Just as the Orioles were finishing a difficult month of July on a high note, they’ve lost one of their best players for the foreseeable future.
Standout infielder Jordan Westburg suffered a fractured right hand after being hit by a 95-mph fastball from right-hander Yerry Rodriguez in the fifth inning of Wednesday’s 10-4 win over Toronto. Westburg, 25, temporarily stayed in the game before being replaced by Ramon Urias at third base in the following inning.
Manager Brandon Hyde announced the news after the game and was unsure of a timetable for Westburg’s return beyond saying “hopefully by the end of the regular season.” It’s a brutal development in what’s been an outstanding season for Westburg, whom FanGraphs ranks second on the club in wins above replacement (3.0). Westburg leads the Orioles in doubles (25) and ranks third in both home runs (18) and on-base plus slugging percentage (.815), numbers that earned him a trip to his first All-Star Game earlier this month.
“All-Star player. Injuries are part of the game. We have to pick up the pieces for him,” Hyde said. “We’ve got to play well. He’s a huge part of our lineup, our culture, really everything. He’s just right in the middle of everything, so we have to have other guys kind of step up in his place and fill the void.”
The injury came moments before returning top overall prospect Jackson Holliday clubbed a grand slam in his first major league game since April 23. Holliday’s return coincided with a strong finish to the homestand for the Orioles, who won four of the last five games to finish July with a more palatable 12-13 record. It marked first-place Baltimore’s first losing month since September of 2022.
The Orioles will now be counting on the 20-year-old Holliday and others to pick up the slack in Westburg’s absence. With Holliday moving into an everyday role at second base, Westburg was expected to play more extensively at third base, but that position will now likely be filled by veteran Ramon Urias for the time being.
Holliday’s monster blast — the first long ball of his major league career — landed on Eutaw Street and was a thrilling sight after he went a nightmarish 2-for-34 with 18 strikeouts in his first major league stint that lasted just 10 games in April.
“They’re celebrating right now in the clubhouse for [Holliday],” Hyde said. “We have a bittersweet attitude going right now with [Westburg’s injury], but Jackson with a huge hit for us today. I thought his at-bats were much better — even the outs to left field, the almost home run down the left-field line. He’s staying on the baseball so much better. Even the flyout to left field was a good swing [with] two strikes. The swing was a little bit shorter, and I liked the swings today.”
According to MASNSports.com, the Orioles will recall infielder Livan Soto — acquired from Cincinnati on Tuesday — to take Westburg’s roster spot for the start of a four-game set in Cleveland on Thursday. That won’t stop many from clamoring for general manager Mike Elias to promote corner infield prospect Coby Mayo, who entered Wednesday batting .293 with 20 homers and a .944 OPS at Triple-A Norfolk this season.
Adding insult to injury was Westburg’s fracture coming just one day after Elias traded second baseman Connor Norby to Miami as part of the deal for left-handed starting pitcher Trevor Rogers. However, Norby has never played third base at any professional level, so position shuffling would have been required for Hyde to play Norby, Holliday, and All-Star shortstop Gunnar Henderson in the same infield.
