The Orioles are poised to promote top infield candidates Jordan Westburg ahead of tomorrow’s game against the Reds, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Baltimore will need to make a 40-man roster change to accommodate Westburg and make room for him on the active roster, although that move hasn’t been announced yet. Passan adds that Westburg will be in the starting XI in his Major League debut tomorrow.
Westburg was selected 30th overall by Baltimore in the first round of the 2020 draft. In his debut pro season, he immediately impressed with the racquet, chipping .285/.389/.479 in 506 shots to the plate while progressing from Single-A to Double-A over the course of the 2021 season. While those numbers were certainly impressive, his approximate league average of 104 wRC+ in 30 Double-A games made one wonder if he would be able to be as dominant in the upper-league minors as he was in A-ball .
The youngster has broadly answered those questions with his performance in 2023. After showing improvement in 47 games at the Double-A level with a .247/.344/.473 slash line, Westburg made another step forward with a strong showing at the Triple-A during his season in old age of 23 years. Last season, Westburg had an impressive .274/.361/.508 in 91 games at the level with a career-low strikeout rate and 46 extra base hits, including 18 home runs.
After a stellar 2022 season, Westburg kicked off the 2023 season and was ranked as one of the sport’s top 75 contenders by MLB Pipeline, Baseball America, and Baseball Prospectus. He has since delivered on that promise by posting career-best 67-game numbers on his return to Triple-A. In 301 plate appearances this season, Westburg has flattened .295/.372/.567 with a WRC+ of 131, a strikeout rate of just 21.3% and .404 woBA.
With such impressive numbers, it’s no wonder the Orioles made the decision to pursue Westburg’s rise despite the club’s crowded infield. Gunnar HendersonNaturally, he’s anchored on the left side of infield, having appeared in 67 of the club’s 76 games this season. That probably lets Westburg mix in alongside the likes of us Jorge Mateo, Ramón UriasAnd Adam Frazier at center, although Frazier has also played outfield this season while Urias has occasionally stepped in at first base Ryan Mountcastle on the injured list.
Of the above trio, only Urias has batted above the league average with a WRC+ of 101 this season. However, Mateo’s glove at shortstop ranks in the 89th percentile of qualified outfield players according to Statcast, meaning he’ll likely start a tie as a racquet, even though he’s cooled off significantly after a hot start to the season. That leaves someone like Frazier and Joey Ortiz will most likely lose playing time in favor of Westburg. Ortiz, in particular, stands out as a potential candidate for Westburg as the 24-year-old youngster has made just 15 appearances for the club this season, batting .212/.206/.242 in 35 plate appearances.
Westburg’s promotion is the latest in a string of recent promotions for top prospects that began with the catcher’s debut Adley Rutschman last year. Since then, Henderson, Ortiz and Grayson Rodriguez are among the young players making their debuts for the Orioles, though Ortiz and Rodriguez have yet to fully establish themselves in the major leagues. The youth movement in Baltimore has paid off as the club posted a 47-29 record after a surprisingly competitive 2022 season, leaving both in second place in a highly competitive AL East division and in the driver’s seat of the AL Wild Card race.