Baltimore Orioles prospect Heston Kjerstad promoted to Norfolk

On Sunday night, the Orioles' Twitter saw some breaking news, with Heston Kjerstad headed to Norfolk. 'Adley Rutschman's Big T*ts II' was the first with the news, confirmed per Bob Phelan (BSL On the Verge) and Orioles' insiders. The Norfolk Tides made the callup official on Monday afternoon.

Top Orioles prospect Heston Kjerstad promoted to Triple A Norfolk

In 46 games at Double A Bowie, Heston finished with a .310/.384/.576/.960 slash line, 11 Home Runs, 23 RBI, 30 runs and 3 stolen bases with 206 plate appearances. He played in the outfield, at designated hitter and first base.

This promotion is a moment of joy in Birdland. Heston, the second overall pick in 2020, battled against myocarditis and a hamstring injury in the last two years. He made his professional debut on June 10th, 2022. He raked against Low-A pitchers and played in Aberdeen down the stretch.

His rising continued in the Arizona Fall League. The 2022 AFL MVP finished with 5 Home Runs, .357 batting average and 1.007 OPS. Now, he's a one step closer and one step away from the majors. An example for perseverance and resiliency from Heston.

The 24-year-old will play alongside Colton Cowser, Daz Cameron, Shayne Fontana and Hudson Haskin, who'll play rehab games to rejoin the team soon. We'll see until the trade deadline if Baltimore decides to stick with Kjerstad and his peers or if someone could be dealt for veterans. It's up to you, Elias.

Alongside Kjerstad, the Orioles promoted the LHP Easton Lucas to Norfolk. The 26-year-old, who came from the Jonathan Villar trade in 2019 offseason, played two seasons in Bowie and made a good impression while playing in the AFL. In 2023, Lucas has a 1-0 record, 1.59 ERA, 17.0 IP, 4 walks allowed and 24 strikeouts (0.765 WHIP).