Kjerstad still hasn't reported to alternate site [UPDATE: He's reported]

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

3 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

I heard Kjerstad is not in Florida and the people I know have no idea where he is or what his statis is currently. Apparently it's a mystery to most, even in the organization. 

This is very concerning and I was hoping you were going to chime in with some news about Kjerstad, that you heard through the grapevine. 

[Can_of_corn]

1 minute ago, OsFanSinceThe80s said:

This is very concerning and I was hoping you were going to chime in with some news about Kjerstad, that you heard through the grapevine. 

Yea, this isn't funny anymore.

[Sports Guy]

It’s really odd.  First of all, why is there even a secret about things?  Unless he has a serious health issue that the team isn’t willing to disclose at this time, why are so secretive?

If what Tony is saying is true, what is wrong with him then?  Does he suffer from depression or something along those lines? Or is he just lazy and doesn’t care?  Lost the desire to play the game?  Scared to play because of the myocarditis?

 

 

[Moose Milligan]

2 minutes ago, Sports Guy said:

It’s really odd.  First of all, why is there even a secret about things?  Unless he has a serious health issue that the team isn’t willing to disclose at this time, why are so secretive?

If what Tony is saying is true, what is wrong with him then?  Does he suffer from depression or something along those lines? Or is he just lazy and doesn’t care?  Lost the desire to play the game?  Scared to play because of the myocarditis?

 

 

We just witnessed a player with a serious health issue not hide it and make a comeback.  And Mancini is probably the face of the Orioles right now, Kjerstad is a guy who, outside of some diehard Orioles fans and big baseball fans who are really into the draft and prospects, no one really knows about.  Or really cares about.

If it's a serious health issue that needs to be covered up, it must be...super serious.  In a day and age where nothing is a secret, the fact that they're keeping this a secret is odd.

Things aren't adding up and something smells very fishy here.  If it was due to myocarditis, I think they'd just come out and say that....the fact that he had that issue isn't a secret and it wouldn't be hard for them to simply explain that he's working his way back from that.  That would be a plausible reason and one that everyone would understand.

I'm betting on either some sort of depression or lost the desire to play the game or a combination of both.  Like I said, something is fishy...and if what Tony said is true, that's a big, big concern.  

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

2 hours ago, Moose Milligan said:

If it's a serious health issue that needs to be covered up, it must be...super serious.  In a day and age where nothing is a secret, the fact that they're keeping this a secret is odd.

Things aren't adding up and something smells very fishy here.  If it was due to myocarditis, I think they'd just come out and say that....the fact that he had that issue isn't a secret and it wouldn't be hard for them to simply explain that he's working his way back from that.  That would be a plausible reason and one that everyone would understand.

This is where my mind is going wondering if Kjerstad is seriously ill, but even even if he's sick why is it being kept a secret. I hope he's ok and maybe it's just a matter of the recovery from myocarditis taking longer than Kjerstad would like. 

At the end of the day it's not our right to know everything, but it's weird there hasn't been some blanket statement put out to explain Kjerstad's absence. 

[Tony-OH]

When things are "secretive" it never ends up a good thing. As Moose pointed out, if it was still a myocarditis thing, you would think that would be announced, but there seems to be some kind of secretive hush-hush over his absence and that's concerning at this point. It's been over a year since he's played any kind of meaningful baseball and the Orioles organization has never seen him take a live BP since singing.

The fact is that he never showed up to spring training (from what I heard it was a bit of a surprise) and then the GM comes out and says he'll be at the alternate camp and he doesn't show up there either. 

Now maybe Elias is protecting his HIPPA rights and can't say much, but something is not adding up.

Now I've heard through the scouting grapevine that there were concerns by some that he had anxiety issues in college. I don't know what that means or what it entails, but I would hope the Orioles area scout was aware of them or that this is overblown. I've heard "anxiety" issues from multiple sources when referring to Kjerstad, but I have no idea if it has anything to do with his lack of arrival this spring.

It's all just very strange and would be a big blow to the organization if something here is serious and Kjerstad ends up a bust.

Hopefully he'll show up somewhere soon and get on the field.

 

[glenn__davis]

It really would be nice if the local media would take just a bit more interest in these sorts of things.  There's an awful lot of speculation here that could possibly be answered pretty easily if someone would just ask the right questions.

[Sports Guy]

5 minutes ago, glenn__davis said:

It really would be nice if the local media would take just a bit more interest in these sorts of things.  There's an awful lot of speculation here that could possibly be answered pretty easily if someone would just ask the right questions.

Was thinking the same thing.  It’s possible they have been asked and told something along the lines of no comment but if that’s the case, tell us that too.  That would speak volumes imo.

 

[LTO's]

Very strange situation and I feel like the beat reporters are not doing their due diligence. I went onto Kjerstad's twitter page and saw that he liked a tweet from a few days ago from an Orioles fan saying he was excited to see him play. It's possible he's still not cleared medically?

[interloper]

21 minutes ago, glenn__davis said:

It really would be nice if the local media would take just a bit more interest in these sorts of things.  There's an awful lot of speculation here that could possibly be answered pretty easily if someone would just ask the right questions.

This has been an issue with the area beat reporters for years. They don't have to be pushy jerks like, say, the Boston media, but they can definitely be more thorough. 

[LTO's]

19 hours ago, Frobby said:

The lack of any serious updates on Kjerstad is pretty disconcerting.   Maybe Roch will elaborate on his tweet in his blog.

Edit - he mentions Kjerstad in his blog, but just rehashes what Elias said before.  No real update.  https://www.masnsports.com/school-of-roch/2021/04/orioles-release-alternate-training-site-roster.html
 

This article mentions that he hasn't been cleared to participate. That sounds more medical related than him being missing. Still not good by any means. 

[Flash- bd]

Ironic this considering Kjerstad was sold as a very strong make-up guy upon selection. That was, as I recall, what Mike Snyder stated was what made him so sold on Kjerstad as the selection and on his future success as a pro. If there were anxiety issues it seems weird that this would be something that was emphasized when discussing / selling the pick...is it possible, @Tony-OH, that those are just unfounded whispers and that they're covering it up for purely medical reasons (worrying complications from the myocarditis for example)? 

[OsFanSinceThe80s]

30 minutes ago, LTO's said:

Very strange situation and I feel like the beat reporters are not doing their due diligence. I went onto Kjerstad's twitter page and saw that he liked a tweet from a few days ago from an Orioles fan saying he was excited to see him play. It's possible he's still not cleared medically?

I think if it was that simple of an explanation the Orioles would have announced Kjerstad is still rehabbing from myocarditis. 

I think something else is going on behind the scenes. I just hope Kjerstad is ok and is able to resume baseball when ready. 

[LTO's]

13 minutes ago, OsFanSinceThe80s said:

I think if it was that simple of an explanation the Orioles would have announced Kjerstad is still rehabbing from myocarditis. 

Have Hyde or Elias even been asked about this recently? I will wait to hear what they say to see if they're hiding anything. Roch is pretty plugged in and his article heavily implies it's medical related. 

[Tony-OH]

1 hour ago, Flash- bd said:

Ironic this considering Kjerstad was sold as a very strong make-up guy upon selection. That was, as I recall, what Mike Snyder stated was what made him so sold on Kjerstad as the selection and on his future success as a pro. If there were anxiety issues it seems weird that this would be something that was emphasized when discussing / selling the pick...is it possible, @Tony-OH, that those are just unfounded whispers and that they're covering it up for purely medical reasons (worrying complications from the myocarditis for example)? 

Could be. I'm not saying they are true per se, but I have head this from two separate sources. Who knows really?

It's all just really strange.