Randall High Graduate Picked By The Baltimore Orioles

Now this is great news for Randall High School grad and Arkansas Razorback Heston Kjerstad.  The Baltimore Orioles selected center fielder Heston Kjerstad with the second overall pick of Wednesday's MLB Draft, using their top pick to infuse their system with the most highly touted left-handed college power bat in this year’s class. The 10th-ranked prospect on MLB Pipeline’s Draft board, Kjerstad was considered the second-best power hitter available behind Arizona State player Spencer Torkelson, who went first overall to Detroit.

Kjerstad earned 35 home runs and had a batting average of .345 in his 145 games as a Razorback.

The Amarillo native played for two College World Series teams, including the 2018 team nearly won the championship.

Baltimore Oriole Trey Mancini tweeted this welcome to Kjerstad:

Here is what MLB had to say about Kjerstad:

“In landing on Kjerstad, the Orioles hope they’ve found a future impact slugger in right field for years to come. A 36th-round pick of the Mariners as a Texas high schooler in 2017, Kjerstad set an Arkansas freshman home run record with 14 in his first spring in Fayetteville. He added 17 more homers as a sophomore, helping the Razorbacks to consecutive College World Series appearances. Kjerstad and the Razorbacks were national runner-ups in 2018, losing to Adley Rutschman’s Oregon State Beavers in the final. He would go on to hit .343 with 37 homers in 150 career games for the Razorbacks, also starring for Team USA”.

Congratulations to Heston Kjerstad! we will be cheering you on here in Amarillo! Play Ball!