OAKLAND, Calif. — For Heston Kjerstad, maybe the third time’s the charm.
In his first two stints with the Orioles, Kjerstad didn’t receive the regular playing time that would be expected for a top prospect. Earlier this season, he was called up with much fanfare, only to receive 17 plate appearances across the 17 games for which he was on the roster.
But when Kjerstad rejoined the team in late June, it was clear something was different. Manager Brandon Hyde is giving him a little more playing time, and the 25-year-old is taking advantage of anytime his skipper writes his name in the lineup.
Kjerstad did so again Sunday, blasting a three-run homer in the first inning to propel the Orioles to a 6-3 win over the Athletics in Baltimore’s final game at the historic Oakland Coliseum. He joined Anthony Santander, who also smacked a long ball in the first inning, and backed Grayson Rodriguez, who delivered another quality start, to spur the bounce-back win after Saturday’s calamitous 19-8 loss.
“He’s given us a boost,” Hyde said. “He’s got that power potential, and he’s taking good at-bats. He’s popping one every once in a while and getting some big hits for us.”
Kjerstad has been one of Baltimore’s best hitters since his recall June 24, and his loud bat is making it difficult to keep him off the field. In his 34 plate appearances in the 13 games since, the left-handed slugger is sporting a .323/.441/.733 slash line — good for a whopping 1.175 OPS — with three home runs and 12 RBIs.
Kjerstad didn’t start the first two games of the Oakland series, but he’s already totaled double the number of plate appearances in four fewer games than his stint earlier this season.
“The more at-bats you can get, the more consecutive games you can play, it kind of helps you get into a rhythm or stay in a rhythm,” Kjerstad said. “But also, it’s the game of baseball. Whenever your name’s called on, whether you’ve gotten to play every day or you haven’t played in a couple days, you’ve got to show up and do your job and help the team win.”
Before Kjerstad’s big fly, a trio of Orioles players who were surprisingly left off the All-Star team sparked a two-out rally to bring the youngster to the plate. Santander’s homer down the right field line was his 23rd of the season, moving him into a tie for the fourth most in the majors. Ryan O’Hearn and Jordan Westburg then singled to lob the alley-oop for Kjerstad to slam. Santander, O’Hearn and Westburg were all finalists to start the Midsummer Classic but were not selected on the players’ ballot or by the Commissioner’s Office.
“There’s definitely a couple other guys that deserve to go or put up numbers that are respectable to hopefully earn an appearance,” Kjerstad said.
Rodriguez entered the Sunday matinee coming off a 6 1/3-scoreless inning start in Seattle and extended that clean streak to 13 1/3 frames against the Athletics. The 24-year-old right-hander pitched into the seventh, allowing three runs and striking out eight for his ninth quality start out of 16 this season. In his sophomore campaign, Rodriguez has a 3.52 ERA and 11 wins, tied for the most in the majors.
“For a guy in his first full year, that’s unbelievable right before the break,” Hyde said of Rodriguez’s win total. “Just getting better and better.”
After the Athletics (34-58) scored three runs in the sixth and seventh, setup man Yennier Cano and closer Craig Kimbrel each fired scoreless frames to seal the victory. Kimbrel, who was also left off the All-Star team despite his stellar season, has 23 saves this season — and 440 in his 15-year career — and a 2.10 ERA, allowing only one earned run in his past 21 innings.
Baltimore is 57-33 and remains tied for first in the American League with the Cleveland Guardians. After going 4-2 on their West Coast road trip, the Orioles are three games ahead of the New York Yankees atop the AL East.
“We’ve been good in the face of adversity pretty much all year. I think this road trip is a good example of that,” O’Hearn said. “It’s never easy to come out west and win two series. Proud of the guys for how we competed. After yesterday, coming back and just ready to bounce back and find a way to get the series. It’s kind of the good character of our team.”
Kjerstad, the No. 2 pick in the 2020 draft, kept his hands inside of a low cutter from Athletics right-hander Mitch Spence, displaying the plus power that garnered him praise as Baseball America’s No. 23 prospect. The left-handed slugger clobbered the offering with an exit velocity of 107.4 mph and confidently jogged around the bases as it traveled 406 feet over the left-center field wall.
“Heston can swing the bat, and I think he’s really starting to show people that he can.” Rodriguez said of Kjerstad. “I think the league’s about to get a wake-up call about him. Because the way he handles the bat is impressive. He’s got some juice. You see it during BP, and it’s starting to show during the games.”
Rodriguez mowed through an A’s lineup that put up 19 runs on 18 hits Saturday off Cade Povich and the Orioles’ bullpen. It wasn’t until the sixth when the Athletics, the second-worst team in the AL, scored when Tyler Soderstrom lined an RBI double and Shea Langeliers hit a sacrifice fly. Rodriguez went back out for the seventh but didn’t record an out, and reliever Jacob Webb allowed a run charged to Rodriguez on JJ Bleday’s RBI groundout.
With his drop-off-the-table changeup and mid-90s mph fastball, Rodriguez generated 17 whiffs after he got a career-high 19 swings and misses in his start against the Mariners on Tuesday.
“The A’s, they can still swing it,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who you’re playing. These are all big league teams. They’re all big league hitters. So any time we can go out and we can win a baseball game, that’s huge for our club.”
After an Athletics error (one of their three in an ugly defensive display) in the third gave Baltimore its fifth run, Gunnar Henderson tacked on insurance in the ninth with an RBI single. Kimbrel allowed a rare single with two outs in the ninth, but center fielder Cedric Mullins camped under the final out. With the Athletics relocating to Sacramento for three years before moving to Las Vegas, the Orioles’ win gives the club a 146-147 career record at the Coliseum.
Baltimore has won three straight series, including both on its West Coast trip, and is on pace for 102 wins.
“Skip just told us, ‘That’s championship baseball,’” Rodriguez said. “Being able to go to the West Coast, it’s not easy. If we’re able to go 4-2 like that, that’s big. That’s going to carry us deep into October.”
Corbin Burnes — Orioles All-Star https://t.co/p6YsYVmSec
— Jacob Calvin Meyer (@jcalvinmeyer) July 7, 2024
Around the horn
• With a day off Monday, it was possible for ace Corbin Burnes to start Tuesday on regular rest and then take the ball for the first-half finale Sunday versus the Yankees. Instead, he’s remaining on turn to start Wednesday versus the Chicago Cubs, which will be his final one of the first half. Dean Kremer is starting Tuesday, and Albert Suárez will start Thursday.
• If the Orioles’ rotation remains on turn and no moves are made, Cade Povich, Rodriguez and Kremer would be in line to start the final series of the first half against New York.
Cubs at Orioles
Tuesday, 6:35 p.m.
TV: MASN2
Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM
