Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias often speaks of his desire to see prospects “graduate Triple-A” in terms of performance before promoting them to the majors. Jordan Westburg’s cap and gown at last came Monday.
After more than a year of strong performances with Triple-A Norfolk, the Orioles called up Westburg, a 24-year-old infielder Baseball America ranks as the No. 4 prospect in the organization and No. 46 in the sport, before Monday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds.
Before batting seventh and playing second base in his major league debut, Westburg said the wait wasn’t something he concentrated on. It showed in his play, displaying from other Orioles minor leaguers. In 158 games with the Tides across the past two seasons, Westburg hit .283/.366/.533 with 36 home runs and 128 runs driven in.
“I trusted that it was going to come,” Westburg said. “Maybe not in my time, but in due time.
“I definitely felt like I was making the right strides to get to this level, and I didn’t really put too much thought to it. I was just focused on trying to get better every single day, trying to make sure I was doing what I’m doing to maybe set myself to be at this step and where I am right now. Didn’t feel like a long time. Felt like I got drafted yesterday. So, it’s been really quick, really fun.”
To create roster space for Westburg, the Orioles optioned infielder Joey Ortiz — another well-regarded prospect — to Norfolk, while catcher José Godoy cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to Norfolk, opening a 40-man roster spot.
Promoted to Norfolk alongside eventual top overall prospect Gunnar Henderson early last June, Westburg had to wait much longer for his first opportunity in the majors. Westburg had 714 Triple-A plate appearances before his promotion, compared with Henderson’s 295.
Like Henderson, Westburg was Baltimore’s second selection in a draft, taken 30th overall in 2020 out of Mississippi State a year after the Orioles drafted Henderson out of an Alabama high school atop the second round with pick No. 42. His college experience gave him an early leg up on Henderson, but the pair spent much of their climbs up Baltimore’s farm system sharing infields. Most of Westburg’s defensive appearances in the minors came at shortstop, but he often ceded the position to Henderson and Ortiz while seeing regular time at second and third base.
Both beat him to the majors. Henderson was called up last August, baseball’s top prospect arriving amid the Orioles’ unexpected playoff push. Ortiz, also a member of Baltimore’s 2019 draft class, was eligible for the Rule 5 draft this past offseason and thus was added to the organization’s 40-man roster, making it easier for the club to promote him over Westburg when a need arose for a right-handed-hitting infielder early this year.
Monday, they swapped places, reuniting Henderson and Westburg.
“He’s been killing it all year, so I’m really happy for him to be up here, and I’m really looking forward to being able to share the infield with him again,” Henderson said. “We’re competitive with each other. We pushed each other each and every day when we were down there, and really looking forward to doing the same thing up here. I know it’s just going to help both of us become the best player we can be.”
Earlier this month, the Orioles added Josh Lester, a minor league veteran, to the 40-man roster and promoted him over Westburg, with manager Brandon Hyde explaining Lester’s call-up by saying the club sought another left-handed bat ahead of a string of matchups with right-handed starters. In his professional career, Westburg has fared far better against right-handed pitching, posting an OPS more than 350 points higher this season when facing same-handed pitchers compared with when he has the platoon advantage.
His debut came against Reds left-hander Brandon Williamson, with fellow right-handed hitters Jorge Mateo and Ramón Urías also starting on the infield while Henderson and Adam Frazier, who hit from the left side, were on the bench. Hyde said playing time going forward was “not set in stone,” with matchups and needs for rest the determining factors.
Henderson and catcher Adley Rutschman, , are the only players the Orioles have promoted into full-time roles in the past two seasons. It’s not yet clear whether Westburg will join them.
“We just felt like he was ready to help impact our team,” Hyde said. “We feel like Jordan can help us win, impact our team positively. It’s not a development situation. We’re trying to win games.”
If Westburg had any frustrations over being bypassed, he never let them show in his performance. He finished 2022 with an .852 OPS, 27 home runs and 106 RBIs between Norfolk and Double-A Bowie, recognized as the organization’s minor league player of the year. This season with the Tides, Westburg has hit .295/.372/.567 with 18 home runs and 54 RBIs in 67 games. Westburg also made six defensive appearances in the outfield for Norfolk, reflecting the versatility he now brings to Baltimore.
Hyde said he will primarily play second and third for the Orioles, with shortstop also an option. Westburg said “I embrace the challenge” of playing multiple positions, adding he simply wants to do what he can to help the Orioles win.
“He’s a true professional in every aspect of the word,” Lester said earlier this month. “The way he goes about his business before the game, he’s probably one of the, if not the most prepared person on the field at all times.”
Westburg was who appeared on at least one offseason list of baseball’s top 100 prospects, and only he and Henderson lasted until the end of spring. A late-camp injury to one of the Orioles’ established infielders might have resulted in Westburg landing on the opening-day roster.
Instead, his wait continued months into the season. But Sunday afternoon, after Norfolk completed a first half in which it topped the International League, Tides manager Buck Britton brought Westburg into the visiting manager’s office in Nashville, Tennessee, and told him he was heading to the majors.
Not known as one to smile, Westburg responded with a nod and a “Yes, sir.”
“It hit me pretty hard, and I was trying stay composed, I think,” Westburg said a day later in the Orioles clubhouse. “It looks worse than it actually felt, that’s for sure.”
He then went about calling family, finding the service in the tunnel of Nashville’s ballpark to be “brutal.” But eventually, he got through to his parents, Paul and Christine, and wife, Anna Claire. The three of them joined him at Camden Yards on Monday, a day he described as a “whirlwind” as he settled into a ballpark he waited a lifetime to get to and hopes to spend years to come.
“First few hours were crazy, trying to figure out travel plans, and got in here pretty early this morning,” Westburg said.
“But we’re here now.”
()
