Baltimore Orioles Roster Moves 3/23

The Baltimore Orioles front office and management staff have trimmed the roster by quite a bit this week. As Opening Day approaches, more players find out whether or not they have been named to the roster or will be sent back to the minor league camps. This week, Kyle Stowers, Heston Kjerstad, Nick Vespi, Bruce Zimmerman, Matt Krook, Peyton Burdick, and Kaleb Ort were all optioned back to the Norfolk Tides, the club’s AAA affiliate. The Orioles’ young superstar and MLB’s number-one prospect, Jackson Holliday, was also informed that he would begin the season with the Tides.

By the Numbers

CF Kyle Stowers

The Baltimore Orioles drafted him in the second round of the 2019 MLB Amateur Draft. Debut June 13th, 2022 for the Orioles. He has a slash line of .207/.267/.331 in his two-year career in the big leagues. He has recorded twelve runs, 25 hits, four doubles, one triple, three home runs, 11 RBIs, eight walks, and 41 strikeouts with an OPS of .598. This spring, he has slashed a .256/.267/.744 with nine runs, 11 hits, seven home runs, 14 RBIs, one walk, and 13 strikeouts with an OPS of 1.011.

OF Heston Kjerstad

Drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 36th round of the 2017 Amateur Draft and again in the first round of the 2020 Amateur Draft by the Baltimore Orioles. His debut came on September 14th, 2023. In the few months that he played with the Orioles, he slashed a .233/.281/.467 with three runs, seven hits, one double, two home runs, three RBIs, two walks, and ten strikeouts with an OPS of .748. This spring, he has a slash line of .265/.294/.286 with seven runs, 13 hits, one double, three RBIs, one walk, and 12 strikeouts with an OPS of .580.

LHP Nick Vespi

The Baltimore Orioles drafted him in the 18th round of the 2015 MLB Amateur Draft. Debut on May 20th, 2022. In his two years with Baltimore, he has a W/L record of 6-0 with an ERA of 4.17 with 34 appearances, six games finished, and one save across 41.0 innings pitched. He allowed 45 hits, 19 earned runs, seven home runs, ten walks, two intentional walks, and 37 strikeouts, with a WHIP of 1.341. This spring, he has a W/L record of 2-0 with an ERA of 5.40 across seven appearances and one save across 8.1 innings pitched. He allowed seven hits, five earned runs, one home run, one walk, and 12 strikeouts with a WHIP of 0.96.

LHP Bruce Zimmerman

The Atlanta Braves drafted him in the 5th round of the 2017 MLB Amateur Draft. Debut on September 17th, 2020, for the Baltimore Orioles (traded in 2018). In his four-year Major League career with the Orioles, Zimmerman has a W/L record of 8-10 across 38 appearances, with 27 starts, six games finished, no saves, and an ERA of .444. He allowed 195 hits, 103 runs, 98 earned runs, 40 home runs, 36 walks, and 126 strikeouts across 158.1 innings pitched with a WHIP of 1.459. This spring, he has a W/L record of 0-0 with an ERA of 3.52 across three appearances for 7.2 innings pitched. He allowed 12 hits, five runs, three earned runs, zero home runs, three walks, and seven strikeouts with a WHIP of 1.96.

LHP Matt Krook

Drafted by the Miami Marlins in the 1st round of the 2013 Amateur Draft and by the San Francisco Giants in the 4th round of the 2016 Amateur Draft. Debut on June 16th, 2023, for the New York Yankees (drafted by the Yankees in the 2020 Rule 5 draft). In his short Major League career with the Yankees, Krook has a W/L record of 0-0 across four appearances, with one game finished, no saves, and an ERA of 24.75. He allowed eight hits, 11 earned runs, one home run, six walks, and three strikeouts across 4.0 innings pitched with a WHIP of 3.500. The Baltimore Orioles purchased Krook on February 18th, 2024. During Spring Training with the Orioles, he had a W/L record of 1-0 with an ERA of 2.25 across four appearances and 4.0 innings pitched. He allowed two hits, one earned run, two walks, and seven strikeouts with a WHIP of 1.00.

CF Peyton Burdick

The Miami Marlins drafted him in the 3rd round of the 2019 MLB Amateur Draft. Debut on August 5th, 2022 for the Marlins. In his two-year Major League career, Burdick has a slash line of .200/.281/.368 with twelve runs, 25 hits, six doubles, five home runs, 13 RBIs, two stolen bases, 11 walks, and 53 strikeouts with an OPS of .649. On February 14th, 2024, Burdick was purchased by the Baltimore Orioles from the Marlins for cash considerations. On February 19th, 2024, he was designated for assignment. The Chicago White Sox claimed Burdick from the Orioles on February 23rd, 2024. On March 13th, 2024, the White Sox again designated Burdick for assignment. Burdick returned to Baltimore on March 16th, 2024, when the Orioles claimed him off of waivers from the White Sox. During Spring Training with the White Sox, he has a slash line of .071/.133/.071 with zero runs, one hit, one RBI, and five strikeouts with an OPS of .204.

RHP Kaleb Ort

He was signed by the Arizona Diamondbacks as an amateur free agent in September 2016 before being released in March 2017. In May 2017, the New York Yankees signed him as a free agent. The Boston Red Sox drafted him in the 2020 Rule 5 Draft. In his three-year Major League career with the Red Sox, he has a W/L record of 2-4 with an ERA of 6.27 with 47 appearances, two starts, 13 games finished, and one save. He allowed 63 hits, 42 runs, 36 earned runs, ten home runs, 25 walks, three intentional walks, and 51 strikeouts across 51.2 innings pitched and a WHIP of 1.703. On October 13th, 2023, he was claimed by the Seattle Mariners on waivers. Following that move, he was again designated for assignment and claimed on waivers by the Miami Marlins on December 1st, 2023. February 13th, 2024, saw Ort moving from the Marlins to the Phillies on waivers, and on February 19th, 2024, he was traded to the Orioles for cash considerations. During Spring Training with the Orioles, he has a W/L record of 0-0 and an ERA of 6.23 across five appearances for 4.1 innings. He allowed four hits, three earned runs, zero home runs, three walks, and four strikeouts with a WHIP of 1.62.

INF Jackson Holliday

Jackson Holliday, MLB’s number one prospect and son of former Rockies left-fielder Matt Holliday, was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 2022 MLB Amateur Draft. He has spent all his professional career in the Baltimore Orioles farm system. He has played at all levels of the farm system with a two-year career in the minors with a slash line of .320/.449/.490 with 127 runs, 173 hits, 35 doubles, nine triples, 13 home runs, 84 RBIs, 28 stolen bases, 126 walks, and 130 strikeouts with an OPS of .938. During Spring Training, he has a slash line of .311/.354/.600 with six runs, 14 hits, three doubles, two triples, two home runs, six RBIs, three walks, and 15 strikeouts with an OPS of .954.