Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Rehab games coming next week
Rotowire
Kjerstad (concussion) is expected to begin a rehab assignment on Sept. 10 or shortly thereafter, Danielle Allentuck and Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner report.
Kjerstad has not played since experiencing a recurrence of his concussion symptoms back in early August. However, he was recently cleared to begin baseball activities, and the hope is he will be ready to play in games next week. Kjerstad will be build back up slowly, so he's looking at a late-September return from the 10-day injured list, provided he has no setbacks along the way.
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Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Beginning activities
Rotowire
Manager Brandon Hyde said Wednesday that Kjerstad (concussion) has begun to ramp up baseball activities, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Kjerstad's concussion has kept him on the injured list since Aug. 7, though he finally seems to be turning a corner in his recovery. The O's skipper noted that there is still no timetable in place for the 25-year-old outfielder's return, but the door is not closed on him rejoining Baltimore before the end of the season.
Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: Option reversed, goes on IL
Rotowire
The Orioles reversed Kjerstad's option to Triple-A Norfolk on Wednesday and placed him on the 10-day injured list with a concussion.
Kjerstad had previously been placed on the 7-day IL on July 13 with a concussion before he was reinstated July 20. He went 2-for-18 with three walks and seven strikeouts while appearing in seven games for the Orioles before he was optioned to Norfolk last Thursday, but he never appeared in any games for the Triple-A club following his demotion. According to general manager Mike Elias, Kjerstad is continuing to contend with mild symptoms of the concussion nearly a month later, so the Orioles will keep him out of game action at Triple-A for the foreseeable future and give him more time off to recover, per Jake Rill of MLB.com. Kjerstad's placement on the IL is retroactive to this past Thursday, but don't expect him to be reinstated when he's first eligible to return Sunday.
The Orioles optioned Kjerstad to Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday.
Kjerstad had seemed due for an uptick in playing time after the Orioles traded Austin Hays last week, but he started just three of the next seven games and just one of the last five contests, even as Baltimore faced exclusively right-handed starters over that stretch. With trade-deadline pickups Eloy Jimenez and Austin Slater officially added to the active roster, Kjerstad will be one of the players to lose his spot.
Kjerstad is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays.
Kjerstad will stay on the bench for the fourth time in five games, and his playing-time outlook appears to have only worsened in the aftermath of Tuesday's trade deadline. Not only did Kjerstad stay put in Baltimore rather than being sent to a rebuilding team as part of a trade package, but he'll face more competition for at-bats at designated hitter and in the corner outfield after the Orioles acquired Eloy Jimenez from the White Sox and Austin Slater from the Reds on Tuesday. With rookie Colton Cowser seizing hold of the leadoff role against right-handed pitching, Kjerstad doesn't have a spot in an everyday outfield that typically features Cowser, Cedric Mullins and Anthony Santander from left to right. Meanwhile, Ryan O'Hearn and Jimenez seem poised to form a platoon at DH.
Orioles' Heston Kjerstad: On bench again for Game 1 on Monday
Rotowire
Kjerstad is out of the lineup for the first game of Monday's doubleheader with the Blue Jays.
Since returning from the 7-day injured list July 20 while he recovered from a concussion, Kjerstad has been deployed in a part-time role. He's started in just four of the Orioles' nine games following his activation, with four of his five absences from the lineup coming against right-handed pitching. Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins and Anthony Santander look to be manager Brandon Hyde's preferred starters in the outfield for now.
