Baltimore Orioles Avoid Injury Scare After Star Youngster Was Hit By Pitch
Players throughout Spring Training have not made it easy on the Baltimore Orioles' decision makers about who is going to be on their 26-man Opening Day roster to begin the year.
This team has been the best across all of Major League Baseball during the exhibition period with a .783 win percentage.
The offense has been prolific, boasting top-three figures in runs, RBI, and homers, while also have the second-best run differential.
It's been an entire club effort.
Everyone has been putting up great performances, from the veterans ramping up for Opening Day, to the players competing for bench roles, to the prospects getting some more experience competing at this level.
The Orioles could have been dealt a tough blow when their star youngster Jordan Westburg was hit by a pitch on his elbow during the game against the Toronto Blue Jays and exited because of it.
However, Roch Kubatko of MASN reported that manager Brandon Hyde said the 25-year-old is fine.
That's great news for Baltimore.
After dealing with some injury issues at the beginning of camp and unfortunate tweaks throughout March, this is something positive for them.
Westburg is in competition to become their starting third baseman after Hyde announced Gunnar Henderson would primarily be used at shortstop during 2024.
Taken 30th overall in the 2020 draft, he quickly became a top-10 prospect for the Orioles and climbed his way through the pipeline until he made his Major League debut last season.
Across 68 games, Westburg slashed .260/.311/.404 with 54 total hits, three home runs, and 23 RBI. He also struggled with strikeouts during his first shot at the bigs, recording 56 K's.
But, he has a real shot at making the Opening Day roster and being named the starting third baseman to start the season.
Westburg avoiding injury is not only great for his own career, but for the outlook on Baltimore's early year production.
