Rule 5 draft, I did a quick search on Logan Gillaspie to make certain that I didn't completely dismiss his chances. That I didn't write something like, "He's in the Arizona Fall League and out of this discussion." I typed his name as "Conner Gillaspie" the next morning while trying to look up his statistics, then slapped myself and got it right. This guy deserves better. I've never...

Taking a last look at possible protections in Rule 5 draft

Taking a last look at possible protections in Rule 5 draft
The Orioles' 40-man roster is holding at 32 players and must be set by Friday, before a Rule 5 draft at the Winter Meetings that remains in limbo, as well as Orlando, with the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement. Executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias will complete the task of protecting players, which follows the many transactions that cleared room for them. There will be the obvious calls and probably at least one that seems possible but falls a little short of a...

Hanifee undergoes elbow surgery (updated)

Hanifee undergoes elbow surgery (updated)
Orioles minor league pitcher Brenan Hanifee, a fourth-round pick in the 2016 draft out of Turner-Ashby High School in Virginia, underwent ulnar collateral ligament reconstructive surgery on his right elbow yesterday in Dallas. The team announced that the procedure was "successful." Dr. Keith Meister performed the surgery. Meister handled the same procedure in October on pitcher Carter Baumler, a fifth-round selection in 2020 out of Dowling Catholic High School in Iowa, and repaired pitcher...

This, that and the other

This, that and the other
By the end of the week, the Orioles will be required to make further adjustments to their 40-man roster in order to protect players in the Rule 5 draft. Teams now pay $100,000 to select a player in the major league phase, and he can be offered back to his former organization for half the fee. I remember when it was $50,000 and $25,000, but the last collective bargaining agreement upped the cost. Could also explain my increased alcohol consumption, unless that's COVID related. The Orioles have...

Showing the way: 2020 rookies provide hope for those on farm

Showing the way: 2020 rookies provide hope for those on farm
When some young talent came up from the Orioles farm system this year and performed well in the major leagues - players like Ryan Mountcastle, Keegan Akin and Dean Kremer - it was a real positive for the organization in many ways. For one, it showed that the organization did have some nice talent down below and knew how to develop it. It was a credit both to the former regime of Dan Duquette, who drafted and/or traded for those players, but also for general manager Mike Elias and his staff. It...

Find a way: Farm pitchers get their work in even without games

Find a way: Farm pitchers get their work in even without games
Simply put, they are making the best of a rough situation. In a year without minor league baseball games, two Orioles top 30 prospect pitchers are still getting some innings in and trying to advance their careers. They have to work on their own but the Orioles are keeping tabs on them closely. This week I spoke with 20-year-old lefty Drew Rom and 22-year-old right-hander Brenan Hanifee. The Orioles took both out of high school in the fourth round of their respective drafts. Hanifee was drafted...

A look at pitchers that could be part of next wave of rebuild

A look at pitchers that could be part of next wave of rebuild
As the Orioles look to put together a starting rotation for 2020, one question will be how soon will some of their homegrown prospects get their chance at the starting five. When will some of the up and coming pitching prospects - homegrown or not - get their shot? Based on how executive vice president/general manager Mike Elias and his staff ran the minors and promoted players in 2019, it is probably likely that they won't often have prospects skip levels or more as fast through the system as...

Orioles trying to bust a few slumps

Orioles trying to bust a few slumps
Failing to put a runner on base through eight innings of Sunday afternoon's game against the Rays allowed fans and media to redirect their attention from a disheveled rotation. Tom Eshelman was passable. Four runs allowed in 5 2/3 innings but better than the line indicated. He struck out seven, the last five with his curveball, and retired 11 in a row before the Rays tacked on two more runs. There's no reason to push him out of the rotation with Andrew Cashner traded. Just pitching into the...

Trey Mancini's props for Delmarva, plus other notes

Trey Mancini's props for Delmarva, plus other notes
Trey Mancini might wind up playing in his first All-Star Game later this summer. And his third full-season in the major leagues is turning out to be a very good one. But Mancini has never forgotten his minor league roots. During this homestand he has walked through the clubhouse wearing a Delmarva Shorebirds T-shirt, and he was recently part of a group of Orioles that talked with Delmarva players via Skype. He's taken note of how well the Shorebirds have played this year. Tuesday night...

O's head home reeling, Lowther duels Mize, Yaz in the show

O's head home reeling, Lowther duels Mize, Yaz in the show
They rallied from 5-1 and 6-4 deficits to take the lead in the top of the eighth. But they lost again in a walk-off defeat in the last of the ninth. The Orioles' latest gut-punch loss was their second walk-off loss in the weekend series wrapped around a win at Colorado. At least they got the win, but late Sunday afternoon it sure felt like they should have had two at Coors Field. Mychal Givens is still struggling and probably could use at least two days off at this point. Maybe more. The O's...

A few notes after the Red Sox even the series

A few notes after the Red Sox even the series
Watching a relentless Boston offense hit three homers and take advantage of eight walks last night can make one have an even greater appreciation for John Means' outing on Monday night in the Orioles' 4-1 win. The Red Sox had scored 30 runs its previous three games before this series and was averaging 6.1 runs per game during an 11-5 run before Monday's series opener. They got back to that last night and never trailed in an 8-5 victory to even this series. The Orioles tied it 2-2 in the...

Now Dylan Bundy needs to build on good starts to his starts

Now Dylan Bundy needs to build on good starts to his starts
For the second outing in a row, Orioles right-hander Dylan Bundy had a real encouraging start to his start. But once again, he could not keep it going. Two outings ago at home versus Oakland, Bundy had a shutout and no-hitter through three innings. His slider was sharp and he got five of his first nine outs on strikeouts. Last night he had a strong pitch mix to get through three without allowing a run or hit versus Tampa Bay. But against Oakland, Bundy allowed six runs and four homers over the...

The Orioles' minor league All-Stars for 2018

The Orioles' minor league All-Stars for 2018
Today's let's take a look at some of the Orioles minor leaguers that had the most productive seasons in 2018. Presenting one man's version of the Orioles' minor league All-Stars for this year. This is not a listing simply of the best prospects, but the players who produced the best at each position. In some cases it's clear cut and in some it's not. 1B Aderlin Rodriguez: Rodriguez hit two homers and drove in seven runs on the final day of the season for Double-A Bowie to cap off a third...

Josh Michael: Some bold prospect predictions for 2019

Josh Michael: Some bold prospect predictions for 2019
This week marks the final week for guest bloggers on MASNsports.com and I could not think of a better way to wrap up the year than to look forward to next year. Today I present my bold Orioles prospect predictions for the 2019 season. Remember, these are bold predictions, so some of them may seem far-fetched, but if they all come true next year, please don't call me asking what your future holds or for the winning lottery numbers (I'd keep that info anyway). Breakout Offensive Prospect - SS...

A look at the minor league pitcher with big stats but little fanfare

A look at the minor league pitcher with big stats but little fanfare
Talk about flying under the radar. He finished fourth in the South Atlantic League in ERA and second among qualifying Orioles minor league pitchers. Yet while higher-drafted players and/or pitchers that got promoted this season got more attention, he just kept cranking out solid starts. If you mention the Orioles top pitching prospects, you might leave him off your list but you definitely should not. At 20, right-hander Brenan Hanifee went 8-6 with a 2.86 ERA for Single-A Delmarva. Over 23...

Josh Michael: Three O's prospects whose stock rose the most in 2018

Josh Michael: Three O's prospects whose stock rose the most in 2018
The 2018 season for the Orioles is mercifully getting close to being over, and with the rebuild in process, there is not much hope in Birdland for a drastically improved 2019. With that being said, the rebuild puts added focus on the prospects, and today I am going to highlight three O's prospects that saw their stock rise the most in 2018. Before I present the players, I want to make something clear: This isn't a list of three prospects who had the best seasons, or the three best prospects...

Alex Cobb finished what he started, plus farm notes

Alex Cobb finished what he started, plus farm notes
The Orioles have played two pretty solid games in Cleveland this weekend and they posted an impressive 4-2 win on Saturday afternoon to end the Indians' six-game win streak. Right-hander Alex Cobb had another strong start. In fact, he pitched a complete-game five-hitter to improve to 4-15 with a 5.09 ERA. Cobb posted his fourth career complete game and his first nine-inning complete-game since a shutout versus Oakland on Aug. 23, 2012. Cobb has posted five straight quality starts with a 2.06...