As Colton Cowser's return nears, this outfielder's time in Baltimore appears to be up

Slowly but surely, the Baltimore Orioles are getting healthy. Adley Rutschman returned from a brief, two-game absence after taking a foul ball off the mask in Boston. Andrew Kittredge has returned from a six-week absence following knee surgery in Spring Training and has looked every bit like the man the Orioles shelled out $10 million for this offseason. Colton Cowser and Jordan Westburg began rehab assignments this week with Triple-A Norfolk, with their returns likely taking place in the first couple of weeks of June.

Cowser, in particular, presents a notable return for the Orioles, as he broke his thumb in Baltimore's fourth game of the season. Cowser has been absent from the Orioles' miserable start, and while he is not the lone missing ingredient, he will represent a welcome return to left field for the O's. Shuffling between the currently injured Ramon Laureano, Heston Kjerstad, and Dylan Carlson, the Orioles have posted a meager .653 on-base plus slugging percentage in left field this season, below Cowser's above-average .768 mark from 2024.

While Cowser represents a clear upgrade, the Orioles must decide who to remove from the roster to make room for him. Earlier this season, when Gunnar Henderson returned to the Orioles after missing the first seven games with an intercostal strain, Baltimore appeared to be choosing betweenCarlson and utility player Jorge Mateo. When Henderson returned, Kjerstad was safe from drawing the short straw. This time, he won't be so lucky.

With Cowser's injury, Kjerstad was given the opportunity to serve as an everyday outfielder for the Orioles, something that seemed impossible months ago with the glut of outfielders on the team. The departures of Austin Hays, Kyle Stowers, and Anthony Santander, paired with Cowser's injury, opened the door for Kjerstad. He did not take advantage of it.

In 47 games, Kjerstad is worth a stunning -1 wins above replacement, the lowest on the team. To compare, Ryan O'Hearn leads the team with 2.1 bWAR, Henderson has 1.8, and Laureano has 1.2. Even Ryan Mountcastle, who has had a tough season, has a positive bWAR at 0.3.

Heston Kjerstad could be odd man out when Colton Cowser returns

To say Kjerstad has had a miserable season might be putting it too kindly. He has looked out of sorts in the outfield, missing cutoffs and showing a poor aptitude for knowing where the outfield wall is. Kjerstad also looks lost at the plate, frequently swinging late on fastballs and off-balance on breaking balls.

Former Orioles shortstop and broadcaster Mike Bordick commented on Kjerstad before Wednesday's rubber game between the Orioles and St. Louis Cardinals. Appearing on 105.7 The Fan's "Baltimore Baseball Tonight," Bordick said Kjerstad "seems off" and he has never seen him swing at so many bad pitches. He is hitless in his last 13 at-bats, lowering his already poor batting average to .190 and OPS to .545.

The other possible option Cowser could replace is Carlson. However, Carlson has heated up lately, homering in two straight games this week and notably starting over Kjerstad in the series finale against the Cardinals. In addition, Carlson is more of a fourth or fifth outfielder at this point in his career, and Cowser will be in the lineup nearly daily. To this end, it makes sense for Kjerstad to return to Triple-A (again) to get everyday at-bats and get himself out of this funk.

But the concern with Kjerstad is legitimate. In 137 at-bats, he has managed only 26 hits and five walks. He received his chance in 2025 with injuries to Cowser, Laureano, and Tyler O'Neill. With Cowser's impending return, and Laureano and O'Neill likely not far behind, Kjerstad has fallen hard off the perch. At this point, he may never get another chance like he had this year.

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